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Last year, RetailDetail spoke with a whole host of impressive industry leaders all over Europe. We look back on 2025 in ten leading retail conversations.
1. DreamLand’s toy dream
One of the big – and surprising – winners in the Benelux retail market in 2025 was Nolmans Retail Support, the Limburg-based group that sacrificed its baby ToyChamp to launch a major toy offensive under the name DreamLand after the company had also taken over Intertoys from Mirage Retail Group a year earlier. The recipe for success? “We sell emotion, that’s our strength compared to online,” says CEO Koen Nolmans.
2. Breathing space at Søstrene Grene
While interior design chain Casa went under and Leen Bakker had to give up on Belgium, industry peer Søstrene Grene is doing better than ever. Over the next two years, the retailer wants to grow from 340 to 500 stores in Europe. According to CEO Mikkel Grene, the factors for success are combining a sensory shopping experience with accessible prices. “Our unique shopping experience offers shoppers breathing space.”
3. The wow factor of Uniqlo
Strong growth in the Netherlands and a gem of a new flagship store in Antwerp: for Japanese company Uniqlo, part of Fast Retailing, interaction with customers in physical stores is crucial to keeping its finger on the pulse of shoppers, says Kaman Leung, operational director in the Benelux: “Stores are our antennae in the world.”
4. The right size at Hunkemöller
Last year, Hunkemöller got a new brand positioning, a new identity, new collections, and a new store concept: CEO Brian Grevy left no stone unturned at the company to make the brand more relevant than ever to all women. Why does the retailer have more store employees than most of its competitors? “They are the ones who make the change happen. Did you know that up to 80% of women wear the wrong bra size?“
5. H&M calculates the cost of doing nothing
While quite a few governments and companies are scaling back their green ambitions, H&M is taking a different approach. Do sustainable investments cost money? No, instead of focusing solely on immediate returns, we need to anticipate and address future risks, says Ulrika Leverenz, head of Green Investments at the fashion group: “We have to factor in the cost of doing nothing.” It’s a matter of avoiding higher costs in the future.
6. Carrefour’s Belgian sentiment
What about the growing concern about the future of Belgium within the Carrefour group, which recently sold Italy and has also put Romania and Poland up for sale? Not an issue, according to Belgian CEO Geoffroy Gersdorff: “It’s normal for the group to evaluate its portfolio every year. We left China, and in France and Romania we acquired Match and Cora. Our own results are our best guarantee for the future.” And: “You have to be Belgian to understand the peculiarities of our country.”
7. Food and fashion form a whole at Fashion Club 70
Customers are returning to physical stores, multi-brand boutiques are holding their own, and hospitality is a natural complement to the fashion activities at Fashion Club 70, one of the leading fashion agencies in the Benelux. “But even in the luxury segment, price increases cannot continue,” warns CEO Miguel Dheedene.
8. How King Colis saves lost packages
All over Europe, French pop-up chain King Colis opens temporary stores to sell lost e-commerce packages. It is both a lottery draw and a circular story, the retailer says. Co-founder Killian Denis sees the irony of the model: “Even our own packages get lost sometimes.”
9. The makeover of Wijnegem Shopping Center
Wijnegem Shopping Center, Belgium’s largest indoor shopping center, has undergone its most radical makeover since it opened 32 years ago. “We didn’t see a decline in visitor numbers during the works; on the contrary, there was even a slight increase.” High-profile marketing campaigns and a strong focus on service are the basis of its success, says general manager Katrien Geysen.
10. AI is changing e-commerce for Zalando
Zalando is on the verge of a fundamental change of course. “E-commerce has hardly changed in the last twenty years,“ says the digital fashion platform, but that is all about to change with artificial intelligence and augmented reality. The retailer wants to move away from a purely transaction-driven webshop.
