Commercial collaboration
On June 24 and 25, 2025, the annual K5 FUTURE RETAIL CONFERENCE took place at ESTREL Berlin. Nearly 5,000 participants attended the K5 Conference 2025, making this year’s summit the most successful K5 FUTURE RETAIL CONFERENCE in its history.
More than 200 exhibitors and partners showcased their solutions, tools, and innovations for retailers and brands across 14,000 sqm of space. Special thanks go to the Platinum and Premium partners: Salesforce, Shopify, Akeneo, commercetools, Contentserv, SCAYLE, Mirakl, and PlentyONE for their strong support.
“Open Mind, Open Heart, Open Will – that was not only part of my kick-off speech but also the attitude I brought into both days of K5 2025. I felt the flow – and experienced a conference that was open, warm-hearted, and full of curiosity. A K5 where real connection happened – and where you could feel what emerges when people truly engage with one another.”
– Verena Schlüpmann, Managing Director, K5
Over five stages – including two main stages and three expo stages – more than 250 speakers delivered deep insights into strategies, structures, and success formulas in (digital) commerce. After the “year of efficiency,” this year’s theme “Into the Flow” explored what it means for digital commerce when the rules of the game change almost daily.
#LearnFromTheBest
The conference opened with the K5 Theses 2025, drawing large crowds. Among the speakers were Paul Krauss (teamOne), Kristina Mertens (everstox), Stefan Wenzel, Johannes Altmann (pinops), Karo Junker de Neui (Etribes, Kassenzone), and Alexander Graf (Kassenzone). Their commentary on the current state and future of e-commerce was sharp, insightful, and sometimes provocative: Karo Junker de Neui claimed that speed beats strategy, while Kristina Mertens emphasized that content must no longer be a luxury – but the core.
Kenneth Liu from SHEGLAM took the stage for the first time, presenting how data-driven community brands are scaling globally. Other major names such as Veronika Strotmann (Yepoda), Tomáš Čupr (Rohlik), Markus Schöberl (Amazon), Theresa Holler (Redcare Pharmacy), and Johannes Kliesch (Snocks) packed the house at the FUTURE RETAIL STAGE across both conference days.
“Be water, my friend” – this quote sums it up perfectly. AI, social commerce, and innovation pressure from Asia are changing everything. To survive, we must move, adapt, and reposition. That’s exactly what the K5 Future Retail 2025 was: nearly 5,000 people in flow, exchanging ideas, and looking ahead. We look forward to 2026.”
– Sven Rittau, Managing Director, K5
The Deep Dive Stage again hosted standout sessions this year. A strong marketplace and retail media program, curated and moderated by Marcel Brindöpke (Commerce Advisory Network), featured speakers from OTTO, eBay, OBI, Fressnapf, Breuninger, and Marc O’Polo.
Ten startup pitches from the retail tech and D2C sectors spotlighted bold innovators such as Johanna Rief (FYRCE CARE), Polina Sergeeva (menstruflow), Ronny Szelinsky (gethappy), and Lucas Boller (kinetic). They received not only a major platform but also direct and honest feedback from jury members including Sherin Maruhn, Björn Jopen, Filip Dames, and Monique Hoell.
This year’s AI track also drew high interest. Spanning both days, it featured speakers like Hamidreza Hosseini (ECODYNAMICS), Ruppert Bodmeier (DISROOPTIVE), Livia von Mitschke-Collande (Google), Christian Knauf (Deutsche Telekom MMS), and Vanessa Stützle (LUQOM GROUP). Topics such as generative AI, AI-first commerce, predictive shopping, and AI agents were explored through keynotes and fireside chats.
Over 85 masterclasses provided attendees with hands-on learning on topics such as retail media, marketplace optimization, AI in performance marketing, omnichannel CRM, and geolocation-based targeting – practical, interactive, and focused on real-world use cases from digital commerce.
#MeetTheBest
In addition to the stage content, the K5 FUTURE RETAIL CONFERENCE 2025 was also all about networking: Formats like Speed Networking, Guided Tours, the Female Circle Apéro (a successful premiere), the Open Bar, the K5 CONNECT PARTY powered by Amex, and table tennis tournaments were enthusiastically used for connection, learning, discussion, and celebration.
#BelongToTheBest
Service providers, solution vendors, and agencies from the digital commerce sector in the DACH region had even more reason to celebrate with the third edition of the K5 COMMERCE AWARD, powered by Henning Heesen & Company, which honored outstanding achievements in commerce. Entrants competed in 10 different categories, with the coveted awards determined by public voting and a final decision from a distinguished expert jury. The awards were presented on the first evening of the K5 Conference 2025, hosted by Verena Schlüpmann and Bella Wondra.
The next K5 FUTURE RETAIL CONFERENCE will take place on June 23–24, 2026, at ESTREL Berlin.
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