ETRetail ShopFWD Summit Day 1: Indian retail’s next battle is for relevance, time and the right experience
A quick-commerce purchase, for instance, derives value from removing friction, while a cinema visit commands a premium by amplifying the experience. Fashion adds another layer: consumers increasingly want to be seen and validated.
Bengaluru: The consumer has already become omnichannel. Retail, meanwhile, is still trying to catch up. That was perhaps the clearest message to emerge from Day 1 of the 4th ETRetail ShopFWD Summit 2026 in Bengaluru, where leaders across fashion, retail, watches, jewellery, shopping centres, technology and supply chain debated what it will take to win the next generation of Indian consumers. The day began with Amisha Jain, MD & CEO, Arvind Fashions, challenging the industry to rethink what “experience” actually means. Her argument was that retailers need to decide which parts of shopping should disappear, which should become richer and which should become shareable. A quick-commerce purchase, for instance, derives value from removing friction, while a cinema visit commands a premium by amplifying the experience. Fashion adds another layer: consumers increasingly want to be seen and validated. Advt
Jain also pointed to the changing role of creators. Content is no longer sitting neatly at the top of the marketing funnel; creators are increasingly generating demand before a consumer ever walks into a store. Her larger question for the industry was: who actually owns the experience — the product, brand, marketing, store, platform or supply chain? Consumers will pay for time — but only if it feels worth it That question took a physical-retail turn during the panel featuring Kavindra Mishra, MD & CEO, Shoppers Stop; Abhijeet Dabas, CEO, Nykaa Fashion; Lavanya Nalli, Vice Chairperson, Nalli Silks; and Muhammad Ali, CEO, Forum Malls, Prestige Group.
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