At NRF, we hosted our exclusive industry event Lightspeed Edge, and the energy was unmatched. It was a space for real conversation—practical sessions, candid questions and networking that didn’t feel like speed dating. We wanted retailers and partners to talk openly about what’s changing and what’s actually working in-store right now.
Retailers and partners joined us for an evening of practical sessions and real-talk networking, walking away with a clear-eyed strategy for 2026.
Here are the four biggest takeaways that emerged from the event, and how Lightspeed is helping retailers build the edge they’ll need to keep moving forward.
- You need to change how you approach wholesale
- AI should empower humans
- The in-store experience needs an overhaul
- Your ecosystem matters
Takeaway 1: you need to change how you approach wholesale
For as long as retail has existed, buying and selling inventory have lived in separate worlds. Wholesale ordering happens in one system (or a pile of emails and spreadsheets). Sales happen in another.
High-stakes buying decisions often happen without the data that matters most. Retailers need instant visibility into sales trends, return rates and margins by category to stay profitable.
“We have to solve the ‘Inventory Gap.’ The best retailers in the world have built reputations on never saying ‘no,’” said Mike Ganci, Lightspeed’s Managing Director, reflecting on his years of experience. “But right now, 38% of consumers are demanding real-time inventory visibility before they even visit your store. If they walk in and you don’t have what they are looking for…. 21% of them will leave immediately and buy it from a competitor.”
The fix isn’t more spreadsheets or more gut instinct. It’s tighter feedback loops. Retailers need buying and selling to share the same source of truth, so decisions get smarter with every sell-through cycle.
A direct line from sourcing to selling
Lightspeed is building wholesale directly into the POS foundation. With the integration of the NuORDER network—home to brands like Calvin Klein, Arc’teryx, Carhartt and Bonobos—retailers can link what they source with what they sell, using the same data on both sides.
This matters because wholesale isn’t only about access, it’s also about relevance. Instead of starting with an endless catalog and a blank slate, retailers can use their sales history and business profile to narrow discovery down to brands and products that fit their store: price point, aesthetic, assortment gaps and customer demand.
End the spreadsheet-to-email-to-POS grind
Even when retailers place great orders, the operational work that follows is often brutal.You have to copy/paste item descriptions, upload images, set pricing, create SKUs and enter quantities. It’s tedious, slow and error-prone.
That’s what tools like Lightspeed’s Purchase Order (PO) Sync are designed to eliminate. When an order is placed through the integrated network, the product details—images, SKU numbers, costs, quantities—flow directly into the POS. When inventory arrives, you receive it and it’s ready to sell.
Why it matters: better availability, better cash flow
When buying is informed by sales data, and operational work doesn’t absorb hours of staff time, retailers can move faster and allocate capital more effectively.
Chris Akrimi, Lightspeed’s VP of Supplier Network & B2B GTM, brings 25 years of expertise in luxury retail and automated inventory to solve this exact challenge.
“Retailers who use Insights see ~26% fewer stockouts of their best sellers. And they see an average increase of over $4,000 more profit per month,” Akrimi said. “That is real capital. That’s money you can invest back into your store, your team and your customer experiences. And as a brand, that’s money retailers can use for future orders.”
Takeaway 2: AI should empower humans
In 2026, it’s impossible to avoid the AI conversation. But for most retailers, AI can feel either irrelevant (“Does this help during the 10:00 a.m. rush?”) or threatening (“Is this trying to replace my team?”).
Helen Lee, VP of Design at Lightspeed—with her experience shaping products that simplify workflows—addressed the tension around new technology:
“AI cannot replicate your human spark. It cannot replicate your taste, your curation or your expertise. And it certainly cannot replace the human connection that keeps customers coming back. That’s why our AI strategy is about enhancing this human experience, not replacing it.
Our goal is to leverage AI to amplify your strengths as retailers.”
Turn data into answers, not homework
Most retailers still interact with their data the hard way: run a report, export a CSV, sort columns, highlight rows and try to interpret the numbers themselves. It’s slow and reactive.
With our new Lightspeed AI, the goal is simpler: help retailers get answers quickly, in plain language, using their own data. Instead of building a spreadsheet every time you need clarity, you should be able to ask direct questions like:
- “What were my most profitable products last month?”
- “Which brand has the highest return rate?”
- “What items are moving slower than expected this season?”
When you can get an answer in seconds, you can act while it still matters: reorder in time, adjust pricing, shift displays, coach associates or change your marketing focus.
Bridge the messy middle between online and in-store
Customers expect the convenience of the web, but they still come in-store because they want to see, touch, try on, compare and talk to real people. Retailers are being asked to deliver both: high-quality digital experiences and standout in-person service, without suddenly hiring an IT team.
At Edge, we explored how tools like our AI Showroom help retailers quickly bring their stores online using POS data they already have. “Imagine this: You take a photo of a new product line. AI Showroom analyzes those visuals. It helps structure your catalog. It drafts descriptions that match your brand voice,” explained Helen. “It does the heavy lifting, so you can focus on the selling.”
Takeaway 3: the in-store experience needs an overhaul
When she took the stage, Lightspeed’s SVP of Product for Retail Neeraja Tennety had a question for the room: “Think about the last time you walked into a retail store and left feeling genuinely great. Why was that?”
“We live in a world where consumers can shop from anywhere, often from their couch. But while algorithms are convenient, they are cold,” she explained.
The physical store still matters, but the expectations inside it have changed. Today’s shopper is a paradox: they can buy almost anything in two clicks on a phone, yet they still walk into a store. People want to browse, discover and get help from someone who knows what they’re talking about.
The counter should be a resource, not a restriction
While the traditional checkout counter remains a vital home base for many retailers, it shouldn’t be a barrier to service. High-stakes interactions often happen away from the register, and when associates are tethered to one spot, the customer experience can stall.
By introducing mobile point-of-sale tools, staff can bridge the gap, offering expert advice and finishing a sale exactly where the customer is standing, without replacing the reliability of a central hub.
Give associates day one confidence with real-time context
Employee experience came up often at Edge. Retailers told us this is a major pain point and it shows up at the worst moments: when the store is busy and the customer expects an immediate answer.
The fix isn’t more manuals. It’s better tools, like:
- Lightspeed Scanner (now on Android): associates can scan a tag to check inventory, confirm pricing, review customer purchase history and complete a sale without leaving the shopper’s side.
- Smarter recommendations: when customer history is accessible, associates can make better suggestions faster—“You bought this brand last month; this new arrival just came in.”
This is how you close the knowledge gap quickly: put the right information in the associate’s hand at the moment it matters.
Increase transparency at checkout and unify service workflows
Even when checkout happens at a register, the process should feel clear and modern. Neeraja highlighted our new retail Customer Facing Displays that show shoppers what’s being scanned and the running total in real time, reducing confusion and those awkward “wait, how much was that?” moments.
For retailers offering specialized services—like bike repairs, tailoring or jewelry sizing—Lightspeed’s Service Orders Module eliminates the need for disconnected systems. By bringing your entire workflow into the main sales screen, you can:
- Intake jobs and track progress in real time
- Add internal notes specifically for technicians
- Message customers automatically when work is ready
The result is a service experience that’s as professional and organized as the retail side of the business.
Takeaway 4: your ecosystem matters
A POS system—even a great one—is still only part of what retailers need to grow in 2026. To scale, you also need fuel: marketing intelligence, working capital and tools that make it easier to turn insight into action.
When marketing can be measured against real sales, and when retailers have access to capital that aligns with how retail actually works, decisions get easier—and growth becomes more predictable.
Make marketing measurable in the real world
For many retailers, digital advertising still feels like a black hole. You spend on Instagram or Facebook ads, but you don’t know whether the ads led to real foot traffic and real purchases, or whether they simply generated clicks.
With that in mind, at Edge, we were excited to announce a new partnership with Meta’s Offline Conversions API.
Here’s what it changes: if you run a Local Inventory Ad showing a specific item in stock, and a customer sees that ad and then buys that item in-store, Lightspeed can send that signal back to Meta. The result is clearer attribution and the ability to make smarter decisions about what’s actually paying off.
Turn purchase history into retention that feels personal
Acquiring a new customer is expensive. Retaining one is where profit compounds.
Lightspeed answers this by partnering with experts in marketing automation. Connecting Klaviyo to your POS moves you beyond blast marketing toward relevant follow-ups, like:
- Targeted: suggest beans or filters to a new coffee machine owner
- Timely: send a tune-up reminder to a recent bike buyer. This personalized touch feels like a concierge service, creating lasting loyalty that generic marketplaces can’t match
Finding your edge
Retailers don’t need more pressure to work harder. You’re already doing everything you can. What you need is less friction—fewer disconnected systems, fewer manual steps, fewer delays between insight and action.
The edge in 2026 comes from building a retail foundation that supports how you actually operate: buying tied to selling, data that answers questions quickly, store workflows that keep staff on the floor, and an ecosystem that connects marketing, capital and sales.
Technology should feel effortless, intuitive and reliable, so you can stay focused on what brought you into retail in the first place: the products you love, the customers you serve and the community you’re building.
“For twenty years, we’ve watched retail go through wave after wave of change—ecommerce, social, mobile, now AI. What hasn’t changed is the courage it takes to keep showing up every day, to keep reinventing your stores and to keep putting in your personal touch,” said Dax Dasilva, Lightspeed’s CEO and founder.
“Our job at Lightspeed is simple: earn the right to be your partner in that journey.”
This conversation is just getting started. We’ll see you at another Edge event soon—but you don’t have to wait to see us in person. Let’s get in touch now.
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