Adapt, refine and transform: the trends shaping what’s next for supply chains

Now in its sixth annual edition, Retail Week’s Supply Chain 2026 report, published in partnership with Speedy Freight, provides the ultimate blueprint for retailers facing a shifting retail landscape that demands supply chain resets.

Here we reveal three key supply chain trends shaping the strategies of retail powerhouses, and how they will influence retailers’ priorities for 2026 and beyond. Access your free copy of the full report here.

Automation investment

As inflation, currency volatility, Budget-induced tax hikes, US-imposed tariffs and shifting consumer spending patterns continue to see retailers prioritise cost-savings and efficiencies, supply chain automation is rising up agendas.

Indeed, investment in automation across UK retail is forecast to be £412m in 2025, according to a report from industry data insight platform Retail Economics published in February 2025.

Retailers are sharply aware of automation’s potential cost-saving powers, with Marks & Spencer chief executive Stuart Machin commenting in November 2024 that new technologies could save the retailer some 160,000 man-hours in the supply chain alone in 2025.

“We’ve got so much to do around supply chain, we know there’s some big cost-out opportunities, but we still have very old systems,” he said.

“We still have manual distribution centres; we’re still playing catch-up on legacy stores and legacy distribution centres. When we fix that, we’ve got some good cost and operational efficiencies to take out.”

Curtailed plans to invest in supply chain automation, data analysis and advanced logistics leaves retailers at risk of falling behind leaders in supply chain that continue to innovate in this space.

The need for speed

The focus for online fulfilment continues to be speed and convenience, resulting in an ever-evolving offering from retailers.

Retail Week’s Shopper Unlocked: Inside the minds of 1,000 consumers research published in June 2024 revealed that the choice of delivery matters to 72% of consumers when making a purchase online, while the ability to track orders at all times was vital for 84%.

Taking note, retailers are testing new models to unite online shoppers with their purchases. From Toolstation to Morrisons, and Monsoon Accessorize to Wilko, companies are taking bold steps on rapid delivery. Third parties and specialist service providers are supporting retailers in getting goods of all shapes and sizes into people’s homes within minutes of them making their order.

Having introduced a non-food service rapid delivery proposition, Deliveroo has been adding retailers such as Screwfix (November 2023), Ann Summers (February 2024), The Perfume Shop (July 2024), Notonthehighstreet (September 2024), Wilko (October 2024) and Accessorize (December 2024) to its list of partners.

And retailers such as Toolstation (from January 2025) are rolling out their own rapid delivery services. Providing insight around the level of detail and customer-centricity going into these new delivery strategies, Toolstation customer director Chris Other said: “Our rapid delivery service offers convenience and speed above everything else, and rolling this out across the majority of our stores means that tradespeople will no longer have to sit in traffic to pick up an unplanned item.”

Sustainability taken seriously

From reducing transportation emissions and building transparency throughout the value chain to better sourcing decisions and moves towards the circular economy, much of the sustainability agenda remains a supply chain issue.

Indeed, Co-op, Tesco, and Footasylum are just some of the companies that have tied the cost of some of their finance borrowing towards hitting sustainability targets, demonstrating just how committed they are to their responsibilities in this area.

Meanwhile, Lego Group announced in May 2024 that a proportion of bonuses for all salaried employees had been tied to its emission reduction targets. With a target to reduce emissions by 37% by 2032, Lego said that the move is in place to “keep us on track”.

Other sustainability initiatives being deployed by retailers include the adoption or expansion of the use of electric vehicles along supply chains, improved efficiency of freight transport, and transparency around sourcing.

The latter is particularly important across the fashion industry, given that Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation legislation is looming. Its implementation in 2027 will require all retailers and brands selling into the European Union to tell consumers about the provenance of products via a Digital Product Passport (DPP).

With the likes of M&S-backed retailer Nobody’s Child and Tesco’s F&F clothing arm having already added DPPs to their clothing – Nobody’s Child in March 2024 and F&F in August 2024, fashion retailers will be scrambling to follow their lead.