Brendan Witcher joins Shoptalk/Groceryshop after ending 12 year run at research and advisory firm Forrester

Brendan Witcher has joined retail events company Hyve Group as Global VP of Product and Content, Shoptalk and Groceryshop.

Hyve Group’s Zia Daniell Wigder said: “One of my claims to fame is that I hired Brendan when he first joined Forrester back in 2014. Over the next 12 years, he'd go on to soar as one of Forrester's best known and most respected Principal Analysts.”

“When it came to thinking about who would add to our incredible team of retail industry experts and who could help us create the highest level of onsite learning experiences across all of our events, Brendan was at the top of the list. We're welcoming him here at the New York office this week, and to the full suite of Shoptalk and Groceryshop events going forward.”

Farewell, Forrester

In January, Witcher announced his departure from Forrester, where he had served as a VP and analyst.

He said at the time: "Two weeks ago, after 12 years of service, hundreds of reports, thousands of engagements (advisories, workshops, speeches, webinars, etc.), and literally tens of thousands of connections made, I was told I would no longer be on the Forrester payroll after 2nd January."

"So, for the first time in 30 years, I will be unemployed starting Monday. What's next? I'm not certain. But I've crossed "Be a top Forrester VP/Analyst and trusted asset for our clients." off my 2026 resolution list and hoping to replace it with something similar very soon."

Witcher added: "I am wildly grateful for each and every one of you, and hold precious all the laughs, intellectual conversations, ah-ha moments, personal reflections, and rants of honesty that only two people who fully trust each other would share."

"Whatever happens, next, I do hope it means engaging regularly with all of you in the coming year and beyond. If you ever feel like reaching out, please do so. I may no longer be an analyst, but I am always at your service."

Shoptalk Europe 2026

Artificial intelligence, customer connection, and the future of physical retail will dominate the agenda at Shoptalk Europe 2026, with a focus on real-world application over theory.

The CEOs of Vestiaire Collective, Arc'teryx, Christian Louboutin, and Zalando, alongside top executives from Sephora and The Estée Lauder Companies, are among more than 180 senior leaders confirmed to speak at the event, taking place at Fira Gran Via, Barcelona, 9th-11th June.

It will bring together more than 4,500 retail professionals - one in three at C-suite level - spanning retailers, brands, technology providers, investors, and startups from over 62 countries.

Zia Daniell Wigder, Global President, Shoptalk, says: “Senior leaders from across Europe are grappling with the same challenges - from AI deployment to shifting consumer behaviour - but they rarely get the chance to compare notes with a true peer running the same business in a different market. That's what we've built here at Shoptalk Europe - a space to exchange ideas, navigate disruption, and shape what comes next together.”

Highlight sessions include:

• CEOs Reinventing Organisations for the Future: Retail is experiencing an unprecedented pace and scale of disruption and winning requires visionary leadership to fundamentally rethink operating models. Bastian Siebers, CEO, flaconi, Daniel Gomez, CEO, PANGAIA, and Laura Fernandez Plaza, CEO, AWWG, will share how they are navigating large scale transformation, evolving their organisations for sustainable, scalable growth while balancing bold ambition with commercial resilience.

• Agentic Commerce: What’s Here, Real, and Next?: Mark Elkins, General Manager Global Ecommerce, L'Oréal, and Dido Schmidt, Director of Global Partnerships, Google, will cut through the hype around agentic commerce - separating what's genuinely transforming retail right now from what remains speculative.

• Unified Commerce in Action: Alexis Rollier, Global COO, Sephora, will examine the practical steps retailers must take to deliver seamless experiences across every channel - online and offline. For Sephora, a brand that has long set the standard for omnichannel beauty retail, his thinking on data alignment, AI integration, and stores as experiential hubs will be among the most operationally relevant conversations of the event.