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- At VivaTech, Rami Baitieh, CEO of Morrisons and retail leader, shared insights on the connected store with Thierry Gadou, Chairman and CEO at Vusion.
- Addressing a packed audience, both speakers emphasized their belief that technology should be designed to serve people.
- Electronic shelf labels are laying the foundation for more intelligent, connected stores.
Physical stores are evolving into intelligent, interactive and personalized environments. At VivaTech2026, Thierry Gadou, Chairman and CEO of Vusion, and Rami Baitieh, CEO of Morrisons, explored the rise of the Conversational Store. In a world where shoppers expect the same levels of transparency, personalization, and convenience they enjoy online, physical stores can no longer stand still.
Physical commerce must become connected, responsive, and capable of engaging customers, employees, and brands in the aisle.
Technology serving people
“Retail is a people business.”
Rami Baitieh
Looking back on his career, from Carrefour to Morrisons, spanning multiple markets, Rami Baitieh identified three fundamentals that remain universal across every market:
- Customers – retail starts with customer centricity.
- Colleagues – store teams need to be empowered to act.
- Technology – to helps retailers improve productivity and keep pace with evolving shopper behavior.
Customers are changing faster than ever: they shop more online, visit stores more frequently, purchase smaller baskets and expect greater clarity, convenience and personalization. At the same time, regulation, taxation and intense competition are forcing retailers to become more agile and efficient.
Technology helps retailers address these challenges, meet shopper expectations, and support store associates in their day-to-day work.
Changing the company’s culture, changing the DNA
Rami Baitieh shared the turnaround approach he applied at Morrisons, rooted in a simple principle:
“I don’t change the DNA, I protect it. I change the culture of the company.”
Upon joining Morrisons, Baitieh chose to build on the company’s DNA and unique strengths: fresh food expertise, vertical integration, Market Street, including butchers, bakers, fishmongers, and deep UK heritage.
Transformation comes from listening closely to customers and colleagues, simplifying operations, and turning strategy into everyday actions.
Intelligent store: electronic shelf labels as the foundation of a new store experience
“It’s not because of the beauty of the technology, but because it provides me a competitive advantage.”
A major part of Morrisons’ transformation is based on technology. AI is already helping improve productivity, including in areas such as loss, waste and yield management. Rami Baitieh’s approach translates long-term strategy into simple, daily operational actions that teams can understand and execute.
Electronic shelf labels address several challenges at once:
- They reduce manual workload for store associates.
- They improve price accuracy and clarity for shoppers.
- They support store operations and the picking of online orders.
- They create the infrastructure for a better in-store experience.
Smart shelf labels are a strong example of this vision: they improve the experience for shoppers and colleagues alike while helping stores operate more efficiently and accurately.
From connected shelves to personalized shopping
The next step is connecting the shelf directly to the shopper’s loyalty app. This is where the Conversational Store becomes tangible: shelves can become interactive, promotions more relevant, and the physical store can deliver the seamless experience shoppers have come to expect from digital commerce.
The store is becoming an omnichannel asset, a data asset and a media asset. With digital shelf technology and in-store retail media, retailers can create new value for customers, colleagues, suppliers and brands – directly where shopping decisions are taken.
“Those who will remain in the future are those who can connect with the customers, those who can connect with the colleague, and those who can connect with innovation.”
The Conversational Store: how the store can be reimagined
The VivaTech conversation between Thierry Gadou and Rami Baitieh confirmed that the future of retail is not about replacing the store. It is about reinventing it.
The store remains where customers make decisions, where store associates create service, where products come to life and where brands can engage with shoppers.
Making the store conversational, enabling interaction right in the aisle thanks, will support connecting with customers, colleagues, and stay ahead of innovation. To remain relevant, the store must become more intelligent, more responsive, and more connected than ever before.
