Online spending in Central Europe is expected to grow by 8% this year, rising from €191.3 billion in 2025 to €206.6 billion in 2026. Germany remains by far the largest ecommerce market in the region, while Poland is expected to grow by around 9% and Greece by around 11%.
Amazon Prime Day 2026 will run from 23 to 26 June across 26 countries, including most major European markets. This means for sellers: inventory, advertising budgets, pricing and fulfilment planning need to be aligned now, not in July.
Amazon is launching Amazon Supply Chain Services, further expanding its role as an infrastructure provider. The offer for sellers includes freight, distribution, fulfilment and parcel delivery – also across channels outside the Amazon platform.
Zalando is consistently pushing its platform strategy and is discontinuing its Connected Retail programme – at the expense of its partners: all Connected Retail retailers must decide by May 15th whether to transition into Zalando’s Partner Programme by June 2027. If not, the partnership will already end this August.
The marketplace of Shein continues to expand its seller network in Europe: in Germany alone, more than 600 sales partners are now active. This marks a shift from a pure private-label model towards a more open marketplace with a growing merchant base. At the same time, in France, the government also failed in its second attempt to temporarily suspend the marketplace following a scandal involving child-like sex dolls.
Just five months after entering Agentic Commerce with its Instant Checkout, OpenAI is already pulling the plug. It appears that while users research products via ChatGPT, they do not use the bot to complete purchases. However, OpenAI may be giving up too quickly: changing established user behaviour requires persistence – and, of course, the necessary investments.
Roblox has overtaken TikTok as the fastest-growing commerce channel among Generation Z. The platform is increasingly evolving into a relevant sales environment for both digital and physical products. Community-driven interaction and virtual experiences are becoming direct revenue drivers.
In 2025, TikTok Shop grew at a rapid pace. According to estimates, its GMV doubled year over year to reach $64 billion. After its home market China, the largest markets are the United States ($15 billion), Indonesia ($13 billion), and Thailand ($11.5 billion). In Europe, only the UK is currently significant, with a GMV of $2.4 billion.
Google has introduced a new open standard called the Universal Commerce Protocol (UPC). Its goal is to accelerate the AI-platform shift in commerce by standardizing processes such as product search and checkout via AI bots. Platforms and retailers including Walmart, Etsy, Shopify, Shopee, Carrefour, Target, Macy’s, and Wayfair were involved in its development, as they seek to secure their position within the customer journey.
As we close out 2025, it’s clear this wasn’t just another year of incremental growth – it was a year of structural re-architecture. The marketplace model has moved from being a “digital shelf” to an integrated, AI-driven, and internationally fluid ecosystem. For sellers, the “Bigger Picture” of 2025 is the transition from managing listings to managing complex, cross-border value chains.
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