As global markets recalibrate after years of disruption, Asia’s digital retail landscape is emerging more dynamic, data-driven, and youth-focused than ever before. This year’s eTail Asia 2025 conference revealed a region not just responding to innovative technologies and consumer behaviours but actively redefining them. 

Across multiple panels, industry leaders gathered to discuss the future of retail media, the implications of artificial intelligence, and strategies for connecting with the digitally native Gen Alpha generation. Three key themes emerged: measurement maturity in retail media, the operational value of AI, and the rising influence of Gen Alpha as both a market and a mindset shift. 

Retail Media: Moving Beyond Just Sales 

Retail media has traditionally been viewed through a performance lens, boosting conversions, driving short-term sales, and fuelling promotional campaigns. However, speakers at eTail Asia made it clear: retail media is evolving into a strategic tool for brand building. 

In the Fire-side Chat: Measuring What Matters, Andrew Hill, Digital Acceleration & Enablement Senior Director at The Coca-Cola Company challenged the idea that retail media is purely bottom-funnel. In retail and performance media, the primary focus often leans toward conversion, and as such, much of the strategy is still optimised for immediate returns like ROAS. However, long-term metrics such as share of voice and loyalty program participation are becoming increasingly important indicators of brand health. He added that while consumers have become increasingly driven by incentives and discounts, brands with deep heritage, like Coca-Cola, cannot rely solely on short-term tactics. “A brand that’s 139 years old doesn’t get there through discounts and quick deals,” he said, underscoring the need to balance brand equity building with performance-driven approaches. 

Coca-Cola’s partnership with Grab exemplifies this shift. Rather than viewing Grab purely as a transactional media channel, Coca-Cola co-develops campaigns with shared commercial outcomes in mind, like blending loyalty, performance, and brand-building in one go.  

The shift in how brands measure success in today’s fragmented digital landscape was also discussed. While conversion remains a priority, there is growing emphasis on long-term health metrics such as share of voice, loyalty program growth, and lifecycle modelling. These indicators offer a more holistic view of brand performance and customer engagement. 

With consumer journeys becoming increasingly non-linear and spanning multiple platforms, multi-touch attribution has become essential despite its inherent complexity. Effective campaign optimisation now requires a granular approach, tailored by brand, market, and platform. This reflects a broader recognition that meaningful attribution must capture the true cross-channel nature of modern consumer behaviour. 

Data, Trust, and Measurement Complexity 

As measurement sophistication grows, so do the challenges of integrating data from disparate retail media networks. Privacy regulations, inconsistent formats, and lack of standardisation complicate everything. 

Retailers often have deeper insights into shopper behaviour at scale, surpassing the consumer data available to brands. This makes trust and transparency in partnerships essential. When reported sales figures do not accurately reflect actual product movement off the shelves, it can quickly erode that trust, jeopardising collaboration and long-term success on the platform. 

Technology plays a critical role here, especially in data cleansing and harmonisation. But the panel agreed: there is no perfect system. With retail data, 80% is accurate, and the rest is directional. 

Still, measurement is improving. Predictive analytics, AI-powered dashboards, and retailer-shared APIs are making cross-channel insights more digestible. The next frontier is combining scan data and media data in a usable way. 

AI in Retail: From Buzz to Bottom Line 

AI was another dominant theme. But unlike the overhyped narratives seen elsewhere, eTail Asia focused on tangible use cases that deliver ROI today. 

Matthijs Van Der Putten, Ecommerce Director at L’Oréal South Asia Pacific, shared how generative AI has revolutionised creative operations. He noted, “When I started 18 years ago, a single banner design could cost $500 to $700 and required manual work from graphic designers, everything from creating elements to resizing.” Today, AI-driven tools allow teams to set templates, automatically resize creatives, translate content, and even swap product images, enabling faster, more scalable output across platforms like Shopee and TikTok Shop. “It’s allowed us to dramatically increase the volume and speed of design adaptations, helping our teams deliver more in less time,” he added. 

A broader view on AI in ecommerce highlighted its impact on inventory and demand forecasting. By training models on historical sales data and new variables, businesses have been able to significantly improve inventory turnover and reduce cancellations even during peak sales periods. Beyond inventory, AI is also being used for high-value applications like fraud prevention, where smarter algorithms are helping to reduce incidents of credit card fraud.

However, challenges remain. Upskilling teams, addressing data privacy concerns, and managing expectations continue to be hurdles. AI isn’t a magic wand, it’s a tool for solving specific business problems, starting with the biggest inefficiencies.

Michael Lim, Regional Privacy Head (APAC) at SHEIN, provided a sobering reminder of the growing regulatory landscape. “Every country in Asia is pushing out its own data privacy law. Vietnam, Malaysia, India, Singapore, they’re all different,” he said. He encouraged companies, which are building their AI governance framework, to refer to international frameworks like ISO/IEC 42001 or Singapore’s Model AI Governance Framework, which includes practical recommendations that organisations can adopt to deploy AI responsibly. 

Gen Alpha: The Digital-Native Generation 

A major insight from the discussion was how Gen Alpha is redefining what it means to be digitally native. While Millennials popularised social media and Gen Z cemented mobile-first behaviours, Gen Alpha has grown up immersed in digital ecosystems, from iPads and TikTok to virtual classrooms and global events. They’re not just content consumers, they expect to co-create and shape experiences. 

Gaming plays a central role in their lives, not as a niche interest but as core infrastructure. Platforms like Discord, Twitch, Minecraft, and Roblox function as social spaces, creative outlets, and even retail environments. For brands, this means reimagining physical and digital touchpoints as community hubs are places where connection, creativity, and shared interests matter more than traditional sales metrics. 

To engage Gen Alpha effectively, brands are building gamified experiences that align with their habit, like mini games offering rewards or brand tie-ins, strategically timed around school hours or weekends. These playful, purpose-driven interactions create moments of relevance in a generation that values authenticity and connection. It is also clear that traditional platforms like Facebook hold little appeal for this emerging cohort. 

A New Retail Mandate: Meet, Matter, Measure 

So, what does all this mean for brands navigating retail in Asia? 

• Meet them where they are. For Gen Alpha, that might mean TikTok, Discord, or Minecraft not TV or malls. 
• Matter to them. Loyalty isn’t earned through flashy campaigns but through co-creation, authenticity, and community-building. 
• Measure what matters. Whether it’s cost per transaction, share of voice, or membership growth. Metrics must align with purpose, not just conversion. 

The convergence of AI, retail media, and Gen Alpha’s digital dominance is creating a retail ecosystem that’s faster, flatter, and more fragmented. But for brands willing to embrace experimentation, invest in data trust, and build meaningful connections, the opportunities in Asia’s commerce landscape are nothing short of transformative. 

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Payments Consulting Network was a media partner of eTail Asia 2025.

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Author: Mariel Laxamana, Marketing Director, Manila, Payments Consulting Network 

Mariel brings over 14 years of professional experience spanning news production, events, client servicing, and digital marketing. She began her career managing newscasts for a leading television network in the Philippines and now leads the digital marketing team at Payments Consulting Network, overseeing the global digital presence for both PCN and Merchant Advisory. Her responsibilities include managing and growing content and conference partnerships, planning and executing the content calendar across blogs, social media, and email campaigns, as well as designing, editing, and publishing newsletters. She also leads website management and design, ensuring alignment with brand strategy and user experience best practices. 

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