Brick-and-mortar retailers will bank on digital technology to ease shopper friction points and drive in-store sales.

The Meta and Google appeal: Savvy marketers aren’t turning their backs on search, which is crucial to Western Europe shoppers being pinched by inflation. Facebook and Instagram hold credibility for brands that are hoping to capitalize on social commerce.

Every country we analyze in the region saw double-digit growth in ecommerce—those gains ranged from an estimated 11.8% in France to 36.0% in Spain. In fact, Spain was the third-fastest-growing retail ecommerce market worldwide among the 32 countries we track. Across the EU-4 and the UK specifically, the outlook also varied.

Block already lets Cash App users send money between the UK and US, but it may expand the service to other markets, like Spain. Dorsey called out Block’s acquisition of Spanish P2P payment app Verse, saying that Block would use Verse to inform its next moves.

Amex will focus on bringing new merchants into its acceptance network in key countries like France, Italy, and Spain. Powering growth with technology and customer experience. Last year, Amex’s tech investments accounted for 3.8% of company revenues. It plans to increase its competitive advantage by building out digital capabilities for travel as consumers scratch their pandemic travel itch.

But its ecommerce retail sales will grow the fastest

Shoppable DOOH ads are on the way; they will employ QR codes or other digital technologies to direct consumers to ecommerce options. Trend: The Region Will Continue Struggling with Data Privacy Issues. There’s no end in sight to the long-standing battle between Europe’s regulators and tech firms (of all sizes) that bend the rules.

Ecommerce sales in Spain will grow faster than any other country in Western Europe in the next three years, propelled by the rise of AliExpress and its continued competition with Amazon to be the go-to marketplace.

In Spain, streaming platforms are increasingly vying for projects, talent, and viewers. Netflix began producing originals in Spain in 2016 and opened its first European production hub in Madrid in the Spring of 2019. However, as a result of this competition, HBO Spain has doubled down on producing series in Spain in 2019, increasing investment from Amazon Studios, as well as continued investment from Viacom, ATRESMEDIA, and telecom behemoths like Orange & Movistar.

Uber has existing partnerships with taxi operations in Spain, Austria, Germany, Colombia, and South Korea. The bigger picture: Uber is reinventing itself into a super app that also handles groceries, ticket purchases, telehealth requests, and medical transportation.

Single’s Day—China’s annual shopping extravaganza in November—is the world’s biggest shopping event, with an estimated RMB 965.1 billion ($139.83 billion) in sales in 2021, according to the China e-Business Research Center. It is also changing the way consumers shop by showcasing new retail concepts such as the metaverse, nonfungible tokens, sustainability, and agile commerce.