The home furnishings category generates hundreds of billions of dollars annually, yet the shopping experience remains frustratingly complex for most consumers. Nearly every shopper reports feeling overwhelmed by options, with the average furniture purchase taking weeks and requiring dozens of open browser tabs before a final decision.

Gen X commands the greatest share of income and consumer spending but consistently diverges from younger cohorts in how they discover, shop, and pay. This report explores how their reliance on search, retail, and established channels—paired with slower adoption of social commerce, mobile payments, and AI—creates a distinct and often misunderstood profile.

OpenAI experiments with feed ads: Beta tool converts retail catalogs into ChatGPT ads, linking spend to intent-driven chats.

As marketers increasingly bet on in-store commerce media and consumers shorten their shopping trips, GSTV argues that brevity is a reason advertisers should bet on convenience stores.

AI is reshaping how consumers discover and choose products, creating a fast-growing new commerce channel with its own set of unique challenges.

Agentic shopping could account for more than a quarter of ecommerce spending within the next few years, according to a September 2025 Boston Consulting Group report. But that potential hinges on retailers integrating AI into the shopping journey in ways that feel beneficial to consumers.

AI is moving upstream, showing up earlier in the decision-making process and increasingly shaping what happens next.

The platform’s ability to turn inspiration into sales is driving outsize growth and pushing rivals to invest in social commerce.

Retailers have prioritized convenience while underestimating in-store behavior, said Placer.ai CMO Ethan Chernofsky at EMARKETER’s Commerce Media Summit.

Consumers are shopping with AI assistants on retailer sites and through third-party chatbots like ChatGPT and Perplexity, and retailers are paying attention.

As early movers launch ads within OpenAI's ChatGPT, they're closely watching how consumers interact with their campaigns and where this emerging channel fits within broader strategies. “Investment in technology and AI…goes hand-in-hand with great experience,” said Target CEO Michael Fiddelke, at the retailer’s 2026 Financial Community Meeting. “We know those tech investments pay off with stronger experience, whether that's digital or whether that's in-store.”

Our exclusive survey data examines the path to purchase across six markets in Latin America as digital marketplaces, social commerce, and AI reshape shopping behavior.

Retail is entering a more complex, multichannel era, testing retail media strategies as a result. In this video, Principal Analyst Sarah Marzano examines the structural shifts reshaping how consumers discover and purchase, and what those changes signal for growth.

US B2B ecommerce continues to expand as it becomes a default buying channel. But slower growth, operational gaps, and marketplace momentum are reshaping where value is created and how sellers compete.

Growing consumer adoption of AI tools is positioning AI platforms as an alternative shopping channel—but most AI-driven transactions are still completed on retailer websites.

Canada’s retail media market is accelerating as ecommerce demand fuels ad growth. Search still anchors performance. But display, video, and off-site formats are gaining, reshaping how advertisers balance scale with diversification.

This FAQ covers how consumers shop on social platforms and what it means for brands.