The Digital Shelf Forum 2025: The Future of Digital Commerce

Last week we welcomed more than 100 senior leaders from Australia’s top FMCG, retail, consumer, and digital brands to the Digital Shelf Future Forum in Melbourne. 

The half-day event was designed to connect industry leaders & spark meaningful conversations about the future of digital commerce, where technology meets people, data meets creativity, and businesses are rethinking how to stay discoverable and chosen in a constantly evolving digital landscape. 

The forum was hosted in partnership with Six Degrees Executive and Arktic Fox, founded by  Teresa Sperti, as one of Australia’s leading voices in digital transformation and marketing strategy. 

Setting the tone 

Opening the day, Maya Wettenhall, Associate Director at Six Degrees Executive, reflected on how much the FMCG and CPG landscape has evolved, from a world dominated by in-store activations and TV campaigns to one where digital commerce now drives core business growth. 

“This forum was born out of a shared purpose between Six Degrees and Arktic Fox – to help businesses and talent navigate an environment that’s constantly changing. No matter where you are on the journey, you’re not alone. Each of you are navigating this change at a different pace, but the most important piece of the puzzle is always the same - the right people, culture, and leadership.” 

The now & the next 

In the opening keynote, Teresa Sperti, Founder and Director of Arktic Fox, shared The Now & The Next, setting the strategic stage for the discussions to follow. 

She unpacked how the digital shelf is influencing not only online behaviour but in-store decision-making, with 60% of all purchased now influenced by online - shoppers research, compare, and build trust with brands across multiple touchpoints. 

Key insights included: 

• The rapid rise of marketplaces and social commerce, changing how brands approach discoverability. 

• AI’s growing influence in search and product discovery, reshaping how consumers choose what to buy. 

• The importance of investing in data capability and internal skills to ensure teams can act on insights, not just collect them. 

The session was both practical and forward-looking, showing that brands who invest in capability and measurement today will be the organisations consumers find and choose tomorrow. 

The new omnichannel reality 

Moderated by Nicole Cooke the first panel brought together Hannah Wilson (FUNDAY™ Natural Sweets), Charles Wood (Vitadrop) and Naomi Shorman (Mayborn Group Limited) to explore how brands are redefining channel strategy in an increasingly fragmented retail environment.

The discussion unpacked the realities of managing multiple sales channels, from balancing retailer relationships to navigating the fast-changing world of marketplaces and direct-to-consumer. Each panellist shared how they are reshaping their go-to-market approach to meet consumers where they are, while maintaining brand control and consistency.

There was also a key focus on using social media to build connection with consumers, not just as a performance or conversion channel, but as a space for storytelling, brand engagement, and community building. The panel reflected on how content strategies are becoming more conversational, more authentic, and more integrated into the broader path to purchase.

As the group discussed, the modern omnichannel journey is fluid. A shopper might discover a product on TikTok, research it on a retailer’s site, and purchase it in-store. For brands, the challenge is less about choosing a single channel and more about creating a cohesive brand experience that moves seamlessly with the shopper.

The session reinforced that success in omnichannel growth requires agility, alignment, and a willingness to test and learn.

As Nicole summarised, “Omnichannel isn’t a destination - it’s an ongoing evolution that demands curiosity and collaboration across every part of the business.”

Cracking the code - technology, data & digital shelf success 

The second panel, moderated by Katrina Park, from Six Degrees Executive, explored how brands are using technology and data to drive connected shopper experiences. 

Panellists  Vera Skocic (TTI, Inc.), Will Wilson (SAP) and Amish Goel (Adairs Retail Group) discussed the intersection of data, technology, and people - and how success depends on more than the right systems. 

The key takeaways were: 

• Start with the problem, not the platform – ensure technology decisions serve a clear business objective. 

• Data is only powerful when it’s clean, ethical, and actionable.  When it comes to AI, the outcomes are only as good as the data itself.

• Technology means nothing without capability. The people who use it determine its value. 

• Even if you don’t control the sale, like TTI’s Ryobi brand through Bunnings, you can still own the customer experience through smart data capture and content. 

“Balance foundational systems with flexibility to evolve,” shared Katrina. “The technology landscape will keep changing, so building capability and culture around adaptability is key.” 

Tradition meets transformation - Bega Group fireside chat 

Hosted by Maya Wettenhall, the fireside chat with Darryn Wallace and Carla Salsone, from Bega Group gave attendees a rare inside look at how a legacy brand is reshaping its future through digital capability. 

The conversation touched on Bega’s transformation journey - one that has seen online sales triple while building an internal culture of experimentation and continuous learning. 

“Don’t let perfection get in the way of progress, failure is just a data point,” Darryn and Carla shared. 

Their advice resonated across the audience - transformation doesn’t require perfection; it requires patience, persistence, and a willingness to learn along the way. 

Next-gen discoverability 

Moderated by Teresa Sperti, this panel brought together Gill Smythe (Salsify ANZ) and Kate Muslayah (Reece Group)  to explore how discoverability is evolving across platforms and channels. 

The discussion focused on how content, creativity, and context now shape the shopper journey. The rise of AI-driven search, social commerce, and user-generated content means that the path to purchase is increasingly fragmented - but full of opportunity for brands that tell authentic stories. 

Panellists agreed that successful digital content strategies rely on consistency and adaptability. The shopper journey doesn’t start with a product page anymore, it starts with storytelling, and relevance.

The session highlighted the growing importance of investing in creative capability alongside technology and data, ensuring brands remain discoverable in an ever-changing environment. 

Making retail media work 

The final panel of the day tackled one of the most talked-about topics in FMCG and retail - retail media.

Moderated by Teresa Sperti, the session featured Bridie Swatton (Coles 360), Melissa Polglase (David Jones) and Dan Ferguson, who unpacked how brands can measure, optimise, and invest effectively in retail media networks.

The panel highlighted both opportunity and challenge. While retail media offers access to rich first-party data and closed-loop measurement, it also demands alignment across teams and trusted partnerships to translate spend into real growth.

As Bridie Swatton put it, “Customers on average [are] touching nine different touchpoints before they make a conversion. If you’re only planning a campaign that has one or two of those touchpoints, you’re basically whispering in a stadium.”

The discussion also moved beyond return on ad spend (ROAS), with the group calling for broader metrics tied to behaviour and long-term brand impact.

Melissa Polglase emphasised the importance of measuring new-to-brand acquisition, customer upgrading, and category growth, noting that “ROAS isn’t everything, and sometimes it isn’t real.”

Meanwhile, Dan Ferguson described retail media as “still kind of a wild west,” encouraging brands to focus on incrementality, negotiate hard, and measure what truly drives growth.

The consensus was success in retail media depends on capability, creativity, and collaboration - and brands that align on clear objectives and shared measures of success will see the greatest return.

Closing reflections 

Closing the forum, Natalie Rogers, FMCG Marketing Practice Lead at Six Degrees Executive, brought the themes of the day together with authenticity and warmth. 

Closing the forum, Natalie Rogers, FMCG Marketing Practice Lead at Six Degrees Executive, brought the conversations full circle, noting that a consistent theme across the day was that people are at the heart of the change required to prepare for this fundamental shift in consumer and shopper behaviour.

“At the heart of this change is people – future-focused leaders with long-term vision, who create a culture of test-and-learn thinking, hire for change adaptability and growth mindset, and invest in their people. That is the difference between the brands that will succeed and those that will fail.”

Natalie also reflected on the importance of genuine partnership between brands, technology providers, and recruitment partners in shaping the future of work and capability across the sector.

Thank you to everyone who make the day a success - panellists, attendees, and sponsors SAP, Salsify ANZ, and MikMak!

If you would like to speak to our team about hiring the right people to support your marketing, digital or eCommerce hiring strategy - please reach out below.