Retailwise, a new platform brought to you by leading SaaS specialists Staffwise, comes at a moment when UK marketing budgets are recovering and brands are doubling down on in-store activations.
According to the IPA Bellwether Q2 2025 Report, a net balance of 5.5% of marketers increased spend, reversing a four-year low in Q1. While growth in experiential marketing eased slightly to 3.9% (down from 5.4%), it remains one of the few areas showing consistent investment, alongside sales promotions and direct marketing.
This renewed confidence in experiential formats is being felt across retail. Shoppers are returning to physical spaces not just to buy, but to engage. And brands are responding with activations that are more immersive, more interactive, and more strategically designed to drive shopper engagement, influence purchase decisions, and extend reach beyond the store through social sharing and branded content.
Recent UK data highlights the scale of this shift:
- 88% of the population visited a retail destination in late 2024
- Under-35s averaged 9.5 visits per month, driven by experiential formats
- 85% of customers are more likely to spend in-store after attending an event
- 73% say they spend more time and money in stores offering experiences
- 77% of marketers now integrate experiential into their brand strategy
With mainstream signals like Netflix formalising “Netflix House,” and the Financial Times putting immersive entertainment near £100bn in 2024 with strong growth expected by 2030. This reflects what many IPM members are seeing on the ground: a rise in in-store activations, sampling campaigns, and immersive merchandising. All of which depend on well-coordinated field teams.
“We built Retailwise to solve very real industry challenges we saw our clients facing every day,” says Mark Waddington, Founder of Staffwise. “It’s about empowering agencies and brands with the tools to run smarter, faster, and more effective retail execution.”
Connecting Field Teams to Campaign Results
Retailwise is designed to close the gap between the people delivering in-store campaigns and the systems used to measure their impact. Field teams are often managed separately from reporting tools, leaving brands with fragmented data and limited visibility.
The platform brings together scheduling, onboarding, and real-time reporting into one streamlined system. Whether it’s a nationwide sampling tour or a series of tactical merchandising visits, agencies can now track who was on-site, what was delivered, and how it performed, all in one place. With budgets tight, spending becomes strategic and having access to a wealth of data and analytic helps underpin effective retail spending.
In addition to it’s shelf-scanning tools, Retailwise also focuses on the people behind the campaigns (brand ambassadors, merchandisers, and promotional teams) giving agencies visibility into attendance, activity, and outcomes.
Smarter Retail Starts Here
In a landscape where shopper expectations are rising and brand experiences matter more than ever, platforms like Retailwise are helping agencies and brands lead with confidence, clarity, and impact. Ready to see it in action? Visit retailwise.io or book a demo to explore how smarter retail execution starts here.
