We’re taking a trip around the continent, looking at some of the standout activations and brand innovations we have seen from our Q1 market research trips. From Bucharest to Berkhamsted, top-class cross-category, on-point retail media trends and some seasonal highlights, check out some of our favourite in-store activations from across Europe.

Seasonality at its finest

Seasonal events continue to offer brands strong opportunities to differentiate and create emotional impact in‑store. This quarter, we saw several examples where brand innovation and occasion‑led creativity came together to drive standout visibility.

Easter – Lindt Garden, Auchan Bucharest

Auchan delivered a visually engaging Easter experience with a Lindt garden activation, complete with elevated fixtures and grass‑themed props. The installation created premium gifting cues and demonstrated how seasonal storytelling can meaningfully lift brand presence.

If you’d like to discover some more outstanding Easter activations, check out our 2026 Easter highlights.

Spring Cleaning – Esselunga Milan

Esselunga executed an impressive spring‑cleaning zone, a category less commonly seen as an activation opportunity. Immaculately aligned displays and strong solution‑based messaging helped signal the seasonal mission and encouraged shoppers to stock up early.

Chinese New Year – Carrefour Milan, Kikkoman

Carrefour embraced CNY through a striking Kikkoman display, using bold colours, cultural symbolism, and flavour inspiration. This build exemplified brand innovation in world foods, encouraging trial and prompting shoppers to explore new cuisines.

Ramadan – Tesco, Lindt

Tesco created a clean and eye‑catching seasonal build for Ramadan, showcasing premium Lindt products suitable for gifting and celebration. This reflects the growing importance of Ramadan as a commercial moment across European retail.

Six Nations – Morrisons, Guinness

Guinness capitalised on event‑driven shopping with a dynamic Six Nations activation. Strong use of digital screens and impactful brand blocking enabled Guinness to fully own the sporting occasion, resonating strongly with its core demographic.

Cross‑category executions: Intelligent missions and elevated solutions

Cross‑category activations continue to evolve, with retailers leveraging brand innovation to create missions that feel intuitive, premium, and tailored to real shopper needs.

Baby Universe – Auchan, Bucharest

Auchan’s “Baby Universe” brought together nappies, formula, clothing, toys, and accessories into one convenient destination. This holistic execution simplified navigation and demonstrated how curated spaces can support shopper missions more effectively.

For more in-depth analysis of the Romanian market, we’d recommend taking a look at our Romania Market Page.

Tea & Biscuits – Waitrose, Berkhamsted

Waitrose showcased a simple yet highly compelling pairing of tea and biscuits, elevating the nation's favourite duo through clear adjacency and understated premium cues. This activation between PG Tips and McVitie’s shows how even classic combinations can shine with thoughtful presentation.

Mexican mission – Jumbo, Amsterdam

Jumbo delivered one of the smartest cross‑category moves of the quarter: placing rubs, taco kits, and seasonings adjacent to the meat category. A seamless example of brand innovation, this approach removes friction and prompts meal‑solution thinking directly at the point of need.

Premium private label - Coop Schweiz Geneva

Coop elevated private label through a refined pairing of cheese and fig mustard, with additional activations featuring crackers. This premium‑leaning build underscored the retailer’s strengths in private label while enhancing inspiration in the chilled aisle.

Water filters – Auchan Bucharest

Auchan’s hydration zone, pairing bottled water with water filters, was simple yet highly effective. It encouraged shoppers to consider alternatives based on health, sustainability, and value.

Foot care - Müller Geneva

Müller combined wellness and personal care with a neat, logical pairing of foot cream and socks. Small, intelligent cross‑category groupings like this reflect rising brand innovation in convenience‑led merchandising.

Trend‑led simplicity that works - Denner Geneva

Denner reacted quickly to the viral “two‑ingredient Japanese cheesecake” trend, using a simple shelf‑edge sign that was fast to roll out, stood out clearly, and tapped into shopper FOMO. By pairing Biscoff with its private‑label yoghurt, Denner used a trend‑driven moment to boost cross‑category interest. A strong example of how effective brand innovation can come from timely, relevant, low‑cost execution.

Night-in combo - Auchan Bucharest

Auchan is delivering impressive mission‑based merchandising with a ready‑to‑go night‑in pack featuring Doritos and Pepsi. Pre‑curated bundles such as this boost convenience and boost impulse purchases.

Retail media’s rising role

Across Europe, the examples of brand innovation seen this quarter reflect a wider strategic shift. As private label continues to strengthen, and shoppers become more selective, brands are increasingly turning to retail media to amplify their message, assert category leadership, and differentiate in‑store.

For retailers, retail media now represents not only a powerful engagement tool but a fast‑growing revenue stream. With measurement improving and brands demanding greater visibility, we expect retail media to continue to expand across Europe, becoming an even more influential driver of in‑store theatre and category innovation. And, if you’d like some more insight into the future of retail media trends, take a look at our Future’s analysis of retail media touchpoints.