Overview
These differences offer a more insightful view of the market than the overall growth rate alone. Above all, they help us understand where demand is shifting, how consumer behaviour is evolving, and why the line between physical and digital retail is becoming increasingly difficult to draw.
In this article, we look back at the key figures from the first half of 2026 to understand what they really reveal about Swiss retail.
Swiss retail is growing… but where is the growth actually going?
Swiss retail recorded positive growth in the first half of 2026, with a +2.6% increase in sales compared with the same period in 2025. When adjusted for inflation, real growth remains positive at +2.3%.
At first glance, the market therefore appears to be moving in the right direction.
But behind this relatively moderate growth lie very different dynamics depending on the categories and channels…
This figure points to a recovery, but not necessarily to a uniform transformation of the market.
Swiss consumers continue to spend, while remaining attentive to how they allocate their budgets. The consumer sentiment index stood at−36 points in June 2026, according to the FSO.
In this context, the question may no longer simply be “how much will the market grow?”, but rather: which experiences, categories and customer journeys are still able to capture this demand?
For retailers, this means that market growth does not automatically guarantee individual growth. It is necessary to understand more precisely what triggers a purchase… and, above all, what moves a consumer from intention to action.
E-commerce is accelerating faster than the overall market
This is probably one of the most interesting signals of the semester.
While retail as a whole is growing by +2.6%, online retail recorded cumulative growth of +8% by the end of June, while NIQ maintains a forecast of +11% for e-commerce.
The gap is significant. And it raises a fairly simple question: is digital still just one channel among many… or is it gradually becoming the starting point of the customer journey?
The question is no longer really whether businesses need to “be online.” That stage is largely behind us.
The real challenge lies elsewhere: how can you build a digital experience capable of converting, retaining and learning from each customer’s behaviour?
Because an online store can generate traffic without creating lasting value. Conversely, a strategy combining data, personalisation, search, CRM, user experience and conversion can turn every interaction into an actionable signal.
And this is where digital becomes interesting: not simply as an extension of the store, but as a customer understanding infrastructure.
Not all categories benefit from growth in the same way
The market is not moving forward as one single block.
In Nonfood, growth reached +2.7%, driven in particular by leisure, outdoor and technology.
Consumer electronics grew by +8.1%, while sports, toys and DIY also benefited from positive momentum.
Elsewhere, however, the picture is far less uniform. Fashion remains stable in the overall market, while the Fashion/Lifestyle category declined by −16.1% online, according to the monitor cited in the study.
This may be where the figures become truly interesting.
The same digital strategy cannot work in exactly the same way across all categories. Expectations, purchasing cycles, price sensitivity, comparison between offers, and even the importance of the physical experience can vary completely from one sector to another.
In other words: digital growth cannot simply be decreed at market level. It is built category by category, sometimes even customer by customer.
For retailers, this means moving away from overly generic approaches. Data can now be used to identify behaviours, but its value ultimately depends on the ability to turn those behaviours into concrete decisions: which offer should be presented, to whom, at what moment and through which channel?
The physical store is not disappearing… its role is changing
One of the semester’s more nuanced insights concerns precisely the relationship between online and offline.
In Fashion, for example, the overall market remains stable while the online sales of Swiss players are declining sharply. The study suggests that this development could reflect a shift in market share towards physical stores.
This is a reminder of a reality that is sometimes overlooked in discussions about e-commerce : digitalisation does not mean the disappearance of physical retail.
The future of retail probably looks less like a choice between stores and e-commerce and more like the gradual disappearance of that boundary.
A customer may discover a product on Google, compare prices on their mobile, read reviews, visit a store, return online a few days later… and then complete their purchase through another channel.
So, where did the conversion actually happen?
The answer is becoming less and less obvious.
This is precisely why retailers need to think in terms of customer journeys rather than channels. The store, website, CRM, social media, search and first-party data should not operate as silos… but as different components of the same experience.
Conclusion
The real challenge is no longer growth, but the ability to capture it.
The figures for the first half of 2026 paint a relatively resilient picture of the Swiss market: +2.6% for retail, +8% for e-commerce at mid-year, and significant differences between categories.
But behind these figures, a deeper transformation is taking shape.
Growth is no longer simply a question of demand.
It depends on retailers’ ability to understand behaviours, connect their data and orchestrate consistent experiences across digital and physical channels.
And tomorrow?
The difference may no longer be between retailers that sell online and those that sell in stores. Instead, it may lie between those who use their data to understand their customers… and those who continue to look at their channels separately.
Our conviction: the retail of tomorrow will be defined less by its sales channel than by its intelligence in customer experience.
Contact us for more information.
These topics might interest you
