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New Report Reveals Unified Commerce as the Key Battleground for UK Commerce in 2025

Insights / News

New Report Reveals Unified Commerce as the Key Battleground for UK Commerce in 2025

Scale Smarter or Risk Falling Behind

Joint study by PMC and Retail Economics highlights the widening gap between commerce leaders and those lagging behind

PMC, the UK’s leading global retail technology service provider, today launched a landmark report in partnership with Retail Economics, revealing how UK retailers and direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands are responding to mounting pressures from changing consumer expectations, economic uncertainty, and rising technological demands.

Based on in-depth surveys with 100 retail and DTC brands, the report uncovers a clear conclusion: unified commerce is no longer a future ambition—it’s a present-day differentiator.

As customer expectations rise and operational demands intensify, the study finds that brands embracing smarter, integrated systems are building the agility, speed, and insight required to lead. Those stuck with disconnected infrastructure are falling behind fast.

Key findings: The shift to smarter commerce
  • Mid-sized retailers (£500m–£1bn turnover) are outperforming larger incumbents on unified capabilities, including real-time inventory visibility and consistent checkout experiences — demonstrating that scale alone doesn’t guarantee readiness.
  • Modular technology stacks are enabling faster innovation and better customer outcomes. Among digitally mature brands, 70% have adopted modular architecture providing the agility to scale smarter without adding complexity.
  • AI-powered personalisation is already driving measurable revenue impact, but only 42% of omnichannel retailers have fully deployed these tools revealing a missed opportunity among traditional players.
  • Centralised analytics are becoming a silent advantage. 58% of retailers with centralised data capabilities report faster decisions, and nearly half cite revenue growth underscoring the value of unified insights in a high-stakes environment.

Unified commerce isn’t just an upgrade — it’s a full rethink of how retail operates. This report reinforces what we see every day — businesses that build smarter systems, deliver more connected experiences, and think modular from the start are winning where it matters: speed, margin, and loyalty.

Rich Lowe

Chief Executive Officer at PMC

Retailers are at a critical juncture. The capability gap is widening. Only those investing in future-ready infrastructure will be able to meet growing customer demands while simplifying operational complexity.

Richard Lim

Chief Executive of Retail Economics

Unified commerce: The strategic infrastructure for 2025 and beyond

This research aligns closely with PMC’s Scale Smarter; an approach that champions strategic clarity, agile delivery, and growth grounded in smarter infrastructure. Unified commerce is not a trend. It’s the foundation for modern commerce ecosystems that adapt, integrate, and evolve without friction.

The full report, “The Race to Unified Commerce: Keeping Pace with Customer Expectations, Technology and Trends,” is available for download now.

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