SURVEY RESULTS

The Trends 
Reshaping Retail

Shoppers want fast, immersive, and seamless experiences. Meeting those expectations means managing and delivering visual content at an incredible scale. Retailers that lead with visual-first strategies connect better with customers and see stronger conversions. But making it happen isn’t easy, even for the savviest digital teams.

We partnered with independent research firm, Researchscape International, to survey 448 retailers to learn more about the state of modern retail and what trends are driving priorities in 2025. 

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Here’s What We Learned:

88%

of retailers view personalization as critical to their digital strategies

93%

say personalization drives 50 to 400% better business outcomes

51%

of retailers ranked rise of mobile shopping as a top strategy driver

41-48%

use generative AI for editing tasks like background removal, captioning, and smart cropping

Delivering Personalized Experiences at Scale

When it comes to personalization, many retailers are leaning into the power of automation.

67%

dynamically adjust content 
for language, currency, browser, and device

65%

adjust for geographic location

50%

optimize content quality for bandwidth

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Next-Gen Experiences Are Now

62%

of retailers are looking to employ more video

53%

are prioritizing virtual try-on

46%

are leaning into
AR/VR experiences

36%

are looking to
deliver 3D

River Island Modernizes Media Workflows to Improve Shopper Experience and Reduce Costs

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Building a More Accessible Future

In the run up to requirements set by the European Accessibility Act (EAA), retailers are prioritizing accessibility.

62%

are optimizing content for screen readers

57%

are adding alt text for images and videos

56%

are providing closed captions

“The web is for everyone; your website should be too. When organizations make accessibility a fundamental part of their design, development, and QA practices, they aren’t just extending their reach, boosting their bottom line, and ensuring legal compliance – they’re also making good on the web’s promise as a universal resource for communication, commerce, and knowledge sharing.”
— Eric Portis, Senior Developer Experience Engineer, Cloudinary

The Rise of Sustainability

50%

are optimizing media delivery for lower energy consumption

47%

are recycling or repurposing 
digital content

41%

of retailers are tracking and reporting their digital carbon footprint

Methodology


The 2025 Cloudinary Global Retail Survey was conducted by an independent research firm, Researchscape International, and polled 448 retailers across a variety of executive, IT, and marketing roles in 14 different countries between February 20 and March 17.

Modern retail requires a modern approach. Contact us to learn more.

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