Reach Studios launches AI retail event in Sheffield
Mon, 17th Aug 2026 (Today)
Reach Studios is launching Future Ready Digital: North in Sheffield. The one-day event will bring together speakers from Google Cloud, Trustpilot, Semrush and Dotdigital.
Aimed at regional businesses involved in eCommerce and digital commerce, it is being positioned as a forum for discussion on artificial intelligence, consumer behaviour and online retail strategy.
Hosted at the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield, the event will feature international speakers from technology, marketing and digital commerce. Places will be limited, and attendance will be free for eCommerce organisations on an invitation-only basis.
The programme includes sessions on agentic commerce, trust and visibility in AI-driven search and recommendation systems, the role of AI in the buying journey, and the use of personalisation and paid media by consumer brands.
Speakers include Reece Medway, who leads retail technology initiatives at Google Cloud; Graham Wilkinson, Head of Agency Partnerships at Trustpilot; Fernando Angulo, Senior Market Research Manager at Semrush, an Adobe company; Tash Halligan, Senior Enterprise Account Executive at Dotdigital; and Jordan Atchison, Chief Marketing Officer at Corkboard Concepts.
The event reflects a wider push by regional agencies and business groups to bring major international technology names to local markets outside London and the South East. Sheffield and the wider Yorkshire region have sought in recent years to strengthen their profile in digital industries, advanced manufacturing and technology investment.
Reach Studios, which is based in Sheffield, said it wants the event to support local commercial networks as businesses reassess how AI is changing marketing, sales and digital operations. Partnerships between regional firms and larger technology providers are being presented as a central theme of the day.
Regional focus
The choice of Sheffield is significant, as many UK technology and digital business events remain concentrated in London, Manchester and a small number of other major hubs. By hosting the programme in South Yorkshire, the organisers are seeking to meet demand from northern businesses for direct access to major platform companies and specialist digital commerce expertise without the need to travel further afield.
The planned discussions also point to a shift in priorities for online merchants. Rather than focusing only on website performance or customer acquisition in the conventional sense, attention is moving towards how AI tools influence product discovery, recommendation and trust during the buying process.
That shift has become more pronounced as search platforms, review services, marketing software groups and cloud providers place AI tools at the centre of their product strategies. For merchants, this means adapting not just advertising and content, but also how products are presented, reviewed and surfaced to potential customers.
Several sessions speak directly to that issue. Topics such as how AI overviews choose which sources to cite, and how trust signals affect visibility, are likely to resonate with brands concerned that traditional search and comparison channels are being reshaped by automated systems.
Industry speakers
The speaker line-up combines executives from platform companies and marketing specialists, suggesting the event is intended to bridge strategic discussion and practical examples. Google Cloud brings a major global technology brand to the programme, while Trustpilot, Semrush and Dotdigital represent businesses closer to customer reviews, search intelligence and direct marketing.
Corkboard Concepts adds a US agency perspective, with a session focused on paid media and revenue generation for high-growth brands. Taken together, the agenda points to an emphasis on applied commercial use cases rather than academic debate about AI.
Jonty Ward, Commercial Director at Reach Studios, said: "At Reach Studios, we believe in partnerships that strengthen our local business network and support investment and talent in our region at a time of huge change in the business landscape. With the launch of Future Ready Digital: North, we aim to deliver tangible value to northern businesses through our partnerships with world-leading organisations. By attracting outstanding AI industry leaders from the UK, Europe and the USA to speak in Sheffield, we are creating a platform for sharing knowledge and learning from the very best."
Future Ready Digital: North is Reach Studios' latest business initiative. The company works across web, mobile, automation, AI, and eCommerce strategy and development.
The event is being positioned as a business-focused forum for merchants and commercial organisations seeking guidance on how AI is affecting online trade. Organisers have framed that need in practical terms, from understanding shifts in consumer decision-making to adjusting digital marketing and commerce strategies in response.
Invitation-only attendance and free access for eCommerce organisations suggest the organisers are seeking a curated audience of business decision-makers rather than a broad public turnout. That approach is common in partnership-led business events, where organisers aim to create closer contact between sponsors, speakers and prospective clients.
For Sheffield, the launch adds another business gathering to the city's efforts to present itself as a venue for technology and commercial discussion. The Millennium Gallery, better known as a city-centre arts and design destination, will host a programme centred on AI, digital retail and commercial partnerships.