Mal Chia

9:40 AM eTail Commentary Circle: Is Omnichannel Undermining Profitability?

Panel: Has omnichannel shifted from a growth lever to a margin liability for most retailers? And if so, where should

leaders draw firmer lines?

This panel brings together the contributing commentators behind the eTail Australia Benchmarking Report "The Cost-to-Serve Crisis:

Where Australian Retail Profit Is Actually Being Lost in 2026" to unpack what the data is really telling Australian retailers beyond

headlines and hype.

Rather than revisiting trends in isolation, the discussion reframes AI fatigue, omnichannel complexity, and rising operational pressure

into a single, urgent commercial challenge: cost-to-serve is rising faster than revenue per customer.

Expect candid perspectives on where margin is quietly leaking, which investments are paying off, and where well-intentioned strategies

are actively slowing retailers down.

3:15 PM Discovery Roundtables – Round 1

A problem shared is a problem halved – all retailers are facing similar big problems right now. This is your opportunity to join forces with like-minded peers to come up with solutions. Each roundtable discussion will run for 30 minutes. You will be assigned to a roundtable and will get the chance to join the other 2 tables later in the day.

Topic 1: How to build an AI control system across a portfolio of brands

Speaker: Mal Chia, Co-Founder, Ecom Nation

Topic 2: How do you decide what to cut from your tech stack versus what to keep and integrate?

Speaker: TBC

Topic 3: Are retailers still treating payments as plumbing, when local payment experiences, FX transparency, and settlement speed are now decisive growth drivers in cross-border commerce?

Speaker: Mangala Martinus, Managing Director, Payments Consulting Network

4:10 PM Discovery Roundtables – Round 2

A problem shared is a problem halved – all retailers are facing similar big problems right now. This is your opportunity to join forces with like-minded peers to come up with solutions. Each roundtable discussion will run for 30 minutes. You will be assigned to a roundtable and will get the chance to join the other 2 tables throughout the day.

Topic 1: How to build an AI control system across a portfolio of brands

Speaker: Mal Chia, Co-Founder, Ecom Nation

Topic 2: How do you decide what to cut from your tech stack versus what to keep and integrate?

Speaker: TBC

Topic 3: Are retailers still treating payments as plumbing, when local payment experiences, FX transparency, and settlement speed are now decisive growth drivers in cross-border commerce?

Speaker: Mangala Martinus, Managing Director, Payments Consulting Network

5:00 PM Discovery Roundtables – Round 3

A problem shared is a problem halved – all retailers are facing similar big problems right now. This is your opportunity to join forces with like-minded peers to come up with solutions. Each roundtable discussion will run for 30 minutes. You will be assigned to a roundtable and will get the chance to join the other 2 tables later in the day.

Topic 1: How to build an AI control system across a portfolio of brands

Speaker: Mal Chia, Co-Founder, Ecom Nation

Topic 2: How do you decide what to cut from your tech stack versus what to keep and integrate?

Speaker: TBC

Topic 3: Are retailers still treating payments as plumbing, when local payment experiences, FX transparency, and settlement speed are now decisive growth drivers in cross-border commerce?

Speaker: Mangala Martinus, Managing Director, Payments Consulting Network

Agenda Day 1

9:40 AM eTail Commentary Circle: Is Omnichannel Undermining Profitability?

3:15 PM Discovery Roundtables – Round 1

4:10 PM Discovery Roundtables – Round 2

5:00 PM Discovery Roundtables – Round 3

Agenda Day 2

12:00 PM Have Marketplaces Peaked? What Comes Next for Retailers

2:10 PM The Winning Formula: How Top Brands Sustain Momentum