Earlier this month, leaders across the retail sector descended upon Barcelona for the annual Shoptalk Europe event. With topics such as AI, emerging retail tech and retail media taking centre stage, there was no shortage of insightful discussions, innovative ideas and predictions for what’s next in retail.
During the event, we were delighted to host a Retail Safari Store Tour. Led by Insider Trends' Jack Stratten, the tour took an exclusive group of retail leaders through some of Barcelona's most innovative and inspiring retail destinations, offering a first-hand look at the latest trends shaping the in-store experience.
Here’s a glimpse into some of the stores we visited during the tour:
Chinese toy brand Pop Mart has built a loyal fanbase around its collectible figures and blind box toys, including the hugely popular Labubu. What stood out about this store was how considered it felt compared to some of the brand's previous retail spaces. Rather than being built around a single viral product or trend, the flagship has been designed to showcase the wider Pop Mart universe and evolve alongside the brand's next big hit. Throughout the store, thoughtful storytelling and displays celebrate the cultural impact of its characters, creating an experience that feels less like a toy shop and more like a destination for fans.
Flabelus has quickly become one of Spain's most talked-about fashion brands, known for reimagining traditional espadrilles with bold colours, playful prints and contemporary styling. The brand is a strong example of a digitally native retailer that understands the value of physical retail beyond simply driving sales. Its store acts as both a brand-building tool and a highly visible advertisement, helping to introduce more shoppers to the brand.
The design strikes a careful balance between bold and elegant, creating a space that stands out on the street while perfectly complementing the premium positioning of the product. Despite its distinctive look, the store remains warm and welcoming, inviting customers to step inside and explore.
Luxury fragrance and accessories brand (and Yocuda client) Byredo opened its first Barcelona store in 2025, bringing its distinctive retail concept to the city. Designed to encourage a slower, more considered shopping experience, the space feels more like an art gallery than a traditional store, with a minimalist aesthetic that allows the products to take centre stage.
A key part of the experience is the level of service on offer, with highly trained staff providing personalised fragrance recommendations tailored to each customer's preferences. The store also features a dedicated second-floor space for VIP customers, enabling Byredo to deliver a more elevated and exclusive experience for its most valuable clientele. The result is a retail environment that feels luxurious, personal and carefully curated at every touchpoint.
Spanish retailer, All Yours has carved out a distinctive position in the beauty market by specialising in clean beauty and niche fragrances. With four stores across Barcelona, each location has been thoughtfully adapted to suit its surrounding neighbourhood and customer base.
What stands out is the brand's clear focus and consistency; All Yours positions itself as a trusted destination for discovering clean beauty products, and that message comes through strongly in-store. By curating its range around a strict Safe List, the retailer removes much of the complexity that can come with shopping for beauty products, giving customers greater confidence in their choices. The store environment reinforces this approach, with natural materials, soft green tones and abundant plants creating a calm, welcoming space that reflects the values behind the products on the shelves.
Crocs has undergone one of retail's most surprising transformations, with its once-polarising resin clogs becoming a mainstream footwear staple. Much of that success has been driven by a steady stream of cultural collaborations and the popularity of Jibbitz charms, which allow customers to personalise their shoes and make them their own.
While many shoppers still associate the brand with its iconic clog, the store does an excellent job of showcasing the wider product range. Clever zoning makes it easy to navigate between different styles and collections, helping customers discover products they may not have considered before. The dedicated Jibbitz displays are particularly effective, encouraging repeat visits and smaller impulse purchases that keep customers engaged with the brand long after their initial purchase.
Barcelona-based skincare brand ISDIN, best known for its sun protection products and dermocosmetic formulations, opened its first-ever physical store in 2024. More than simply a retail space, the store has been designed to showcase the brand's scientific expertise and innovation in skincare.
The experience is highly educational, with interactive displays, clear product guidance and diagnostic tools that help customers better understand their skin and receive personalised recommendations. ISDIN has also incorporated bookable skin treatments into the space, creating an additional revenue opportunity while reinforcing its credibility and authority in the skincare category. The result is a store that feels as much like a skincare destination as it does a place to shop.
Founded in 1962, Ona Llibres is a much-loved Barcelona institution and a celebration of Catalan language and culture. Its 1,000-square-metre flagship, which opened in 2020, is dedicated entirely to Catalan-language books and offers a thoughtful blend of tradition and modernity. From the striking spiral book installation that greets visitors at the entrance to the carefully curated shelves throughout the space, every detail reflects a deep appreciation for reading.
The store is designed to encourage customers to slow down and spend time exploring, with comfortable seating areas dotted throughout and a dedicated reading and events space at the rear. Particularly memorable is the collection of rare, out-of-print and first-edition books that visitors are actively encouraged to handle, reinforcing the idea that this is not a museum piece but a living, breathing destination for book lovers.
Designed as a true brand destination, sportswear giant Adidas' Barcelona flagship is the largest Adidas store in Spain and incorporates elements of the city's culture and heritage throughout its design. Like many of the brand's global flagships, the space serves a purpose beyond retail, acting as a testing ground for new ideas, experiences and merchandising concepts. The store is constantly evolving, with new campaigns, product launches and activations regularly transforming the environment and giving customers a reason to return.
Collections are thoughtfully staged in dedicated zones, each with its own look and feel, making the space engaging and easy to explore. Digital touchpoints are seamlessly woven into the experience, with QR codes allowing customers to access product information, engage with the Adidas app and loyalty programme, and even request items to try on, creating a connected journey between the physical and digital worlds.
Our final stop was Sephora, a beauty retail powerhouse and Yocuda client. Sephora continues to set the standard for beauty retail across Europe, and its Barcelona flagship demonstrates exactly why. Designed as a beauty playground, the store is packed with interactive elements, including a slide at one of the entrances that immediately sets a playful and engaging tone. Inside, product displays are constantly refreshed to showcase the latest trends and viral products, creating an experience that feels much like browsing a social media feed in real life.
Beyond product discovery, Sephora has built a strong services offering, with makeup lessons, beauty consultations and diagnostic tools helping customers find the right products for their needs. The retailer also uses exclusive experiences to reward loyalty, with premium perks such as the personalised VIP Room Gold Experience available only to its most engaged members. Together, these elements create a store that blends entertainment, expertise and exclusivity in a way that keeps customers coming back.
One thing was clear throughout the tour: the most successful retailers aren't treating their stores as places to transact, but as places to build relationships, tell stories and create memorable experiences. Digital receipts are one simple way to extend that experience beyond the checkout and continue the conversation after a customer leaves the store. If you'd like to learn how, book a demo with our team.