Spring Fair, the UK’s definitive showcase for Home, Gift and Fashion, returning to the NEC Birmingham from 1–4 February 2026, today unveils its most ambitious and experience-led content programme to date, designed to deliver meaningful, value-driven insights and the topics at the heart of retail.

Under its bold new creative direction Retail Alchemists – Masters of the Mix, the 2026 programme brings together the industry’s most influential voices across five stages, with a line-up curated around the themes shaping the future of retail:

Transformation & Innovation
Craft & Creativity
Partnerships & Possibilities
Commerce & Community
Purpose & Planet
Leadership & Legacy

From retail strategists and trend forecasters to designers, founders, innovators and cultural commentators, Spring Fair’s speaker programme blends practical masterclasses with future-thinking debate, giving buyers the tools, knowledge and connections to thrive in 2026 and beyond.

A New Era of Experiential Retail Insight

“Spring Fair 2026 is about empowering the people who make retail magical, the true alchemists,” says Jackson Szabo, Portfolio Director of Spring Fair. “Our content programme puts buyers at the centre of the conversation with practical learning, trend intelligence, and future-facing inspiration woven across every stage. We have doubled down on the relevance and importance of what our content stages offer to deliver our most ambitious and rewarding programme yet.”

Five Visionary New Feature Spaces

Manifesting its creative theme ‘Masters of the Mix. The Alchemists of Retail’, Spring Fair 2026 introduces five groundbreaking feature environments designed to fully reimagine the trade-show experience:

The Design Studio – where design intelligence meets networking
The Licensing Lab – where icons and ideas fuse
The Merchant’s Corner – empowering independent retail
The Style Atelier – elevating fashion storytelling, hosted by Caryn Franklin MBE
The Hidden Forum - secretive, invitation-only theatre with industry leaders
Each environment blends content, creativity and community, transforming the show into a sensory-rich marketplace of ideas and innovation.

AGENDA HIGHLIGHTS FOR 2026

Buyers can explore the full programme at www.springfair.com/stage-programme-2026 and mark it in their calendar, but standout sessions include:

The Design Studio – Hall 6

01 Feb 2026 14:00 - 14:45 - The Restorative Space: Designing for Calm and Connection, Charlotte Findlater, Founder, Charlotte Findlater Design, and Marcus Steffen, CEO & Founder, Akarui

Occupants increasingly seek environments that soothe rather than overstimulate. Explore how living walls, natural materials, organic forms and optimised daylight reduce stress and enhance well-being across spaces, and why connecting people to nature has moved from trend to essential infrastructure for modern design.

02 Feb 2026 12:00 - 12:45 - Battersea Reimagined: Heritage Meets Retail Innovation,

Sebastien Ricard, Director, WilkinsonEyre Architects - Project Lead of Battersea Power Station

Discover how the restoration of Battersea Power Station honours the original vision while creating vibrant retail galleries within heritage Turbine Halls. Explore the architectural interventions - soaring atria, rooftop sky villas, and event spaces - that breathe new retail life into this Grade II* landmark while preserving its dramatic scale and visual presence. Learn how respecting heritage integrity drives contemporary commercial success.

The Merchant’s Corner – Hall 3

01 February 2026 11:00 - 11:45 – Hard Times, Smart Retail

Shirley Maciver (Orange Blossom), Graham Soult (CannyInsights), Anna Donoghue (Piglet in Bed), and Catherine Erdly (Resilient Retail Club) reveal the tactics keeping independent retailers profitable, blending digital tools, alternative revenue streams and smarter margin management.

02 Feb 2026 12:00 - 12:45 - Invisible Influence: How Social Commerce is Redefining Retail, Alison Battisby, Founder - Avocado Social

Discover how shoppable and AI-enhanced content are quietly transforming how consumers discover and purchase products online. Alison reveals the strategies and lessons behind social commerce success, helping retailers turn social platforms into seamless sales channels.

Speakers

The Licensing Lab – Hall 4

01 Feb 2026 - 11:00 - 11:45 - BAGPUSS: Family Fandom - How Comfort Brands are Winning with Consumers in “Unusual” Times

Explore how nostalgia brands are creating new twists on the familiar, and how retailers are using “Family Fandom” to unlock a retro world that feels accessible and relevant for the whole family. Threewise, the Licensing Agents behind BAGPUSS®, share why timeless IP continues to resonate, and touch on key issues of shifting shopping habits and sustainability.

02 Feb 2026 11:00 - 11:45 - Inside the Design: How Liberty’s Studio Turns Heritage into New Opportunities, Alice Molyneaux, Head of Licensing and Brand Partnerships – Liberty

Explore how Liberty’s world-famous prints and in-house design studio transform 150 years of heritage into design-led collections and creative partnerships. This session peels back the curtain on how Liberty's collaborations engage customers in new ways, extend the brand’s reach and deliver lasting commercial success through licensing.

03 Feb 2026 14:00 - 14:45 – The Power of Quiet Licensing: The Joules Blueprint for Sustainable Growth, Victoria Downes, Licensing Manager, and Josie Will, Business Development Manager Joules

Joules shares how values-led, subtly integrated licensing (including its celebrated Peter Rabbit collection) strengthens relevance, trust and cross-generational appeal, while also expanding its own IP into lifestyle categories.

The Style Atelier – Hall 2

01 Feb 2026 12:30 - 13:00 - The Future of Fashion: Colour, Culture and Creative Direction,

Tiffany Hill, Founder - Trend Suite

What will shape the way we dress - and design - in the seasons ahead? In this visually rich and thought-provoking presentation, Tiffany Hill Studio, one of the UK’s leading fashion trend forecasting agencies, unveils the key colour stories, materials and cultural forces defining 2026 and beyond. Blending aesthetic intuition with commercial intelligence, this session reveals how shifts in mood, mindset and meaning will translate into the next wave of product design and retail storytelling. Expect a visual journey through the future of fashion, where creativity meets strategy and inspiration becomes opportunity.

02 Feb 2026 12:30 - 13:15 - From Lookbook to Basket: The Trends, The Edit, The Sale, Caryn Franklin MBE, Fashion Commentator and Co-Founder - All Walks Beyond the Catwalk, and Rebekah Roy - Fashion Stylist

Step inside the creative process as stylist Rebekah Roy takes a trend from first spark to final sell-through, live on stage. This is where runway ideas are deconstructed, reimagined and rebuilt into edits that resonate with real shoppers, right now. Expect instinct, spontaneity and plenty of fashion chemistry as aesthetic meets analytics, creativity meets commerce and style becomes strategy.

The Hidden Forum

A secretive, invitation-only theatre hosting intimate fireside conversations with industry leaders, where ideas move industries and future strategies are born. Line-up to be announced soon.

Plan your visit around the sessions that matter most – your Spring Fair agenda starts here..

For more information and to register to attend, please visit www.springfair.com.