TRE25 Recap: The Future of In-Store Experience Is Real-Time, Insight-Driven, and Human

The Running Event 2025 (TRE25) brought together the specialty running and outdoor community for a high-energy showcase of innovation, product discovery, and retail education. This year, one theme stood above the rest: the in-store retail experience is shifting toward real-time insights, smarter workflows, and better empowered associates.

Below are our top takeaways on where the industry is heading and how retailers and brands can bring these insights back home.

The Retail Landscape Is Changing Fast

TRE25 highlighted the accelerating expectations of today’s customers. They’re looking for faster guidance, real-time information, and a seamless connection between online and in-store experiences.

Running + Outdoor Convergence Continues

The growth of TRE’s outdoor segment reflects how customers now shop across trail, road, hybrid, and lifestyle categories. Retailers are adapting with broader assortments, cross-category training, and more dynamic staffing models.

Experience Outweighs Merchandise Alone

TRE25 exhibitors showcased interactive demos and tech-enabled fitting experiences. But the most meaningful innovations were those that support better human interactions, not replace them.

Highlights From TRE25: Education, Innovations & Community Insights

Education Sessions: Turning Insight Into Action

Speakers emphasized the growing need to surface data where it matters most: at the point of service. Inventory visibility, substitutions, and customer-context guidance were top-of-mind across sessions.

On the Exhibit Floor: Tech That Supports Service

Beyond footwear and apparel launches, many booths spotlighted tools that shorten decision cycles, streamline fitting, or deliver real-time detail directly on the store floor.

Conversations With Retailers Highlight a Clear Pain Point

Store leaders reiterated common challenges:

• Difficulty identifying out-of-stock items during in-aisle customer conversations
• Missed upsell opportunities
• Slow onboarding for new associates and high turnover
• Variability in product knowledge across shifts

These challenges share a common root: associates often lack the real-time insight needed to confidently guide customers.

The In-Store Service Gap Is Wider Than Ever

TRE25 made one thing clear: the last mile of retail is the associate-customer conversation. When associates lack immediate access to product details, substitutions, or upsells, friction appears fast and sales can be lost even faster.

Customers expect the same immediacy they experience online, but with the added benefit of a knowledgeable human guiding the experience.

How Real-Time Tools Fit Into the Future of Specialty Retail

While no single technology dominated TRE25, a new category is quietly emerging: on-floor intelligence, tools that help associates act instantly with confidence.

These tools give associates the ability to:

• Scan products for instant insights
• See real-time stock status
• Offer smart substitutions when items are unavailable
• Identify relevant upsell suggestions based on customer goals
  

Rallyware’s TRE25 demo highlighted one version of this trend: a mobile retail sales app that surfaces product details, out-of-stock alternatives, and upsell suggestions during customer conversations. It’s not about pushing products, it’s about supporting exceptional service.

What Retailers Should Bring Home From TRE25

Here are actionable steps retailers can start implementing this quarter:

1. Map the Associate Workflow

Identify where interactions slow down or where associates hesitate. Those are your highest-impact improvement areas.

2. Improve Inventory Transparency on the Floor

The faster an associate can confirm availability, the smoother the experience.

3. Build a Culture of Substitution Mindset

Empower associates to immediately offer meaningful alternatives when needed.

4. Train for Customer Context, Not Just Product Knowledge

Help associates connect customer goals to product performance across categories.

5. Test Mobile Tools That Enhance Conversation, Not Disrupt It

Technology should support connection, not pull the associate away from the customer.

Looking Ahead: TRE’s Signals for 2026 and Beyond

The future of specialty retail will be defined by:

• Real-time associate insights
• Faster, more personalized upsell opportunities
• Mobile-first workflows
• Seamless omnichannel support
• Human-led, insight-enhanced customer experiences

TRE25 didn’t just hint at that future, it showed it in action.

FAQ: TRE25 & the Future of the In-Store Retail Experience

What is The Running Event?

TRE is the leading conference for specialty running and outdoor retailers, featuring education sessions, an exhibit hall, and community events.

What themes stood out most at TRE25?

Real-time insights, inventory visibility, associate enablement, and tech that supports, not replaces, the human experience.

How is technology changing the in-store retail experience?

Retailers are adopting tools that deliver instant product information, stock status, substitutions, and upsell suggestions directly to associates.

What’s the biggest takeaway for store teams?

Empower associates with the information and tools they need to deliver confident, personalized service at the moment of interaction.