Alexander Graf

You want to meet the stars and starlets of the e-commerce scene. Alex makes this possible by taking them along on the tour as discussion partners, e.g. Florian Heinemann, or visiting them directly at their stands. As last year, the tour will also include a big competition, but it is still unclear whether there will be automatic lawnmowers and iPhones to be won again. It will definitely be entertaining, and you will probably get to know a few exciting tour participants, as Alex will spontaneously engage them in short interviews during the tour.

AI is reshaping commerce. But while the industry races to automate the shopping experience, a different model is quietly outpacing it — one built on real expertise, loyal communities, and sellers who know their products inside out. Hardly anyone has understood the potential of live shopping as well as Whatnot. This has made the US-based unicorn one of the fastest-growing marketplaces in history. At the OMR Festival, Whatnot co-founder and CEO Grant LaFontaine makes the case for why human connection is becoming the defining competitive advantage in retail, and what that means for the next era of commerce in Europe.

Electric cars, robot vacuums, Labubus – products, brands, and pop culture from China are becoming increasingly present in our daily lives. But what is the situation when it comes to marketing? In this panel – hosted by e-commerce entrepreneur Alex Graf – we discuss with Chinese brands Huawei, BYD, and Miniso how marketing works in Asia and which best-case strategies from there can be transferred to European markets. How can “China Speed” be implemented in strategies for the local market? What can we learn from Chinese innovative power for our own business? How are Western brands reacting to the new competitive pressure? Which mechanics also work here, and where do we need to protect or transform ourselves?