Future Retail Store – Well Positioned for Business with Ideas for Tomorrow

The funding format “Future Retail Store – With Ideas for Tomorrow, Successful Today” supports medium-sized retail companies in Bavaria in testing new digital technologies under real market conditions and further developing business models. Until the end of 2025, the Günther Rid Foundation covers investment and experimentation costs and ensures a two-year scientific accompaniment by the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS. In a Bavaria-wide call for proposals, exemplary concepts such as the “Urban Gardeners” garden center in Munich City Hall with interactive screens, AI chatbots, and 3D printing, as well as hologram consulting by Cairo AG in Nuremberg, were selected to directly test pioneering applications in stationary retail. The insights gained are incorporated into study reports (“Spotlight”) and shared with retail, urban development, politics, and science.

Funding covers investment costs, experimentation efforts, and scientific documentation. Requirements include a company headquarters in Bavaria, medium-sized status, and participation in the call for proposals. Projects span a period of 24 months, with decisions based on innovation content, economic viability, and practical relevance. The goal is to sustainably strengthen regional retail through tailored digitalization strategies and to position it for the future. The program not only supports technological pioneering projects but also offers a network of experts, science, and politics to provide long-term impulses for a modern retail landscape in Bavaria. Application documents and detailed information are available on the Rid Foundation’s website.