Shopware Community Day 2026 once again demonstrated what makes this community special: new ideas, open conversations, and a shared passion for the future of digital commerce. On June 10, around 1,500 attendees gathered at Confex in Cologne to experience exactly that.
We’ll look back at the biggest announcements, inspiring sessions, and memorable moments from the day. But before we dive in, watch the recap video below for a quick glimpse of what Shopware Community Day 2026 was all about:
The most important announcements from Shopware Community Day 2026
The keynote was the central highlight of the day, featuring Shopware Co-CEO Sebastian Hamann, CFOO Joachim Weber, CPTO Mark Stanley, Principal Product Manager Marie Reckendrees, and Group Product Manager Aaron Schaarschmidt. At the heart of the keynote was a question that will shape commerce in the years ahead: How can merchants stay successful as AI agents become an increasingly important part of the customer journey?
Shopware’s answer: merchants need an infrastructure that helps them reduce complexity, automate work, and maintain control over their data, business logic, and customer experiences. Guided by the principle “Grow your way. Automate the work. Elevate the experience.”, Shopware presented its vision for the agentic era.
One thing became clear throughout the keynote: the future of commerce will not be defined by automation alone. As AI agents take on more tasks, emotional brand experiences, trust, and differentiation will become even more important. This is where Shopware comes in – as an open commerce infrastructure that helps businesses combine technological innovation with unique customer experiences.
Shopware Nexus: Connecting data, systems, and processes
Today’s commerce businesses rarely operate with just a single system. Instead, data and business logic are often spread across a wide range of solutions – from ERP and CRM systems to PIMs and other specialized tools. On average, a merchant’s business logic is distributed across more than 15 disconnected systems. At the same time, up to 52 percent of implementation effort is spent simply connecting those systems rather than differentiating the business itself.
This is exactly where Shopware Nexus comes in. The new native, event-driven orchestration layer is designed to replace fragmented middleware and custom point-to-point integrations with a centralized hub for data synchronization. Standardized connectors, automated data mapping, and AI-powered workflow generation help streamline integrations and simplify processes.
The result: lower integration costs, faster time-to-market, and more time to focus on what really matters – creating better customer experiences and growing the business.
Shopware Copilot: From analysis to action
There were also exciting developments in the field of artificial intelligence. Shopware Copilot, part of Shopware Intelligence, is gaining agentic capabilities, evolving from an analytics tool into an active assistant for day-to-day operations.
Instead of simply providing information, Copilot is designed to help merchants identify patterns, generate recommendations, and execute specific tasks within workflows. Processes that today often require multiple tools and hours of manual work can now be initiated and completed in just minutes.
One of its key advantages is that Copilot operates directly within Shopware and therefore has access to the business context it needs. It understands products, orders, customer behavior, and sales data, allowing it to provide meaningful recommendations and uncover optimization opportunities. At the same time, merchants remain fully in control at all times.
Shopware Payments: Managing payments directly within Shopware
One of the most important product announcements of the day was Shopware Payments. With this new native payment solution, Shopware brings payments directly into the platform, adding another key building block to its commerce infrastructure.
Merchants can now manage payments within their familiar Shopware environment, without relying on additional integrations or external systems. This is made possible through Shopware’s partnership with PayPal, whose global infrastructure serves as the foundation for Shopware Payments.
The solution is intentionally designed to remain open: merchants retain full control over their payment strategy and can continue to use additional payment providers if they choose. Shopware Payments is initially available in Germany and Austria, with additional markets planned to follow.
Experience Studio: Rethinking commerce experiences
Sebastian also provided a first glimpse into a possible future of digital commerce with Experience Studio. Introduced as a research preview, the solution is designed to help merchants create commerce experiences faster and bring new ideas to life in less time.
At its core is a simple question: How can merchants continue to create emotional, differentiated brand experiences in an increasingly automated world? Experience Studio offers a look at how content, commerce, and modern AI technologies could work even more closely together in the future.
An open commerce infrastructure for the agentic era
Together, these innovations form the foundation of Shopware’s vision for an open commerce infrastructure. Shopware Nexus connects data, systems, and processes. Shopware Copilot uses that context to analyze tasks, provide recommendations, and support workflows. Shopware Payments adds a native payments layer to the platform, while Experience Studio opens up new possibilities for creating emotional, brand-defining commerce experiences.
Combined, they create an infrastructure that helps merchants reduce complexity, move faster, and maintain control over their data, processes, and customer experiences.
Watch the full keynote
Couldn’t attend the event in person, or want to revisit the biggest announcements? The full Shopware Community Day 2026 keynote is now available on demand:
Diverse topics, fresh perspectives, and plenty of opportunities to connect
Shopware Community Day 2026 offered much more than the keynote on the Main Stage. More than 50 speakers shared their expertise and perspectives across three major stages. The program was complemented by ten partner-led masterclasses, six Shopware Deep Dives, six live podcast sessions, and several community meetups.
The Deep Dives and masterclasses covered topics such as AI in ecommerce, internationalization, and Shopware Payments. The meetups provided space for personal conversations and networking, including gatherings for communities focused on Women in Tech and User Experience.
Whether it was technical innovation on the Tech Stage, real-world commerce use cases on the Commerce Stage, or strategic discussions on the Main Stage, the program highlighted the wide range of challenges and opportunities shaping digital commerce today.
Some highlights from the Main Stage and Commerce Stage:
The state of Agentic Commerce in 2026 How far has agentic commerce really come? Representatives from OpenAI, Trusted Shops, camel active, JACOB Elektronik, and Shopware discussed the opportunities, challenges, and next steps for AI-powered commerce experiences.
FC Schalke 04 – Where emotion meets Tech FC Schalke 04 shared how emotional fan experiences, real-time marketing, and extreme traffic peaks around jersey launches and match days can be successfully scaled in digital commerce.
Shopware Visionary Award 2026 For the second year in a row, Shopware honored some of the most innovative online stores in the ecosystem with the Shopware Visionary Award. Learn more about the winners and their projects in our dedicated Visionary Award blog post.
The unfiltered truth: Leadership in Commerce 2026 Amid budget pressure, AI initiatives, and growing expectations from teams, industry leaders openly discussed focus, priorities, and modern leadership in digital commerce.
Conversations, connections, and community
Shopware Community Day is about much more than keynotes, panels, and product announcements. Just as important are the conversations between sessions, new connections, spontaneous ideas, and the chance to reconnect with people you often only know from online interactions.
Throughout the day, merchants, developers, partners, and community members took every opportunity to connect – whether on stage, at meetups, at partner booths, or simply over a coffee between sessions.
There was also plenty to discover beyond the session program. Attendees had the opportunity to connect with Shopware teams and partners, learn more about new products and technologies, and explore the latest developments around Shopware Nexus, Shopware Payments, and Shopware Intelligence. The Shopware Community Hub was also represented on-site. Registered users can claim the official SCD 2026 badge through this link.
A variety of food trucks and beverage stations kept everyone well fed throughout the day. The event concluded with the traditional afterparty, where the community gathered once more in a relaxed setting to continue conversations and celebrate the day together. The evening was accompanied by DJ Jan-Christian Zeller and DJane Daytona.
To capture the unique atmosphere of Shopware Community Day 2026, we have put together a gallery featuring some of our favorite moments from the event.
Want to learn more?
If you'd like to explore the product announcements unveiled at Shopware Community Day 2026 in more detail, you can find all the latest updates on our product news page.
Looking to revisit Shopware Community Day or learn more about the event? Visit the official SCD website for additional insights, impressions, and updates.
See you in 2027
The next Shopware Community Day is already on the calendar: on June 1, 2027, the community will come together in Cologne once again.
We’re already looking forward to inspiring conversations, fresh ideas, and reconnecting with the community. 😊
