MAPIC · 2026

Agoris analysis · updated September 2026

Key takeaways

• "The International Retail Leasing Hub": MAPIC is the international marketplace where retailers, property companies, developers, cities and leisure operators negotiate their retail locations.
• Organiser: RX France (RX group, Reed Exhibitions Limited / RELX), which also operates MIPIM at the same venue.
• Next edition: 31st MAPIC, on Tuesday 3 and Wednesday 4 November 2026 (8.30am-7pm), at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, Cannes.
• Review of the 30th edition (2025): 4,000 participants from 75 countries, 1,700 retailer representatives, 150 exhibitors.
• Tighter format since 2025: two days instead of three, stands grouped on the Riviera 7 and 8 levels, and a premium networking area with privatisable tables that is more accessible than a stand.
• New features announced for 2026: a High Street zone built with Cushman & Wakefield, a closed-door Retail Park Summit, and pitching sessions by geographic zone (Latin America, India, Middle East, South Africa).
• Rare for a trade show of this calibre: the exhibitor pricing schedule is public, starting at 1,075 € per m² for a bare stand and 3,450 € for a networking table.

Who exhibits

Typical profile

MAPIC brings together both sides of the location market. On the property supply side: property companies and developers of shopping centres, retail parks and outlets, brokers and consultants, investors, cities and local authorities (Cities pavilion). On the demand side: retail, food service and leisure brands expanding internationally, indoor attraction operators and licence holders via LeisurUp by MAPIC. A third, more recent circle brings together suppliers of technology and ESG solutions applied to physical retail.

Notable exhibitors

The 30th edition brought together the major European players in retail assets: Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Nhood, ECE, Ingka, VIA Outlets, Cenomi, The Crown Estate, as well as the consultancies CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield, Colliers, Savills and JLL. On the retailer side, Paris Baguette, Xiaomi, Alo Yoga, Costco, Krispy Kreme and Bath & Body Works were among the brands coming to prepare their European expansion. For 2026, the organiser has announced the presence of Wendy's, Pop Mart, Dave's Hot Chicken and Popeyes in the cross-border sessions reserved for Asian and American brands. The official directory of participants is published on the organiser's website.

Quality of the audience

The 2025 edition brought together 4,000 participants from 75 countries, including 1,700 retailer representatives. The profile is almost exclusively decision-making: development directors, asset managers, expansion managers, investors. For 2026, the organiser is targeting around 2,000 commercial real estate players, 1,800 retailer representatives and 10,000 scheduled meetings. Audience maturity indicator retained by the organiser at the close of 2025: 60% of the brands present said they were planning up to ten openings in the following year.

Events & community

Conference programme

More than 50 sessions are scheduled across approximately 12,000 m² of exhibition space. The theme announced for 2026 is "Developing with Intent, Growing through Influence", centred on the selectivity of locations and differentiation strategies. The programme is organised into thematic summits (retail parks, outlets, leisure, urban regeneration), alongside the "Retail in the City" track, the MAPIC Innovation Forum and pitching sessions where cities and property owners present their locations to retailers.

Awards and accolades

The MAPIC Awards reward projects and brands at the end of the first day. The categories awarded in 2025 were: Best New Store Concept (MINISO LAND, Shanghai), Best Refurbishment Project (El Boulevard, Vitoria-Gasteiz), Best New Development Project (LIVAT Shanghai) and Best Urban Regeneration Project (Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier). Six brand trophies are also awarded, by the jury and by public vote: Most Wanted and Most Exciting, each in Retail (Zara, ON), Food & Beverage (McDonald's, Big Mamma) and Leisure & Entertainment (Legoland, F1 Arcade). The 2025 jury was chaired by Joanna Fisher, CEO of ECE Marketplaces.

To mark its 30th anniversary, the 2025 edition also presented special distinctions: the "Pioneers of Places" title to Maurice Bansay (Apsys), Chadatip Chutrakul (Siam Piwat), Philippe Journo (La Compagnie de Phalsbourg), Alexander Otto (ECE Group) and Alain Taravella (Altarea), and the "Most Influential Over 30 Years" to Zara for brands and Westfield London for property projects.

Community & networks

LeisurUp by MAPIC is the event's leisure and licensing component: more than 70 companies present attraction concepts, equipment and licensed brands there, with the aim of securing their pipeline of locations with site owners. Networking is facilitated through the DealMaker tool, included in all exhibitor packages, and through six private networking events announced for 2026. In 2025, an invitation-only forward-looking day, the NextGen Retail Day, extended the trade show on 6 November.

On the media side, the organiser publishes the list of accredited journalists and its press releases on the official press area.

On site: what you need to know

For access, parking and accommodation, see the venue page: Palais des Festivals et des Congrès (1 boulevard de la Croisette, 06400 Cannes; Cannes railway station approximately 8 minutes on foot, bus stops nearby, on-site car parks).

Specific to the trade show: the 2026 edition is held on 3 and 4 November, from 8.30am to 7pm on both days. The exhibition occupies the Riviera 7 (stands) and Riviera 8 (networking area, lounges and catering) levels. Registration is required in advance and badges are available approximately fifteen days before the opening: printing them ahead of time saves time at the entrance. The organiser negotiates hotel rates for the event, with up to 20% off from two nights and rates frozen at 2025 levels.

How much it costs to exhibit

Preparing your visit

For the exhibitor

• Choose the package first of all: between the 3,450 € networking table, the Cities pavilion and the bare stand priced per m², the budget gap is a factor of ten for the same access to meetings. The shift from carpeted stands to the "privatisable table" format is precisely what the organiser opened up in 2025 for leaner structures.
• Make use of the 10 free retailer registrations included with a stand: at a leasing trade show, bringing in your prospects is worth more than the surface area exhibited.
• Activate DealMaker as soon as the platform opens and target by geographic zone: over two days, everything is decided through meetings scheduled in advance.
• Check eligibility for the thematic zones (LeisurUp, the Innovation & Sustainability pod, the Cities pavilion), which are cheaper and better qualified than a generic stand.

For the decision-making visitor

• Retailers have access to a dedicated programme (support from a retailer team, a personalised visit plan, a listing in the International Brands Booklet): request it in advance rather than arriving as a walk-in visitor.
• Identify the summits that match your asset class (retail parks, outlets, urban regeneration, high street): the conference programme is the best filter for identifying useful contacts.
• Set aside both full days. The compact format concentrates all meetings on 3 and 4 November, with no downtime spread across a longer period.

Policy & CSR initiatives

The organiser publishes a commitments page specific to the event. RX places MAPIC within the group's carbon trajectory: a halving of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality targeted for 2040, with the parent companies having signed the Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge and the Climate Pledge.

On the running of the trade show, the documented measures cover waste and resources: systematic recycling of recyclable materials, reduction and recycling of carpet offcuts, elimination of single-use plastics (bags, plates, cutlery, bottles), reusable or recyclable cardboard and coated canvas signage, on-site water fountains, PEFC-certified paper and application of UNIMEV's energy sobriety plan. A partnership with GreenBee is used to identify waste sources and reduce partners' footprint.

On the social side, the organiser guarantees the accessibility of all stands to people with disabilities, takes into account participants' specific needs (access, noise), applies a code of conduct and the RX Guide to Inclusive Events, and states an objective of diversity and representativeness in the composition of panels.

No ISO 20121 certification specific to MAPIC is published by the organiser. The venue, however, is certified: the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, operated by SEMEC, has been ISO 20121 (sustainable events) certified since 2022 and became, in December 2022, the first French congress centre to adopt "société à mission" (mission-led company) status.

How the trade show has evolved

Trajectory analysis

MAPIC marked its 30th anniversary in 2025 by changing its model rather than celebrating the status quo. The trade show moved from three days in late November to two days in early November, reduced its footprint and turned an entire level into a networking area with privatisable tables, cheaper than a traditional stand. The result can be read in the figures: 4,400 participants in 2024, 4,000 in 2025 for 150 exhibitors. The event traded volume for meeting density, in a physical retail market that has once again become selective.

The positioning displayed since 2025, "The International Retail Leasing Hub", embraces this refocusing on the marketing of existing assets rather than the launch of major new projects. The new features announced for 2026 point in the same direction: high streets and retail parks, two formats now in recovery, are taking the place historically occupied by new shopping centres. For an exhibitor, the practical consequence is clear: MAPIC is now positioning itself as a trade show of scheduled meetings, not a showcase.

Unless otherwise stated, all factual data in this listing comes from the organiser's official website (mapic.com).