Insight Summit Benelux 2026
NIQ Insight Summit 2026
Intelligence that moves commerce.
Tuesday 6 October | 10:30 -17:00
Conference Center High Tech Campus, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
NIQ Insight Summit 2026
The NIQ Insight Summit 2026 comes at a pivotal moment for the market. In an environment that is evolving faster than ever, marked by volatility, changing consumer habits, and the impact of technology, 2026 is shaping up to be a turning point for companies that want to lead growth.
After many successful editions held in the Netherlands and Belgium, we are bringing together both markets for the first time in one unified Insight Summit Benelux, creating a unique opportunity to join forces, exchange perspectives, and unlock insights across both markets. By combining expertise and learnings from across the region, attendees will benefit from a broader view, richer discussions, and stronger networking opportunities.
This NIQ Insight Summit Benelux will offer a clear and actionable perspective to turn complexity into real business opportunities. It is an exclusive event where we will analyze the evolution of the consumer, the transformation of retail and the shopper journey, the role of artificial intelligence in decision-making, and the influence of the economic context on purchasing choices.
Through data analysis, strategic insights, and the expertise of NIQ specialists and guest speakers, we will dive into the major themes redefining the market:
- New consumption paths: emerging behaviors and signals that anticipate the next market dynamics.
- New retail models: how the shopper journey is evolving through omnichannel, convenience, and emerging formats.
- Data and AI as a competitive advantage: predictive insights and technology for faster, more effective decisions.
- From insight to impact: data-driven strategies to drive growth and create new opportunities.
Agenda
10:30 – Registration & Welcome Coffee
Grab a coffee or tea, and connect with other attendees.
11:00 – Live Event
Join NIQ specialists and inspiring guest speakers as they share expert perspectives, data-driven strategies, and real-world experiences.
11:00 Opening – Dorien Leyers, Moderator of the day
11:10 Welcome – Céline Grena, Managing Director Benelux, NIQ
11:15 Understanding Today’s Consumer Reality – Stephanie Baaklini, Commercial Director Belgium, NIQ & Danny van den Burg, Commercial Director Netherlands, NIQ
Join us for a forward-looking exploration of the trends transforming the FMCG and Tech & Durables industries across the Benelux region. Drawing on NIQ’s latest market intelligence, this session will uncover the key forces influencing consumer demand, retail evolution, and business performance in 2026 and beyond.
11:40 From AI Piloting to business impact – Jurgen Janssens, Executive Director & General Manager, Lenovo BeNeLux
AI is evolving from standalone pilots and chatbots into enterprise-wide capabilities that connect sales, service, supply chain, and retail. Organizations that successfully scale and integrate AI across their operations will be best positioned to improve decision-making, efficiency, and customer experiences. This session explores what it takes to move from AI experimentation to real business impact, supported by lessons from the FIFA World Cup 2026. The ability to scale and operationalize AI across the business is your key differentiator going forward.
12:05 The Questions Behind the Growth: Understanding What Shoppers Really Want – Liesbeth Dufornee, Head of Category Development, Bonduelle & Max Linn, Strategic Analytics & Insights Business Partner Benelux, NIQ
Consumers are changing. Categories are evolving. And many of the assumptions manufacturers hold about shopper preferences no longer go unchallenged. In this session, Bonduelle and NielsenIQ share how they partnered to investigate fundamental questions about the vegetable category, from packaging formats and shopper needs to their perceptions of quality, convenience, value, and sustainability.
12:30 – Lunch break
13:30 Conversational Commerce: A Generational Shift, Already Underway – Harmjan Oldenbeuving, Client Partner, Meta & Peter Teekens, Global Industry Leader – Marketing Effectiveness, NIQ
Conversational commerce is a generational shift already underway, driven by the scale of everyday messaging between people and businesses and the arrival of AI agents on both sides. This session explores Europe’s position and opportunity, introduces WhatsApp Business and agentic AI, and provides a practical framework for designing an end-to-end messaging journey. It also examines the measurement gap created by this shift, why no single methodology can capture its full commercial impact, and how connected measurement can bring incrementality, holistic analysis and decision-making closer to the speed of the market.
13:55 Balancing data & human intelligence in a data-driven world – Ludivine Szlazak, Category Development Lead Benelux, Kellanova
Store density in Benelux is strong – and the average store is about the size of an Olympic swimming pool. Every retailer is fighting for in-store traffic, but shelf remains they key physical point of contact of shoppers & assortment, how can and should data be used to best build assortment & shelf in a way that makes available space competitive.
It’s all about balancing:
- balancing data (AI, datasharing) and human input
- balancing rationality (data-driven decision) and strategy (human-driven decision) (eg. assortment development towards more healthy for banner perception, assortment differentiation while still feeding turnover)
- balancing what shoppers say they want vs what actually sells
- balancing willingness to find a one-size-fit-all answer vs a one-per-store approach
How to avoid falling into the trap of “too much data kills data,” while maintaining a clear identity as both a retailer and a supplier.
14:20 – Coffee break
14:50 The Next Era of Social Commerce – Ningxin Wu, Industry Lead TikTok Shop Netherlands/Belgium/Poland & Niek van Leeuwen, E-Commerce Lead Benelux, NIQ
A first glance on Tiktok Shop’s market entry and how it’s Reshaping Discovery and Commerce Growth in the Benelux.
15:15 Wrap-up & key takeaways – Dorien Leyers, Moderator of the day & Céline Grena, Managing Director Benelux, NIQ
15:30 – Drinks & Networking
Time to discuss the insights, exchange experiences with other brands, and network in an informal setting.
Speakers
We’re excited to share a selection of our confirmed speakers, with more industry experts and thought leaders to be announced soon.
Dorien Leyers
Moderator
Dorien Leyers is an experienced event host, moderator, and event professional with a unique combination of stage presence and event management expertise. Since 2006, she has organized events for leading international brands including Google, Apple, Nespresso, and NN Insurance Belgium. Over the years, she has also hosted and moderated national and international events for organizations such as BMW, Umicore, Bacardi-Martini, and Securitas. Fluent in Dutch, French, English, Italian, and Spanish, Dorien is known for her ability to engage audiences, adapt seamlessly, and bring energy, professionalism, and personality to every event.
Céline Grena
Managing Director Benelux,
NIQ
Céline Grena is Managing Director of NielsenIQ Benelux and brings 20+ years at NielsenIQ across local, regional and global leadership roles – and challenges organisations to rethink growth, turning data into decisive action to win in an increasingly complex, fast‑moving consumer landscape.
Danny van den Burg
Commercial Director Netherlands, NIQ
Danny van den Burg has been commercially responsible for Tech & Durables at GfK since 2022. In 2024, he was appointed Commercial Director at NIQ for both FMCG and Tech & Durables. He has been with GfK since 2016, previously overseeing Consumer Goods and Retail. Danny has a background in FMCG and has held various commercial roles at Grolsch and Nestlé.
Stéphanie Baaklini
Commercial Director Belgium, NIQ
Stéphanie Baaklini is the Belgium Sales Leader at NIQ, overseeing a team dedicated to enhancing client satisfaction and driving business growth. With 10 years of experience in operations and sales across multiple regions, she brings valuable expertise to her role, ensuring that NIQ continues to deliver exceptional value to its clients in Belgium.
Ludivine Szlazak
Category Development Lead Benelux, Kellanova
Ludivine Szlazak is the Category Development Lead at Kellanova Benelux. With 10 years of experience in FMCG, Ludivine is a data enthusiast who loves turning insights into engaging stories. Her passion for category management and numbers drives her willingness & ability to always look for new angles and make a tangible difference in our fast-adapting world & industry.
Jurgen Janssens
Executive Director & General Manager, Lenovo BeNeLux
Jurgen Janssens is Executive Director & General Manager of Lenovo Benelux, where he leads the company’s strategy, growth, and transformation agenda across the region. Drawing on more than 25 years of leadership experience at Lenovo, HP, Canon, and within the IT distribution industry, he brings a unique blend of expertise gained in both global corporate organizations and family-owned businesses. Passionate about innovation and AI, Jurgen helps organizations navigate change and harness technology to drive sustainable growth and meaningful business outcomes.
Liesbeth Dufornee
Head of Category Development, Bonduelle
Liesbeth Dufornee is Head of Category Development at Bonduelle, responsible for Category Management across Benelux, Nordics and DACH. She has over eight years of Category Management experience at Bonduelle, helping translate shopper, consumer and market insights into growth opportunities for retailers and Bonduelle. Before joining Bonduelle, Liesbeth worked at GfK, advising FMCG companies on market trends and shopper behaviour.
Max Linn
Strategic Analytics & Insights Business Partner Benelux, NIQ
Max Linn is a Business Partner for Strategic Analytics & Insights at NielsenIQ, partnering with leading FMCG manufacturers& retailers to translate complex consumer & market and insight into actionable growth strategies. He supports commercial and category leaders across the Benelux in answering key pricing, assortment, consumer behavior, and brand effectiveness questions. He brings extensive commercial experience from prior roles at Procter & Gamble and HEINEKEN, as well as several years in strategy consulting at &samhoud.
Ningxin Wu
Industry Lead TikTok Shop Netherlands/ Belgium/ Poland
Ningxin Wu is the Industry Lead of TikTok Shop Netherlands and Poland. During TikTok Shop’s inaugural launch in EU in 2025, Germany. Joining the core launch team last year, she led the development and rapid scaling of the Home & Living, Electronics, and Fashion verticals. Her strategic leadership resulted in the successful onboarding and launch of major global brands, including Philips, Xiaomi, SharkNinja, Jack Wolfskin, Creamy Fabrics, and Crocs. Building on this momentum, Ningxin is now guiding TikTok Shop’s strategic expansion into new European markets for 2026.
Niek van Leeuwen
E-Commerce Lead Benelux, NIQ
Niek van Leeuwen leads e-commerce for NielsenIQ Benelux, helping brands and retailers navigate the evolving omni-channel landscape. He is responsible for innovative e-commerce data solutions Digital Purchases and Omnisales. With a strong background in digital marketing, e-commerce and client development for leading companies like L’Oréal and Amazon, Niek drives growth by building strong partnerships and delivering actionable data-driven insights to feed clients e-commerce strategies across FMCG and Tech & Durables.
Harmjan Oldenbeuving
Client Partner,
Meta
Harmjan Oldenbeuving is an Amsterdam-based global Client Partner at Meta, leading enterprise Retail and CPG relationships across Benelux. He joined Meta in 2017, having spent seven years in management consulting at Strategy&. He holds master’s degrees in Finance and Private Law from the University of Amsterdam and an MBA from IESE Business School in Barcelona. His work at Meta centers on growth strategies, digital transformations, (paid) media performance, and business messaging – helping companies turn digital solutions and media strategy into measurable commercial impact.
Peter Teekens
Global Industry Leader – Marketing Effectiveness, NIQ
Peter Teekens is responsible for Platform Programs across Europe at NIQ, driving strategic partnerships and platform-led growth initiatives within Europe. He works with technology partners, advertisers, and retailers to bring data, measurement, and marketing effectiveness solutions to market at scale.
Past editions
Event infomation
Date: Tuesday 6 October, 10:30 – 17:00
Location: Conference Center High Tech Campus, High Tech Campus 1b – The Strip, 5656 AE Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Directions:
By car: High Tech Campus is easy to reach by car and offers free parking. Find Google Maps Directions here or detailed instruction here. We advise you to park at P0.
Public transport: Easy access from NS railway station. Eindhoven with bus connection line 407. From Best station you can get to High Tech Campus via line 20.
Legal Notice
During the NIQ Insight Summit Benelux 2026, pictures and video recordings will be taken for communication and promotional purposes. Individuals who do not wish to appear in this material must inform the event organizing team on the day of the event.
How to participate in the event?
The NIQ Insight Summit Benelux is an invitation-only event, bringing together senior leaders, decision-makers and industry experts from across the Benelux region, representing FMCG, Tech & Durables, Retail, and Manufacturers.
Attendees typically include C-suite executives, directors, heads of function, senior managers, managers, and specialists across Marketing, Insights, Category Management, Commercial, Consumer, Shopper, and Market Insights.
To preserve the peer-to-peer nature of the event and ensure relevant networking opportunities, attendance is reserved for end-user organizations only. Registrations from agencies and consultancies cannot be accepted.
NIQ reserves the right to decline or withdraw registrations at its discretion. For further information, please contact your NIQ representative or email tamara.delange@nielseniq.com.