The running list of retail deals in 2026

Trends in retail dealmaking — from initial public offerings to M&A — help explain where the industry is in a variety of ways. They reveal sector-level insights, speak to the macroeconomic landscape and showcase changes in brand ownership.

M&A activity last year was the second-best on record in both global and North American markets, and retail was one of the high-activity industries, according to law firm Hunton. Take-private transactions and “selective” brand acquisitions are expected to continue this year, the firm said.

Across consumer markets, megadeals are supporting deal value, according to PwC, even as overall transactions are expected to decline this year.

“Macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical volatility, and persistent valuation gaps continue to weigh on confidence, extending deal timelines and driving discipline among buyers,” PwC wrote in June. “The market has not stalled, but it is diverging more sharply between the assets that attract strong buyer interest and those that struggle to find bidders.”

In the first quarter of 2026, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission tracked 99 IPOs across industries, up roughly 18% from the year prior. Proceeds from IPOs jumped 86%, per that report. But retail IPOs made up just a small portion of that total — 1.5%, entirely from the IPO of Bob’s Discount Furniture.

“The IPO market is reopening, but in a way that favors speed, flexibility and select issuers rather than broad-based participation,” FTI Consulting said in a report in May.

Below, we break down the major deals across the retail industry this year. Check back regularly for updates.