32nd Recent Advances in Retailing and Consumer Sciences (RARCS) Conference
Soora Rasouli & Harry Timmermans
Co-chairs
Founding/Co-editor Journal of Retailing & Consumer Services
July 13-16
2026
Berlin
Germany
Important dates
- October 1, 2025 Deadline Abstract submission
- November 1, 2025 Notification of acceptance/rejection
- January 20, 2026 Deadline Early bird registration
- February 20, 2026 Tentative conference program
- March 1, 2026 Cancellation deadline (50% refund - after this
deadline no refund of conference fees can be made)
- April 1, 2026 Deadline Submission extended abstracts/full papers
- May 1, 2026 Distribution of final conference program - further
last minute changes will be updated on website
- June 15, 2026 Distribution of book of abstracts and conference
proceedings)
- July 13-16, 2026 Conference days
History / Organisers
Professor Harry Timmermans was appointed Chair of Urban Planning at the Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands in 1985. In 1990, he also became Carthy Foundation Chair of Retailing at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada and Director of the Canadian institute of Retailing and Consumer services - CIRASS. He introduced the first master program in retail management in Canada. A year later, he started EIRASS in Eindhoven. To draw attention to these events, he launched the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services (JRCS), first published by Butterworth-Heinemann, currently an Elsevier publication. Around this time, he also organised the first Recent Advances in Retailing and Consumer Service Science Conference (RARCS) in Banff/Lake Louise. Working in different disciplines, he was fascinated by the fact that some models were popular in urban planning, but not in marketing and vice versa. Even within the service industries very different theories and concepts were dominant. The aim of this conference which originally was meant to be a one-time event, was to bring together scholars from different disciplinary backgrounds to discuss their work. RARCS typically brings together scholars from around 30-35 countries, from Korea to Australia and New Zealand, from Scandinavia to South Africa and from Canada to Uruguay. Most European countries are usually represented. Recent years witness increasing attendance from China, India and the Middle East.
When in 1995 he returned to Eindhoven full time and started a new research program in transportation, he nevertheless continued organising the conference which received enthusiastic participants and feedback. The aim is to support the international, multidisciplinary network of scholars interested in retailing and consumer services and create an optimal, personalised, luxurious conference setting with nice food to discuss new ideas, try out presentations and be inspired by new methodologies, concepts and research ideas as opposed to an alternative quasi-official publication machine. RARCS works with an open, bottom-up, invitational structure in which individual researchers can propose special sessions, workshops and other academic events and discuss their ideas and concerns directly with the organisers.
Around 2015, Professor Soora Rasouli joined as co-editor of JRCS and co-chair of the RARCS Conference. She is chaired Professor of Urban Planning and Transportation at the Eindhoven University of Technology. Part of her research concerns shopping and leisure choice behaviour. She is also an international expert on transportation services.
The organisers both have been involved in several national, European and international multi-million research projects that in part have been concerned with shopping behavior, leisure/tourism and emerging transport services. In addition to their involvement with JRCS, they serve(d) on the editorial boards of about 20 journals in different disciplines. Their work and that of their PhD students have received many best paper/best PhD thesis awards and prestigious grants.
The Speakers
Program
Registration starts on July 13, 13:30 hours. It continues the next morning before the sessions. A welcome reception will take place in the evening of the 13th. Sessions will start on July 14 at 9:00 and will continue until July 16 noon. Every full conference day has 4 blocks of concurrent sessions with a lunch and 2 tea/coffee breaks; the last day has 2 blocks and 1 tea/coffee break. A conference dinner will be organised on July 15th
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Book of abstracts
The 1-page abstracts of all presentations will be included in abook of abstracts. It lists the details of all authors and thus serves to assist delegates in their choice of session and to contact authors before or after the conference. The book will be made available in digital format. Abstracts need to be prepared according to the abstract template.
Conference proceedings
All extended abstracts and full papers will be included in the conference proceedings. It will be made available to the delegates in digital format. Papers should be prepared according to the template style format.
Abstract submissions
Deadline October 1, 2025
The conference invites presentations from different disciplines concerned with issues related to retailing and consumer services. Because the aim is to stimulate exchange and new collaboration, both work in progress and completed papers are accepted.
01
STEPS:
1. Download this abstract template
2. Prepare your abstract
3. Save the abstract under the last name(s) of the authors
4. Email the WORD version of the abstract to
5. Register delegate/paper using registration form on the next page
Single abstract
Special sessions
02
The conference invites proposals for special sessions. Required are multiples of 6 presentations, and at least one author of each paper attending the conference.
Special sessions
STEPS:
1. Download the abstract template
2. Prepare your abstracts (Multiple of 6)
3. Save EACH abstract under the last name(s) of the author(s)
4. Email the WORD version of ALL abstracts to
5. Register EACH participating delegate/paper using the registration form on the next pageow
Crowne Plaza Hotel Berlin
The 2026 conference will take place at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Berlin.
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ABOUT THE HOTEL
​This superior hotel located in the heart of Berlin, directly on the Kurfürstendamm shopping boulevard and just steps away from the iconic Berlin Zoo and central to the many attractions of Berlin.
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HOW TO GET THERE?
Berlin is directly connected to all major gateways in Europe. Options to get to the hotel:
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By train from „Hauptbahnhof“ (Central Station)
You can take any train departing from platform 16 to
“Zoologischer Garten”. From there you can walk to the hotel, which takes about 10 minutes.
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By train from Airport BER (Willy Brandt) Terminal 1 and 2
You can reach the hotel by public transportation in 40 – 60 minutes. The Regionalexpress RE8 and RB23 take you directly to station “Zoologischer Garten” in 40 minutes. The S-Bahn S9 takes you there in 57 minutes. Alternatively, you can take the Airport Express (FEX) to the Central Station (Hauptbahnhof) and change to any of the S-Bahn trains leaving from track 16 to the station “Zoologischer Garten”.
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By taxi
A taxi ride to the hotel takes about 45 minutes; the costs are between 60 and 75 euros.
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WHAT TO DO IN BERLIN?
Berlin has many things to offer. It is fascinating to explore the differences between former East and West Berlin. Visit the legendary Kurfürstendamm: Berlin's most popular shopping mile, where the most prestigious brands and major fashion chains are located. The KaDeWe, the largest department store of mainland Europe, the stylish shopping centre Bikini Berlin, and also numerous individual shops set between small, fine restaurants in the side streets are all in the immediate vicinity.
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Berlin’s world famous Museum Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Five large museums present more than 6,000 years of art and cultural history: the Alte Museum, the Neue Museum, the Alte Nationalgalerie, the Bode Museum and the Pergamonmuseum, which, however, is currently closed. The impressive collections and exhibitions and the magnificent architecture of the buildings guarantee a unique experience.
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