Daikin UK will host its first Retail & Leisure Summit at the Barbican in London on Thursday 22 October.
With summer 2026 the UK’s hottest on record, Daikin said the event will look at how businesses can keep customers comfortable, control costs and strengthen energy security and supply chain resilience. A keynote speaker is due to be announced shortly.
The summit is aimed at estates, facilities and procurement professionals, developers and industry specialists. Speakers will share case studies and practical experience, and delegates will have time over lunch to compare notes with peers.
Met Office figures showed that summer 2026 beat the record set only a year earlier. Daikin added that sustained heat puts extra demand on cooling in stores, venues and leisure sites. It also exposes the risks of running ageing equipment, where limited parts availability and long lead times can delay repairs.
The agenda:
- Hot summers, harder margins: How comfort and revenue are linked, and what protects both as summers get hotter.
- Control the system, control the cost: Advanced controls and energy optimisation, and how they turn into measurable savings on the bottom line.
- The true cost of waiting: The hidden costs of ageing HVAC equipment, from parts availability and lead times to the supply chain risk behind unplanned failures.
- Decarbonise without losing pace: Action plans to cut fossil fuels and reduce Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, backed by a supply chain that can actually deliver.
- Learning from what works: Case studies and examples from across the industry.
Martin Passingham, commercial business manager at Daikin UK, said: “Rising temperatures are now a commercial issue for retail and leisure. When a store or venue gets too hot, customers notice and sales suffer. Ageing systems struggle to keep up, and replacement parts are getting harder to find.
“That’s why we’re holding this summit. We’ll tackle comfort, cost, energy security and supply chain resilience, using real examples, and share practical steps businesses can take now.”