What’s in Store for Retail Media
Nir Manor・Transformational Retail
15 April 2025
Projections
RMNs' future growth prospects
By 2030, Retail Media Networks:
- Projected to account for 50% of total digital marketing spend
The media landscape has shifted dramatically in the past decade
once dominated by TV now by Meta and Google:
US media time spent vs. ad spend
Time spent Ad spend
Source: Emarketer
RM 3rd big wave reached $50bn in ad spend faster than previous waves
- Retail Media 8 years
- Social 13 years
- Search 19 years
Source: Emarketer
RMNs' future growth sources
RM will access budgets previously allocated to other media channels:
RMNs’ will outgrow the TV in 2026
Europe: Retail Media Ad Spend
| Year | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | €7.8bn | |
| 2026 | €24.8bn |
Source: Statista, IAB, Media Agencies
Growth factors
Drivers of RMN growth
| Factor | Description |
|---|---|
| Rise of e-commerce | Shift to online shopping enables a wealth of 1P data, including purchase behaviors, preferences, demographics. |
| Cookie deprecation | Retailers fuel RMN's with extensive 1P customer data to create more personalized ads. |
| Disruption of media | TV is irrelevant; Meta, Google become less efficient. RMN's target high-intent consumers at POP to increase CVR. |
| Non-endemic advertisers | Non-endemic advertisers - automotive, entertainment, financial services, fast-food, and travel see high CVR at RMN's. |
| Opportunity to improve margin | RMN can significantly improve retailers profitability (8%-15%) |
RMNs' power and potential
Evolution into media platforms
Retailers are evolving into media platforms, creating high-margin revenue streams.
Leveraging 1P data
1P data enables better targeting and delivers more relevant ads to consumers.
Closed-loop reporting
Offer closed-loop reporting, linking advertising directly to sales results.
Maximizing RM influence
Retail media now bridges the full funnel as in-store digital influence grows, closing the gap between inspiration and purchase.
In-Store media status for Europe
Status (2024)
- ✓ In-store ad formats are variable between digital and physical, providing flexibility
- ✓ Market divisions between what qualifies as in-store Retail Media
- ✓ Measurement is based on before and after comparison, requiring A/B tests for accuracy
- ✓ Non-endemic brand investment is crucial to in-store becoming the 'new TV'
- ✓ 1:1 or 1 to many measurement carries scale and privacy limitations
- ✓ In-store is a huge growth opportunity to take TV and OOH budgets
Source: IAB Europe
RMNs’ growth opportunity in CEE
- ✓ Ad spending in Europe is forecasted to reach $211.17bn in 2025
- ✓ The largest part is Search Advertising, with $67.81bn in 2025
- ✓ Digital retail media ads spending in Europe is estimated at $13.83bn in 2025 (+6.5%)
- ✓ Within the advertising market, 75% of total ad spending in Europe will come from digital sources in 2030
Source: IAB Europe
Consumer insights
Influence of physical stores on product discovery
- Physical stores are pivotal for brand discovery in food & beverage
- Consumers often rely on in-store experiences for new product exploration
- Physical presence is significant for product discovery
Source: IAB Europe
Challenges
In-store RM is under-invested despite its significant potential
It’s the number one challenge quoted in the IAB’s latest survey:
“Lack of measurement standardization is a significant barrier for nearly 60% of buyers when considering investing in in-store Retail Media.”
Source: IAB Europe
Challenges in RMNs Development
- Blurring boundaries: Marketing and commercial teams struggle with overlapping responsibilities, leading to confusion and inefficiencies.
- Skill development needs: Organizations require enhanced training programs to equip teams with necessary RM skills.
- Brand expectations: Brands expect RMNs to seamlessly connect with in-store experiences and drive sales.
- Slow standardization adoption: Many organizations face delays in adopting standardized practices across RMNs, affecting consistency.
- Performance improvement challenges: Difficulty in demonstrating incremental performance improvements hinders RMN credibility.
- Real-time linking complexities: Complexities arise in linking ads with near real-time product availability, affecting efficiency.
Mindset Shift
Overall mindset shift
From:
- Operations / logistics
- Buying
- Trade funding
- Merchandising
To:
- Competing with other media channels
- Ad Tech
Growth
Retail media is the fastest growing source of operating income
in many retailers, yet sustaining that requires deep integration into core retail operations like merchandising, finance, marketing, loyalty, and even supply chain.
Standards
In-store measurement and standards
- A few examples
Example in-store zones
| Zone | Description |
|---|---|
| EXTERIOR TO STORE | Zone 1 |
| ENTRANCE & OUT OF CATEGORY | Zone 2 |
| CHECK OUT | Zone 3 |
| IN AISLES | Zone 4 |
| OTHER | Zone 5 |
In-Store measurement and behavioral profiling
From anonymous visitors collecting anonymous visit behavior data via ambient connectivity (Wi-Fi, cameras, GSM Antennas), mobile sensors & payments.
To insights individualized per visitor.
Attribution
In-Store media performance attribution
| Performance metric | Description |
|---|---|
| Real-time tracking | Track all transactions and sensors every second to know the number of customers present in-store. |
| Ad reach & impressions | Match every second of each ad to customers to calculate reach & impressions. |
| Sales uplift & CVR measurement | Match customers to transactions to understand sales uplift & CVRs. Use this data to measure the consumption and cost for in-store ad delivery. |
| ROAS and incrementality | Use this data to measure the consumption and the price for in-store ad delivery. |