Firstly, this is my first column as Editor of this shiny, new publication. So, welcome, and thank you for joining us on this journey to creating a dedicated retail media community.
Retail media has been experiencing rapid growth across the UK and beyond over the last few years, as more-and-more advertisers and retailers realise the incredible opportunity.
In the UK alone, retail media ad spend (including Amazon) is on course to exceed £5.5 billion in 2026 (source: IAB UK). Across Europe, this figure grows to over €22.3 billion (£18.7 billion) (source: IAB Europe).
Retail media, of course, is far from a new concept. We’ve had retail media since long before the internet existed. Think end of aisle promotions or product samples in-store – it’s all retail media. Meanwhile, online, Amazon has been leading the retail media train for more than a decade.
So, why now? What has made digital retail media so important in recent years outside of the Amazon ecosystem alone?
It all comes down to three key factors in particular: the decreasing value of third-party data, the growth of ecommerce, and the increasing demand for more measurable ROI. These factors have all combined to help retailers finally realise the power their first-party data holds, and brands are now scrambling to harness that.
At the forefront of a movement
Until now, this growing excitement has failed to birth a dedicated hub celebrating all that is brilliant about the industry. That’s why the decision to launch Retail Media Age (RMA) wasn’t a difficult one.
The purpose of RMA is to be more than just the publication for the retail media industry – we want to build a community; a place where leading voices and those just starting out can come together.
The title will feature the usual key news stories, interviews, and thought leadership, but will also provide in-depth research and a safe space for discussion and debate around the industry’s key topics.
We previewed the kinds of amazing voices we’ll be featuring on RMA during the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity – which served as the “soft launch” of the publication.
Our retail media event – in partnership with Epsilon – featured likes of Lucia Mastromauro, VP of Advertising at Deliveroo; Ana Laura Zain, CMO at Pentaleap and Co-founder of Women in Retail Media Collective; Thibault Hennion, MD International Operations at Epsilon; Teresa Fusaro, Senior Director, Marketing Activation, Tech & Digital at Reckitt; Rosie Houston, MD for UK Retail Media Partnerships at SMG; and Laura Belchier, Head of Consumer Experience Brands at Amazon Ads UK.
Those brilliant names gave us the perfect launching pad for the publication. Not just that, but the entire week of Cannes Lions acted as vindication for our decision.
The topics brought up on our panel, as well as the countless other retail media-focused sessions across the week, made it clear that launching this publication was the right thing to do. Add to that, the excitement and support from the numerous people we spoke to on the ground showed us there was no better time than now to be launching.
Retail media is here to stay, and is only going to continue growing from strength-to-strength. So, RMA intends to be here for the long haul, providing a platform for all things retail media every step of the way.
We’re keen to try things a little differently, and hope you’re as excited as we are about that prospect.
Welcome to Retail Media Age.
We’re officially launching RMA on 10 September 2025 in London. Click here for more information and to apply for your free ticket now!
