Published, July 08, 2026
The evolution of Retail Media has been defined by one fundamental principle: advertisers achieve better outcomes when they buy shopper audiences rather than placements.
That principle transformed digital advertising. It enabled more relevant targeting, measurable performance, continuous optimisation, and accountable media investment.
Physical retail, despite representing the vast majority of commerce, has historically operated differently. In-Store campaigns have largely been planned around screen locations, store traffic or time-of-day assumptions rather than the audiences actually present at the moment of exposure.
That is beginning to change.
The recently published IAB Europe Guide to AI in Retail & Commerce Media, developed by members of the IAB Europe Retail & Commerce Media Committee, explores how AI is transforming Retail & Commerce Media across planning, activation, measurement, and operational efficiency. Rather than focusing on AI as an end in itself, the guide highlights how intelligent technologies are reshaping the entire Retail & Commerce Media ecosystem.
Within this broader transformation, AI-powered In-Store Retail Media emerges as a critical component of omnichannel Retail Media strategies.
Advertima contributed to the guide through James Allison, Senior Director of Market Development & Growth EMEA, alongside industry leaders from retailers, agencies, brands, and technology providers. The guide also features an Advertima case study demonstrating how AI-powered In-Store Retail Media is transforming omnichannel Retail Media in practice.
The Next Evolution of Retail Media
The significance of this transition extends far beyond better targeting.
Online Retail Media became one of the fastest-growing advertising channels because it introduced the Performance Media Capabilities marketers expect from digital media: audience-based planning, real-time optimization, measurable delivery, and transparent reporting.
Physical retail has historically lacked these capabilities, even though it remains where the vast majority of retail sales still occur.
For years, the industry simply did not have the technology to measure in-store media at the audience level. An Audience Intelligence Layer for In-Store Retail Media fundamentally changes the equation. Retailers can now understand who is actually in front of a screen in real time, moving beyond proxies such as location or scheduled playtime.
Campaigns become audience-based rather than screen-based. Impressions become verified rather than assumed. Media investment becomes measurable at the audience level instead of being estimated through footfall or screen availability.
This is not simply another application of AI. It is the foundational capability that enables physical retail to operate according to the same Performance Media Capabilities that transformed online advertising.
Equally important, technology alone will not define the future of In-Store Retail Media. Trusted measurement standards and interoperable frameworks will determine how quickly the industry evolves into a scalable, transparent, and trusted Performance Media channel.
From Screens to Audiences
One statement in the IAB guide captures this transformation particularly well: “Physical retail is moving from selling screen time to selling verified impressions.” This represents a fundamental change in how in-store media is valued.
For decades, media inventory inside stores has largely been defined by physical assets such as screens and their available time slots. While this model provided reach, it offered only limited visibility into whether the intended audience was actually exposed to the campaign.
Audience Intelligence introduces a different model.
Instead of treating every screen impression as equal, media value is determined by the audiences that are actually present. Planning, activation and measurement become centred around people rather than devices.
That shift creates the foundation for a new generation of Retail Media Capabilities:
- Audience Forecasting
- Audience-based Activation
- Audience Measurement
- Programmatic execution across physical environments
Proof That the Model Works
The IAB guide includes an Advertima case study developed together with Carrefour UAE, Publicis, Haleon and ecosystem partners, demonstrating how Audience Intelligence can be applied within a live In-Store Retail Media environment.
Using real-time audience activation, campaigns were delivered only when the intended audience was present in front of the screen. The results demonstrate the commercial impact of moving from screen-based delivery to audience-based activation:
- 68% incremental sales uplift
- More than 3x greater media efficiency
- 44% faster audience reach
These outcomes are important not simply because of the campaign performance itself.
They demonstrate that physical retail environments can increasingly deliver the measurable, audience-based capabilities that advertisers have long expected from digital media.
A New Category for Physical Retail
The conversation around AI in Retail Media is often centred on automation, content generation or operational efficiency.
Those capabilities are valuable, but they are only part of the story.
The more significant transformation is that Audience Intelligence enables physical retail to become an addressable, measurable and performance-driven media environment.
As retailers continue to invest in Retail Media, the industry’s next phase will be defined less by deploying additional screens and more by building the Audience Intelligence Layer that connects planning, activation and measurement around real audiences.
The IAB Europe Guide reflects that direction clearly and signals where the industry is heading next.
For us, contributing to the guide wasn’t about introducing a new idea. It was about seeing the industry align around a direction we’ve believed in for years.
The future of physical Retail Media won’t be defined by screens. It will be defined by audiences.
Want to explore how AI is reshaping retail and commerce media?
Download IAB Europe’s Guide to AI in Retail & Commerce Media to discover the latest industry perspectives, practical use cases and the Advertima case study featured in the publication.
