The retail media sector continues its rapid expansion, with global spending projected to grow from $184 billion in 2025 to over $300 billion by 2030, according to a forecast from Forrester
“My plan for the future is to really revolutionize retail media into retail services,” Evan Hovorka, VP, product and innovation, Albertsons Media Collective, said in this video interview with Beet.TV. “This involves bringing the full power of Albertsons’ retail operations into its media packages, including better integration with in-store displays like endcaps and leveraging the weekly circular.
Horvoka also detailed a novel media matching program designed to prove its alignment with consumer packaged goods brands.
Partnerships round out the offering
With 2,200 stores and 100 million verified shoppers, Albertsons operates at a significant scale, but it doesn’t go it alone. The company uses ad tech partnerships to enhance its product suite and extend its reach. “We do need help and we do need partnerships with other ad tech players to help round out our products,” Hovorka said.
Local targeting with Perion
One recent collaboration is with Perion, which acquired the creative ad tech firm Undertone. Through the partnership, Albertsons connects its shopper data to digital out-of-home displays, enabling precise local targeting. “We’ve been able to connect our verified shopper data with their high-impact digital out-of-home screens,” Hovorka explained. “We put together a very localized marketing program for our retail investors to connect to our shoppers in those cities and states and zip codes in which they frequent our stores.”
Creator content with Linquia
To elevate its social media presence, the company is also working with the creator marketing platform Linqia. The partnership aims to bring more authentic and engaging content into its retail media packages. This move enables brands “to basically bring influencer style media and creative to round out our social package with a little more variety and impact,” he added.
Bridging the digital and physical stores
While much of the industry’s focus is digital, Albertsons is also investing heavily in its physical footprint, reflecting a broader trend of integrating in-store media with online shopping behaviors. A key initiative is the rollout of a new in-store screen network. “One of our most exciting new channels that launched in ’25 is our in-store screens,” Hovorka said.
The company is currently running an 80-store pilot to refine its content strategy, which includes recipes, deals, and local event information. An expansion plan is in place to bring the screens to all of its stores through 2026. Hovorka described the program as “one of the biggest and most exciting advancements in our retail media network.”
Further demonstrating its effort to align with advertisers, the company recently launched a media matching initiative. The program, which Albertsons Media Collective has dubbed a BOGO offer, gives brands who invest in its media network an equivalent value in the retailer’s own enterprise-directed media. Hovorka called it “the first of its kind in US retail media” and “an exciting new way to show and prove to our brands that we do have aligned goals.”
