LAS VEGAS – Paul Lentz, head of strategic development at CVS Media Exchange, says personalization inside physical stores is becoming a central pillar of CVS’s retail media strategy.
Speaking with Beet.TV contributor David Kaplan at CES 2026, Lentz said technology investments are helping the drugstore chain tailor the in-store experience to local communities rather than treating its thousands of locations as identical environments.
In-store media reflects local communities
CVS operates roughly 9,000 stores across the United States, but Lentz emphasized that no two locations are the same. Product assortments, pricing and shopper needs vary widely by neighborhood.
Digital screens and other in-store media surfaces allow CVS to adapt messaging to those local differences. A store on the Las Vegas Strip during CES looks very different from one in a residential neighborhood, he said, and the media strategy reflects that reality.
CVS Media Exchange supports this broader merchandising and store operations effort by aligning brand messaging with each store’s local context.
Retail media supports decisions at the shelf
Lentz said retail media inside the store plays a distinct role compared with digital advertising. The goal is not one-to-one targeting, but timely and relevant communication at moments when shoppers are making decisions.
CVS, whose parent company CVS Health owns health insurer Aetna, uses multiple formats to reach customers. Those include video screens on end caps and aisles, as well as in-store audio across more than 7,200 locations. Each format serves a specific purpose depending on where the shopper is in the store.
Pharmacy waiting areas, for example, feature larger screens that share CVS health information, vaccination reminders and messages from brand partners.
Measurement is the next major innovation
While new formats continue to roll out, Lentz said the biggest opportunity in in-store media remains measurement. Proving outcomes across the full shopper journey is still uneven across the retail ecosystem.
One reason brands work directly with CVS Media Exchange is the company’s deep understanding of its customers, he said. That insight extends from digital touchpoints into the physical store.
Better measurement allows brands to understand when and where messages influence behavior, which is essential for scaling in-store investment.
Digital transformation moves deeper into stores
CVS has been investing in digital transformation for years, and in-store media is an evolving part of that effort. Lentz said CVS operates one of the largest video screen fleets among U.S. retailers.
Scale alone is not enough, he added. Brands increasingly expect both broad reach and localized relevance, which raises the bar for execution inside stores.
Industry interest in in-store media is strong, but Lentz acknowledged that execution often lags ambition. CVS aims to lead by pairing technology deployment with stronger performance measurement.
Loyalty data links in-store and digital channels
A key connector across channels is the CVS ExtraCare program, which has more than 90 million addressable users and over two decades of history.
That data allows CVS to engage customers through social media, digital channels, and physical stores in a coordinated way. Shoppers may hear audio messages, see screens, or encounter related messaging online.
According to CVS surveys, more than half of in-store shoppers respond favorably to the media they encounter, and nearly one in four takes action as a result.
Lentz said those signals demonstrate how in-store media, when tied to data and measurement, can drive meaningful outcomes for both brands and consumers.
Why CVS Media Exchange Believes Collaboration, Not Competition, Will Define Retail Media’s Next Era
You’re watching “Scaling In-Store, Demystified: How Retail Media Is Reinventing the Aisle,” a Beet.TV Leadership Series, presented by Stratacache. For more videos from this series, please visit this page.
