Following a pandemic-induced boom, retailers are securing an increasingly bigger billing on brands’ media plans. According to BCG Partners, the global retail media market is set to hit $100 billion by 2026, capturing 25% of all digital ad spend.

That’s why Publicis Groupe has announced a joint venture with one of Europe’s largest supermarkets: Carrefour Group.

Launching at the start of 2023 in continental Europe and Latin America (namely Brazil and Argentina), the yet unnamed outfit will turn the chain’s digital and physical properties into advertising space for brands.

The platform will leverage the French ad network’s tech across Carrefour’s retail media supply chain, bringing first-party data, media and advertising solutions to clients across Europe and Latin America.

With the U.S. market already scaling solutions from Walmart and other brands, the pair has spotted a growth opportunity on the continent, where retail media is gaining traction and the addressable market is expected to exceed 5 billion euros by 2026 according to analysis from the IAB.

A ‘critical milestone’

“We understood very early on that our data had tremendous value potential. We were one of the first retailers to launch retail media,” said Alexandre Bompard, chairman and chief executive of Carrefour Group.

The big draw for advertisers will be a direct route to the grocer’s 80 million consumers in the market. It’s understood the duo will provide services beyond selling inventory, including transformation consulting.

In 2021, the business launched its own data and retail media platform, backed by ad tech from Criteo, Google and LiveRamp, to drive more personalized experiences for customers online.

Bompard said the partnership with Publicis would build on that by putting tech at the heart of its model, driving retail further up the value chain and conquering new markets.

“With this alliance, our digital transformation takes on a new dimension and allows us to access new markets with tremendous growth,” he finished.

The move is a natural next step for Publicis Groupe, too, which unified its retail media platform in June 2022 following its acquisitions of tech firms Epsilon and CitrusAd.

Arthur Sadoun, Publicis Groupe chairman and CEO, said retail media was opening up fresh opportunities for marketers. However, he said the “fragmentation” of the market in Europe and Latin America had made it difficult for brands to fully unlock its potential.

“This is why we are acting today,” Sadoun added. “This is a critical milestone to help marketers take back control of their customer relationships, accelerate their readiness for a cookie-less world and deliver a successful media strategy.”

The joint venture will be held 51% by Carrefour and 49% by Publicis Groupe. It is expected to open its doors in the first half of 2023, subject to customary regulatory conditions.

The pandemic accelerated ecommerce growth, with Euromonitor pitting the global ecommerce market to expand by $1 trillion by 2025. This has seen big spending clients prioritize digital as a sales and media channel.

In tow with this, the big six agency networks (Publicis included) have doubled down on the space, leaving a trail of M&A activity in their wake as they look to scale up what they can offer to clients.

In 2022 alone, acquisitions have included WPP buying Netherlands agency Newcraft and Publicis’ purchase of Profitero.