Retail Media Trends, Tech & Takeaways: MAD//UpNorth 2025

Jodi Millar • 12th Mar 2025

I recently attended my first industry event – MAD//FEST’s MAD//UpNorth where we were particularly interested in visiting the Retail Media stage, where experts gathered to discuss the current and evolving landscape of retail media. I was there with our own expert Ashleigh Chalmers to learn how we can continue to support our rapidly growing portfolio of challenger food brands with their shopper and retail marketing challenges.

It was a very insightful day, full of dynamic viewpoints on the challenges retailers face and the direction that RMN’s (Retail Media Network) are headed. From what we garnered through listening to brands, media owners and agencies alike, it became clear that while the future of retail media is full of great opportunity it will also involve complexities and challenges to be navigated.

For those of us who arrived early enough to beat the queues it was a spectacular day of learning, and we’re excited to share how we plan to integrate our insights from the event into the work we do for our FMCG clients going forward. Here’s a closer look at our five most impactful takeaways from the event:

1. Championing Challenger Brands in Retail Media  

One of the most compelling themes we identified by the end of the day was the need for Lane Media (and other media agencies) to continue to advocate for challenger brands in the retail media space.

Retail media has often been perceived as the domain of the big players, but this is a narrative that needs to change. If we had one complaint it would be that too often the examples shared at these events are of budgets that don’t align with those held by the majority of the audience. The digital landscape offers cost-effective opportunities for challenger brands to carve out a niche and engage with consumers in an array of meaningful ways.

At Lane Media, we believe it’s crucial to continue pushing for greater access to data and measurement tools that can help empower challenger brands. By unlocking more affordable digital retail media channels, we can help these brands execute impactful activations that are not just limited to the industry giants. It’s time to start levelling the playing field.

2. Retail Media Drives Both Long-Term and Short-Term Brand Equity

A highlight of the event for us was the data presented by Fiona Blades from MESH Experience, which reinforced the idea that retail media doesn’t just offer short-term sales boosts but it can significantly impact long-term brand equity as well.

What’s exciting is that this long-lasting effect is now measurable, and the results speak for themselves. However, the key to maximising the benefits of retail media lies in ensuring contextual relevancy. The MESH data showed that retail media can drive up to 5x the awareness when it’s delivered in the right context. As we move forward, our challenge is to encourage the mindset that retail media is not a spend, it’s an investment in brand-building and awareness, the same way other mass media channels are already perceived.

3. Embracing Future Tech & AI to Solve Cross-Platform Challenges

Unsurprisingly many conversations focused on the future integration of technology and AI in retail media. As retail media is continuing to expand across different platforms, the ability to seamlessly track and measure campaigns across various touchpoints will be essential.

We learned that to achieve the greatest level of campaign effectiveness it will be crucial to solving the issue of cross-platform ‘interoperability’ (credit to Claire and Sam from SMG for introducing a new term to our vocabulary) by integrating data across the various retail media platforms. At Lane Media, we’re already thinking ahead about how we can prepare for these upcoming changes.

4. Standardised Metrics for Consistent Reporting

Another major takeaway for us was the importance of creating a standardized framework across retailers and RMN’s for measuring and reporting campaign success. Before the full integration of AI and cross-platform solutions takes hold, we have an opportunity to positively challenge our retail partners (you know who you are) to adopt standardized metrics.

Having consistent and agreed-upon metrics will make it easier for us to provide our clients with reliable cross-platform reporting, ensuring that all campaign performance data is comparable.

5. The Role of Creative in Campaign Effectiveness

Creative plays such a pivotal role in the success of a retail media campaign, accounting for as much as 50% of the return on investment (ROI). This is not just a reminder, but a call to action to invest in creative that will resonate with consumers. An exciting opportunity in retail media lies in dynamic creative as personalised experiences are becoming increasingly essential for engaging shoppers.

In true media style, there will always be challenges around the corner… navigating LHF (Less Healthy Foods), staying ahead of latest innovations and defining where retail media ultimately fits into the cross-platform attribution space – to name a few.

As we continue to help our FMCG clients navigate this evolving space, Lane Media will be incorporating these insights into our strategy to ensure we always stay ahead of the curve.

Click here for more information on retail media. Or if you’re interested in learning more about how we’re approaching retail media, shopper marketing or want to discuss your food or drink brand’s strategy, feel free to get in touch. We’d love to hear from you!