Retail media is rapidly emerging as one of the most powerful communication channels for brands, but its next stage of growth depends on standardization and trust in data, according to Arina Ureche, General Manager of BRAT.

Speaking at the Future Retail & FMCG Forum organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest, Ureche explained that BRAT — the Romanian media and advertising industry association focused on measurement and standards — identified retail media as a major opportunity through its media strategy and consumer behavior studies.

“Through our research, we found that 90% of Romania’s population visits a retail store, and at least once a month, 70% of people shop in a retail location. That means the audience is with the retailers,” she said.

Key statements

• Around 60% of consumers say in-store advertising does not bother them, and many even believe that advertising naturally belongs inside stores.
• BRAT concluded that retail media should be standardized, as it already functions like a media channel: it has an audience, a platform that delivers messages from brands to consumers, and now needs structure and measurement frameworks.
• For retail data to be translated into purchasing decisions, it must be credible and trusted. Retailers need consumer confidence both in how their data is collected and how it is converted into media metrics.
• Data should be transformed into audience indicators — including reach, frequency, and time-based exposure — metrics that advertisers are already familiar with.
• Retailers possess valuable first-party data, but it must be structured and made comparable across different retailers and with other media channels. BRAT has the expertise to enable this alignment.
• Standardization initiatives are easier to implement within multimedia associations, which already have frameworks that allow new media channels to integrate. At the same time, each medium tends to protect its know-how, investments, and market relationships.
• “Retail media is still developing and hasn’t yet reached its full potential. This will likely happen within the next two to three years, as the infrastructure needed to unlock its enormous audience continues to grow,” Ureche added.