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The Great BTN Bake (Take) Off — Commerce Media Trends for 2026: Restructuring Teams and Hard Launching In-store Retail Media | Reimagining Retail

Behind the Numbers: an EMARKETER Podcast · with Arielle Feger and Sarah Marzano · January 21, 2026 · 24 min

Summary

By 2026, commerce media will see significant shifts towards in-store retail media and restructured teams. Retailers must prepare for a "hard launch" of these in-store capabilities, integrating online and offline strategies to leverage first-party data. The episode explores how to measure ROI and adapt organizational structures to stay competitive in this evolving landscape.

Key takeaways

Themes

retail & omnichannelai & automationanalytics & attributionpaid acquisition

Topics covered

commerce media trends 2026in-store retail media hard launchretail media network team restructuringmeasuring in-store retail media roifirst-party data for retail mediaintegrating online and offline retail media

Episode description

Our analysts (or “bakers”) compete in a Great British Bake Off–style episode, discussing how retailers will be restructuring their commerce media teams and focusing on hard launching their in-store retail media capabilities. Listen to the discussion with Vice President of Content and host Suzy Davidkhanian, along with Analyst Arielle Feger and Principal Analyst Sarah Marzano. Report mentioned: https://content-na1.emarketer.com/commerce-media-trends-watch-2026 Get more insights like these with our free, industry-leading newsletters covering advertising, marketing, and commerce. Sign up at emarketer.com/newslettersFollow us on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/emarketer/For sponsorship opportunities contact us: advertising@emarketer.comFor more information visit: https://www.emarketer.com/advertise/Have questions or just want to say hi? Drop us a line at podcast@emarketer.com For a transcript of this episode click here:https://www.emarketer.com/content/podcast-great-btn-bake-take-off-commerce-media-trends-2026-behind-numbers© 2026 EMARKETER

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Frequently asked about this episode

What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Prepare for a
What does this episode say about ai & automation?
Restructure internal teams to create new roles and reporting lines for effective commerce media management, focusing on cross-functional collaboration between marketing, sales, and IT.
What does this episode say about analytics & attribution?
Develop robust measurement and ROI frameworks for in-store retail media, given its historical challenges compared to digital ads.
What does this episode say about paid acquisition?
Invest in technology and data integration to unify online and offline retail media strategies and leverage first-party customer data across all touchpoints.

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