I'm writing this from ALM, where everyone's talking about retail media like it's the future of advertising. And it is. But here's what nobody on stage will say out loud:

The measurement is mostly fiction. And everyone knows it.

We've spent the last month talking to 52 senior executives across the retail media ecosystem. What they told us off the record would make your LinkedIn feed spontaneously combust.

The result is a 100+ page report—the most comprehensive, honest assessment of retail media ever published. No vendor funding. No hedging. No diplomatic bullshit.

It drops next week. Subscribe now to make sure you get it.

53% of executives we surveyed admit they're "not confident" their measurement shows true incremental value. Another 11% said "we don't really know."

That's nearly two-thirds of the people spending $70 billion who can't tell you if it's working.

And yet budgets keep growing. The cognitive dissonance is remarkable.

The Doom Loop — The self-reinforcing cycle trapping 200+ RMNs in mediocrity. Kiri Masters named it. We mapped it. You're probably living it.

The Consolidation Reality — Amazon and Walmart will capture 89 cents of every new retail media dollar in 2026. Everyone else is fighting over scraps.

The Measurement Stack OS — Actual architecture: what to buy, what to build, what it costs, how to pitch your CFO.

The Agentic Disruption — What happens when consumers stop visiting retailer websites? 69% of executives are concerned.

Channel Playbooks — Walmart, Amazon, Target, Kroger, Costco, Instacart, DoorDash, CTV, in-store.

The Failure Story — A composite four-year arc of an RMN that launched with fanfare and slowly died.

100+ pages. 38,000 words. 18 data sources. Zero bullshit.

This report wouldn't exist without the executives who agreed to be quoted by name. In an industry where everyone talks tough on podcasts but hedges in print, these people said what they actually think:

Kiri Masters, Founder, Retail Media Breakfast Club & Consultant, Acadia

Drew Cashmore, Chief Strategy Officer, Vantage (former Walmart Connect)

Sarah Marzano, Principal Analyst, EMARKETER

Skye Frontier, Head of Marketing, Incremental

Sherry Smith, President of Retail Media, Criteo

We also spoke with executives from Amazon, Walmart Connect, Kroger, Albertsons, Instacart, Costco, Target, PayPal Ads, Colgate-Palmolive, and dozens more.

Thank you. You made this report possible.

The complete 2026 Retail Media Playbook is available exclusively to paid subscribers.

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