Tesco Aims to Compete with Major Media Outlets for Advertiser Spend in New Initiative – Tuesday, December 2, 2025

Tesco, the U.K.'s leading retailer, is positioning itself as a formidable media partner, aiming to rival traditional media outlets in attracting advertiser spend. This move underscores Tesco's ambition to leverage its retail media network for greater monetization.

Who should care: VPs of retail, store operations leaders, eCommerce directors, customer experience teams, and retail technology decision-makers.

What happened?

Tesco is making a concerted effort to establish itself as a media partner on equal footing with traditional media channels. The retailer is capitalizing on its vast first-party data and extensive customer reach to attract advertising budgets that have historically been directed toward established media platforms. This strategic pivot highlights Tesco’s intent to unlock the full value of its customer insights by offering advertisers highly targeted and measurable advertising opportunities that traditional media often cannot provide. By promoting the strengths of its retail media network, Tesco aims not only to enhance monetization of its assets but also to reshape how advertising spend is distributed across the market. This initiative aligns with a broader industry trend where retailers possessing rich customer interaction data are emerging as credible alternatives to conventional media outlets. Tesco’s move reflects the increasing significance of retail media networks (RMNs) in the advertising ecosystem, as they provide advertisers with unique access to granular consumer behavior insights and the ability to deliver personalized marketing at scale. As a result, Tesco is positioning itself to capture a larger share of advertising dollars by leveraging its direct relationship with shoppers and the data generated through its retail operations.

Why now?

Tesco’s timing coincides with a notable shift in advertiser preferences toward platforms that offer precise targeting powered by first-party data. Over the past 18 months, retail media networks have gained traction as advertisers seek alternatives amid challenges faced by traditional media, including declining audience engagement and stricter data privacy regulations. These factors have created a gap that retailers like Tesco are well-positioned to fill. Additionally, advancements in attribution models and measurement capabilities within RMNs have strengthened their appeal by enabling advertisers to track and optimize campaign performance more effectively. This convergence of market dynamics makes now an opportune moment for Tesco to accelerate its media ambitions.

So what?

Tesco’s push to become a major player in the media landscape could significantly influence the allocation of advertising budgets. Retailers with robust first-party data are increasingly recognized as strategic partners by advertisers seeking deeper consumer insights and more effective, personalized marketing campaigns. This shift has the potential to redistribute advertising spend away from traditional media outlets toward retail media networks, altering the competitive landscape. For retailers, this trend presents a valuable opportunity to diversify revenue streams beyond sales alone and to strengthen customer engagement through targeted, relevant content.

What this means for you:

• For VPs of retail: Explore investing in or expanding your retail media network to tap into new advertising revenue streams and enhance your competitive positioning.
• For eCommerce directors: Harness your customer data to deliver targeted marketing solutions that increase advertiser value and drive platform differentiation.
• For customer experience teams: Leverage insights from retail media networks to refine personalization strategies and deepen customer engagement.

Quick Hits

• Impact / Risk: Tesco’s media ambitions could disrupt traditional media channels by redirecting advertising budgets toward retail media networks, potentially reducing their revenue.
• Operational Implication: Retailers need to strengthen data analytics and measurement capabilities to effectively compete for advertising spend against established media outlets.
• Action This Week: Assess your current media partnerships and identify opportunities to build or enhance your retail media network capabilities.