Retail media has reshaped every part of marketing — from insight and planning to activation and measurement. In a practical, candid conversation at Retail Media Summit UK, Helen Johnson, Managing Director of Capture and Plan-Apps at SMG, and Aslı Özen Turhan, CMO of pladis UK&I, broke down the three questions every CMO should be asking their agencies right now. Their focus: how to organise, how to collaborate, and how to prepare for the next wave of consumer behaviour.
The bottom line
Johnson and Özen’s message for CMOs was clear: understand the full retail media toolkit, prepare now for AI-driven shopping behaviour, and insist on agency partnerships built around business impact, not siloed KPIs. The next era of retail media will reward teams who collaborate openly and plan with the future in mind.
Takeaways
Retail Media Is Bigger Than Conversion
At the end of the day, the job is simple: influence behaviour. That means showing consumers one consistent message across every touchpoint, regardless of whether the work sits with a retail media agency, a PR team, or a brand squad. Retail media plays a much broader role than many assume. It sits closest to the “moment of truth,” but also contributes to long-term brand building when part of a cohesive plan.
“We want them to pick up one more pack every day… and the only way is a consistent message across every touchpoint.”
The Pladis Jaffa Cakes campaign illustrated this: a message that appears on OOH also shows up in-store and in retail media placements, reinforcing one idea across the full journey.
AI and Agentic Commerce Will Reshape the Path to Purchase
Johnson warned that marketers are standing on the edge of one of the biggest behavioural shifts in years: AI-powered agents will start making decisions for shoppers. With consumers already trusting AI recommendations and platforms integrating direct commerce, brands will need strategies that speak to both people and the machine intermediaries acting on their behalf.
Özen echoed this, saying the industry is still learning, but the disruption will be significant. CMOs should work with agencies now to build test-and-learn plans and develop an understanding of how AI may influence decisions in the category.
“We have to use retail media to impact the decisions of people and also the machines.”
Agencies Must Be Partners in Business Impact
Too often, measurement becomes overly technical, focused on media indicators rather than the outcomes that matter most to the business. Özen argued for elevating the conversation: are plans driving penetration? Frequency? Meaningful growth?
To do that, brands need to bring their agencies into the real business challenges — transparently. Pladis runs joint reviews with all its agency partners, aligning them on strategy and holding everyone to the same commercial goals. This collaboration has improved efficiency and helped shift budgets more effectively across the funnel.
“It’s important to ask whether we’re really doing the best planning for the ultimate KPI.”
Johnson closed by reinforcing the value of that open approach: when agencies leave egos at the door and work as one team, they’re better equipped to solve the full picture — not just the slice they manage.
Quote to Remember
“Marketing is a bit of art and science… you should trust your gut feel as long as you work with the right partners.” — Aslı Özen Turhan, CMO of Pladis
