The news: Grocery chain Hy-Vee promoted its head of retail media, Kathryn Mazza, to senior vice president and CMO, the company announced this week.

Additionally, Mazza will become head of Hy-Vee’s retail media network RedMedia. She joined Hy-Vee in 2024 after leading retail media at Dick’s Sporting Goods.

Why this matters: Retail media talent has the opportunity to climb to the top of the corporate food chain. While the lion’s share of retail media ad spending is claimed by Amazon, Mazza’s ascendance shows that brick-and-mortar companies are paying special attention to the rapidly growing sector.

• US retail media will grow by 88.5% to $97.91 billion from 2024 to 2028, per our recent forecast, making it one of the fastest-growing sectors in digital advertising and a crucial segment for retailers and grocers like Hy-Vee that are searching for new growth engines.
• Amazon is the largest retail media player by far, with $39.81 billion in US retail media ad revenues last year—Walmart came in second at $3.87 billion, by comparison. Hy-Vee and others are fighting for scraps, but claiming even 1% of the expected $62.35 billion in US retail media ad spending this year represents hundreds of millions of dollars.
• Hy-Vee’s move shows that retailers are tapping retail media leaders for C-suite positions, though current CMOs are also paying extra attention to the channel. Nearly half (49%) of CMOs in an August 2024 B2B International survey said they are trying to monetize touchpoints through channels like retail media to drive growth.
• Similarly, 37% of marketing professionals said in a recent TechValidate survey that they expect retail media spending at their organizations to increase this year.

Our take: Even if retail media makes up a small overall portion of some retailers’ business, the potential to capture millions in ad spending and rapidly drive revenue growth is making it a crucial sector for the next generation of advertising talent and leadership.

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