What: Podean launches 'WOAS' initiative to address widespread inefficiency in retail media spending through satirical industry awards.

Why it is important: "The USD 62 billion retail media industry faces a critical inflection point as reduced growth forecasts and mounting inefficiencies threaten its sustainability."

The retail media industry faces a significant challenge as its rapid growth has led to widespread inefficiencies in advertising spend. Podean, a retail media marketing agency, has launched the "WOAS" (Waste Of Ad Spend) initiative to highlight this issue through satirical awards targeting common mismanagement practices. The industry's spending is projected to reach USD 62 billion in U.S. ad spending in 2025, yet eMarketer has revised down its compound annual growth forecast through 2028 from 24% to 17%. Three primary factors contribute to waste: ineffective targeting, unoptimised budgets and bids, and lack of holistic alignment between media buying and broader business goals. The problem is exacerbated by siloed teams lacking access to critical catalog and merchandising information, creating blind spots in resource allocation. Industry experts emphasize that successful retail media management requires understanding category-specific buying patterns and moving beyond traditional ROAS metrics to more sophisticated measurement approaches.

IADS Notes: Recent data from February 2025 shows retail media spending is set to increase by USD 10 billion, yet brands struggle with measurement challenges across multiple networks. This aligns with findings from July 2024 indicating retail media networks could potentially double retailers' margins from 1.7% to 4.3%. The industry's evolution is evident in October 2024's expansion of digital screen networks by major retailers, while March 2024 projections targeted $100 billion in US retail media spending by 2027. The current waste problem emerges as retailers like Walmart demonstrate success, reporting 30% advertising growth in 2024, highlighting the gap between leading performers and those struggling with efficiency.

Retail media's waste problem sparks industry 'awards' for bad practices