The pitch: Best Buy is relying on its store footprint, rich first-party data on tech shoppers, and in-house creative capabilities to win more spending from endemic and nonendemic advertisers.

The positioning: Though not new to retail media, the chain is looking to expand beyond its tech niche and establish itself as a full-funnel solution for marketers.

• Despite its specialty positioning, Best Buy reaches 200 million customers across 1,000 stores. It also generates considerable traffic in-store and online during major sales events like Black Friday, making in-store activations—like its new experiences with Ikea and Meta—valuable opportunities to increase brand awareness and consideration. Starting next year, the retailer will offer store takeover packages, letting advertisers showcase their brands on exteriors as well as on its many in-store screens.
• The retailer also can trace 93% of its transactional revenues to a customer ID, Best Buy Ads president Lisa Valentino said during its ads showcase, allowing it to more accurately measure campaign performance, including incrementality, reach, and sales attribution.
• While Best Buy has mainly attracted endemic advertisers, it sees an opportunity to branch out, starting with the sports category. Shoppers are 26% more likely than the general population to be sports lovers, Valentino said—a finding which led the retailer to partner with the NFL and TGL, as well as YouTube creators Dude Perfect.

Our take: Best Buy is smart to lean into its physical footprint to differentiate itself in retail media. While some advertisers remain reluctant to lean into in-store due to measurement concerns, Best Buy’s ability to tie purchases back to consumers and to literally turn its stores into billboards should help ease those worries. If it can succeed, Best Buy can move beyond its tech niche to become a more serious player in retail media.

Go further: Read our latest report on In-Store Retail Media 2025.

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