Retail media fragmentation is real. But the brands winning aren't just adding mo
By Jeffrey Cohen · May 30, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
Retail media fragmentation is real. But the brands winning aren't just adding more networks, they're building systems. I had a great conversation on stage with Elizabeth Marsten from Tinuiti last week, and a few things stuck with me:
Most marketers are still managing campaign by campaign. The shift that matters is moving from "how do I run this campaign?" to "how does the next year and a half look across all of my retail media partners?" That's a fundamentally different question.
Incrementality is a trust problem, not a measurement problem. Brands that are winning aren't relying on a single iROAS number. They're triangulating — using multiple measurement sources to build internal credibility with their CFO and CMO. A 3.6 versus a 3.8 means nothing if nobody trusts the number.
The fragmentation problem isn't going away. Our data with Stratably shows brands are planning to add more retail media networks, not fewer. The ones pulling back from 15+ aren't retreating to four or five. They're just getting smarter about the system they're building.
The real challenge of 2026 isn't which RMNs to be on. It's whether you're orchestrating them — or just managing them.