Marketing
01 December 2022
This Week in Retail Media: Instacart Promotions, BJ's network launches
Check out the latest marketplace advertising capabilities rolling out for brands.
The retail media landscape is continuing to grow, as more marketplaces stand up networks and add new advertising capabilities for brands seeking to reach consumers while they shop. This week, Instacart is adding new self-serve promotions, while BJ’s is launching the industry's newest retail media network.
Check out more details:
Instacart Promotions adds coupons, Stock Up & Save
Instacart announced new ad capabilities that are designed to help brands offer more savings to consumers across its grocery marketplace.
Instacart Promotions will provide self-service access to all brands so that they can launch new deal structures, promotions, and incentives with their Instacart Ad campaigns. Currently available in open beta through Instacart Ads manager, this allows emerging and established brands alike to expand their offerings across the marketplace.
The result is that consumers will see more promotions, coupons and deals that are “tailored to them” across the marketplace, Instacart said. The new “savings experience” is set to appear directly on product item cards and before checkout.
Initially, Instacart Promotions will provide two structures for promotions:
- Coupons ("buy X units, save $Y")
- Stock Up & Save ("Spend $X, Save $Y")
Going forward, Instacart plans to add Free Gifts and Buy One, Get One structures, as well. These will help brands run "free sample" programs that help to attract new customers and serve personalized discounts to different customer segments, such as "new to brand" or "new to category."
“With the average cost of groceries going up, we're proud to unlock more ways for consumers to save money and connect with their favorite brands and retailers via Instacart," said Ali Miller, VP of ads product at Instacart, in a statement. "With the launch of our new Instacart Promotions, all of our brand partners now have the ability to set up coupons and promotions that can drive meaningful business results while also passing on more savings opportunities to consumers.”
Instacart said Athletic Brewing, General Mills, Sola Company, and Wells Enterprises (maker of Halo Top) are already pairing Instacart Promotions with ad formats such as Sponsored Product and Display.
"As we look ahead to Dry January, we're adding more coupons to our campaigns so consumers can discover our brews and save as they shop on the Instacart Marketplace," said Dermot Woods, omnichannel marketplace manager at Athletic Brewing.
This is the latest in a series of ad upgrades from Instacart this year, as the company builds out retail media capabilities that bolster its marketplace. CEO Fidji Simo said earlier this year that advertising is the fastest growing part of the business, and boasts high margins compared to grocery delivery.
In recent months, Instacart has:
Instacart Promotions. (Courtesy photo)
BJ’s launches retail media program
BJ’s Wholesale Club just became the latest grocery business to launch a retail media program. The club on Thursday announced the launch of BJ’s Media Edge, which was created with Microsoft PromoteIQ. BJ’s said it wants to provide brands and advertisers with increased capabilities to leverage first party data to reach its 6.5 million members.
“This new program builds upon our existing digital marketing offerings with a customizable solution for brand partners to influence our members at every stage of their purchase journey, all while driving measurable returns,” said Monica Schwartz, EVP and Chief Digital Officer at BJ’s Wholesale Club, in a statement.
The program offers an interface where brands can buy onsite and offsite media, reach members on BJ’s properties and target audience members to influence purchase behavior. Additional offerings include social media extensions and real-time analytics. Closed loop measurement reporting capabilities are also in development.
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Hunter is joining ABG's portfolio. (Courtesy photo)
FUNDING
Chamberlain Coffee raises $7M
Chamberlain Coffee, the consumer brand founded by YouTube influencer Emma Chamberlain, raised $7 million in new funding.
The financing included backing from existing investors including Blazar Capital, Chamberlain and United Talent Agency. New investors include Volition Capital, Electric Feel Ventures, L.A. Libations and Noah Bremen, founder of PLTFRM.
The new funding follows the launch of a Ready-to-Drink (RTD) product and coffee pods. Previously, the brand raised a Series A in August 2022.
"Creating a uniquely inviting coffee brand has been my dream for so long now, and having key investors back us allows us to build Chamberlain Coffee in ways that feel fresh and exciting,” said Chamberlain, in a statement. “There are so many products I am eager to develop and projects I'm excited to get working on. With such an incredible team and group of investors I am more excited than ever to see what the future holds for Chamberlain Coffee."
Impact Analytics raises new funding
Impact Analytics, a software company for retail supply chain and merchandise planning, raised new funding from Vistara Growth.
The new investment, the amount of which was not disclosed, comes after Impact raised funding in February 2021 and October 2022 from Argentum.
The funding will help Impact Analytics further develop its Impact Analytics SmartSuite product portfolio, which is designed to help optimize forecasting, merchandising and end-to-end lifecycle pricing. Rather than the traditional forecasting approach of basing decisions on the preceding year, Impact Analytics applies a model that includes 150 variables from internal and external sources, while combining recency and history. Clients include BJ's Wholesale Club, Dick's Sporting Goods, Puma and Tapestry.
Selva Ventures closes $34M Fund II
Selva Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on consumer brands that promote healthier living, closed its second fund at $34 million, TechCrunch reported.
With the new funding, Selva will invest in brands across categories including health, wellness, beauty and personal care. The fund expects to write checks of $1-2 million in seed and Series A startups, while assisting in areas like finance, operations and retail partnerships.
Backers of the second fund include Unilever Ventures, PagsGroup and Obelysk.
MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
Authentic Brands Group acquires IP of Hunter
Nautica and Forever 21 owner Authentic Brands Group acquired the intellectual property of Hunter, a 160-year-old British outdoor lifestyle brand known for its Wellington boots.
With the deal, ABG appointed longtime partners Batra Group and Marc Fisher to execute retail and ecommerce operations, as well as continue to expand the brand in the UK and U.S., respectively.
“At the intersection of fashion and outdoor, Hunter introduces another elevated global brand to Authentic’s diverse Lifestyle portfolio,” said Authentic CEO Jamie Salter, in a statement.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Cookware brand Great Jones acquired by Meyer
DTC cookware brand Great Jones was acquired by Meyer Corporation, a global company that also owns kitchen brands such as Farberware and KitchenAid.
Founded in 2018, Great Jones grew with stylish, colorful cookware that stood out on Instagram feeds. CEO Sierra Tishgart will remain in the lead role, and take on an expanded role as the creative director of Meyer. Previously, Meyer was both a supplier and minority investor in Great Jones through fundraising. Now, Meyer will support product expansion and international retail development.
"I have long admired Meyer's expertise in our category, and I've had the personal pleasure of getting to know the Meyer family and team over several years," said Tishgart, in a statement. "I am ecstatic about the opportunities their support will unlock for Great Jones. We've operated as a small team of less than 10 throughout the company's four-year history, and this collaboration will strengthen our technical capabilities and secure our reach for many, many years to come."
IKEA owner acquires supply chain software
The investment arm of IKEA parent Ingka Group acquired the warehouse management software platform Made4Net.
As a result of the deal, Made4Net’s software will be deployed across IKEA’s 482 stores and fulfillment centers. Made4Net will continue to operate as an independent subsidiary of Ingka, with a headquarters in New Jersey. CEO Duff Davidson will remain at the helm of the company.
“Our business currently requires a better fulfillment operations system with more accurate data that better supports handling for our customers,” said Tolga Öncu, head of retail at Ingka Group, in a statement. “Our goal is to become leaders of life at home, serving more people in an omnichannel reality, whenever and however customers choose to meet us.”
SellerX acquires Elevate
European ecommerce aggregator SellerX acquired Elevate Brands, a U.S.-based aggregator.
The combined companies will be known as SellerX Group. It will comprise a portfolio that includes 80 Amazon-native private label consumer brands in categories including sports and outdoors, home, mobile accessories, pets and consumables. The portfolio will span over 40,000 products.
With the deal, SellerX Co-CEOs Philipp Triebel and Malte Horeyseck will lead SellerX Group, while Elevate Brands cofounders Ryan Gnesin, Jeremy Bell and Robert Bell will remain in key leadership positions.
“This acquisition combines our know-how and diversified portfolios of strong brands with a market-leading technology platform and strong operational infrastructure,” said Triebel, in a statement. “By leveraging our combined strengths, I am convinced we are well-positioned to drive further consolidation in the industry.”
Society Brands acquires Wolf Tactical
Ecommerce aggregator Society Brands acquired Wolf Tactical, a tactical gear company.
Founded in 2017 by Tim Wu, Wolf Tactical makes products including DC belts, range belts to weighted vest and tactical backpacks.
"I started Wolf Tactical by myself as a side hustle with very limited knowledge of business and entrepreneurship. A combination of hard work and relentless learning allowed me to build it into a multi-million-dollar business," said Wu who will remain as brand president, in a statement. "With the help of Society Brands, I have access to untapped potential that I would not be able to achieve by myself.”
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