Brian Monahan is taking the helm at Albertsons Media Collective, the regional grocery chain’s four-year-old retail media community.
Monahan replaces former svp of retail media at Albertsons Firms, Kristi Argyilan, and can maintain the identical title. Argyilan led retail media on the grocer from its inception in 2021 via Dec. 2024, when she left to tackle a job as international head of Uber Promoting.
Monahan comes from Dentsu, the place he spent over seven years, most lately as head of retail media options for the Americas. His resumé additionally contains stints at Pinterest, Walmart, and IPG.
At Albertsons, Monahan stories to Jen Saenz, government vp and chief industrial officer. He began this week.
Monahan instructed ADWEEK that he sees this chance as a option to get again into an “operator” function inside the retail media panorama. Fairly than consulting manufacturers and retailers, as he did at Dentsu, he’s in a position to implement the learnings of years on the company facet to form the way forward for one of many high RMNs within the U.S.
“We have now the philosophical strategy about driving progress collectively,” Monahan mentioned, emphasizing the final phrase by pointing to the Albertsons Media Collective brand on his branded half-zip pullover. “What’s good for our promoting purchasers is nice for our retail enterprise, and in the end, good for our clients.”
When requested whether or not onsite, offsite, or in-store advert gross sales holds probably the most promise at Albertsons over the following 12 months, Monahan mentioned there’s loads of alternative in onsite and offsite, and small enhancements could have large impacts.
Monahan mentioned there have been alternatives to show that RMN advertisements drive actual enterprise outcomes, and RMNs and advertisers might higher work collectively on designing retail media artistic in a approach that capitalizes on model fairness from each the retailer and the advertiser.
After its botched merger, Albertsons will get recent management
Monahan’s appointment follows important management adjustments at Albertsons. Vivek Sankaran, who led the grocery store as chief government officer in the course of the proposed merger with Kroger final 12 months, left the corporate in March.
Susan Morris instantly took over as CEO and has since been working to determine a brand new management crew. Albertsons introduced a collection of adjustments in late Might, which included Saenz as the corporate’s first chief industrial officer.
“We’re not simply promoting media placements—we’re creating alternatives for manufacturers to interact clients in related, actionable methods primarily based on how and the place they store,” Saenz mentioned in a press release. “With Brian’s management, Albertsons Media Collective will proceed to construct on this momentum and unlock even better worth for our clients, our promoting companions and our enterprise.”
The $25 billion proposed merger, which was blocked by each federal and state courts in December, additionally resulted in authorized motion. Albertsons sued Kroger, alleging that the grocery store didn’t do sufficient to get the deal handed, and Kroger filed a countersuit alleging that Albertsons was secretly coordinating with one other grocery chain on a distinct regulatory technique.
