Why Home Depot is hosting its first upfront-style retail media pitch to advertisers

When The Home Depot first started building out its retail media network six years ago, using the name “Retail Media+” made sense as it helped communicate the offering to advertisers. Now, following years of growth, Home Depot is taking its retail media business to the next level with its first formal upfront-style in-person pitch to advertisers and a new name that better reflects the entity’s strength. Today, the home improvement chain is hosting advertisers for its “InFronts,” a full-day experience in Home Depot’s Atlanta Store Support Center. CEO Ted Decker and Chief Marketing Officer Molly Battin, who joined the company in 2022, are both speaking at the event. Sessions include presentations on the state of the company’s business and consumer insights, as well as information on service capabilities and measurement tools related to Home Depot’s retail media roadmap. Home Depot is also announcing the rebranding of Retail Media+ to Orange Apron Media. “InFronts is an opportunity for our suppliers, our advertisers to come to Home Depot and feel connected to the strategy of the company and to our marketing strategy,” said Melanie Babcock, VP of Retail Media+ and monetization, who has worked on retail media at the chain since 2018 and is also presenting today. She said it’s important for advertisers to be informed about Home Depot’s retail and marketing strategy since they also sell their own products at the store. “With retail media, marketers need to really understand where they’re putting their dollars and how those dollars are important to driving the business, unlike at a traditional media company like a Meta or a Google where knowing their business strategy isn’t important for those decisions,” Babcock said. More: Streaming’s future depends on marketing strategies As retail media continues its blockbuster growth—recent estimates forecast worldwide spending to reach $140 billion this year—many networks are looking for ways to differentiate themselves and attract new brand advertisers. The field is increasingly competitive, with more brands debuting their own offerings. Convenience store chain Wawa, for example, rolled out Goose Media Network earlier this year. Already, there has been some downsizing, including from the likes of Gap, which shuttered its network a year ago. Home Depot is expecting roughly 500 attendees, some of whom will view the pitches virtually. In addition to informing advertisers about new tools and capabilities, the event also introduces the Orange Apron Media name, the culmination of six months of brand work. Trade School, which like Home Depot is based in Atlanta, worked on the retail media network’s new brand name. Orange is Home Depot’s signature color, one Babcock said 90% of people associate with the brand, according to its own research. Along with the employees who wear orange aprons in its stores, Home Depot employees also wear them to team meetings and on earnings days. “We want suppliers to know they have ‘apron’ help when they’re making a decision about buying retail media,” Babcock said. Upfronts and NewFronts blog Tracking the latest TV and digital ad pitches Read more here

Why Home Depot is hosting its first upfront-style retail media pitch to advertisers

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