Leroy Merlin & Zitcha venture into South African retail media market

French home improvement retailer Leroy Merlin is launching a digital retail media network across South Africa in collaboration with Zitcha, an Australian-founded retail media platform. The network will cover on-site, off-site, and in-store customer interactions and signifies Zitcha's first venture into the South African retail media market.

Leroy Merlin, which ranks third globally amongst DIY retail chains and is part of ADEO Group, chose Zitcha following a competitive selection process. With a global presence spanning Europe, Asia, and South America, the French multinational reported a turnover of A$61.7 billion in 2022 and employs over 130,000 individuals.

Zitcha's automated platform will enable Leroy Merlin to augment revenues from brand advertisers and enrich the customer experience via personalised interactions. The retail media network consists of on-site sponsored products, commercials and banners, off-site media channels such as Meta and Google, and in-store retail media.

As Leroy Merlin possesses a large-scale online e-commerce presence, branching into retail media presents an opportunity for brand advertisers to connect efficiently with consumers using the first-party data and self-service functionality provided by Zitcha's platform. This development aligns with the retailer's broader strategy of complementing its existing business model.

Nick Hinsley, Chief Commercial Officer at Zitcha, shared his enthusiasm about the new partnership, describing Leroy Merlin as a "global home improvement powerhouse". He expressed his delight at collaborating with Leroy Merlin to initiate their retail media network in South Africa, providing brand advertisers the chance to reach consumers across different channels via their platform, while generating additional revenues for the business.

In August 2021, Zitcha marked its introduction into the rapidly expanding North American market, having been chosen to implement a comprehensive digital retail media network for Canada's foremost hardware and agricultural specialist chain, Peavey Mart. This further establishes Zitcha's capabilities in establishing and running a robust and viable retail media network.

Dmitriy Anderson, CIO and Head of E-commerce and Marketplace Strategy at Leroy Merlin, spoke about the organisation's ambitious plans for scaling their retail media network utilising a platform equipped to satisfy the needs of their advertising partners across their digital and physical ecosystems. He stated, "We have ambitious targets to grow the offering and Zitcha's platform enables us to realise those objectives."