- Commerce now drives discovery and conversion
AI, marketplaces and retail media shape what consumers see, compare and buy. - AI visibility relies on structured product data
Clean content, pricing, ratings, availability and relevance determine discoverability. - Marketplaces have reset value expectations
Shein and Temu force constant comparison on price, speed and perceived value. - Retail media must prove commercial impact
Brands need closed-loop measurement and incrementality, not just ROAS and impressions. - Integrated execution is the competitive advantage
Winning brands align media, pricing, stock and shelf performance in real time.
If your 2026 plan still treats commerce as the place where marketing converts, you have already fallen behind.
In South Africa, commerce is no longer a channel. It is the system shaping how brands are discovered, what gets chosen, and what ultimately gets bought, and this shift is not theoretical. It is happening now.
Online retail was set to exceed R130bn in 2025, up from R96bn in 2024. At the same time, retail media is growing at around 12 percent CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) and is on track to reach R14bn by 2030, accounting for close to 10 percent of advertising revenue.
For retail, trade, media, and marketing leaders, the signal is clear. Commerce is no longer the last mile. It is the arena where marketing competes and where accountability is brought to the entire strategy.
Let us be clear about what is really changing.
Marketplaces are resetting value
Platforms like Shein and Temu have permanently reshaped consumer expectations.
This is no longer just about price; it is about constant value comparison across:
- Price
- Eange
- Delivery speed
- Perceived value
This is a war on value, and it forces clarity.
- Where do you compete on prices?
- Where do you protect margins?
- Where do you win through experience?
Retail media should amplify these choices, not compensate for a weak proposition. If you do not win on the shelf, media spend only accelerates the loss.
AI is the new shelf
Consumers are overwhelmed by choice and increasingly rely on AI to filter it.
Algorithms now interpret intent, compare options, and prioritise recommendations. If your product is not structured, comparable, and machine readable, it simply will not show up.
Visibility today depends on:
- Clean, structured product content
- Strong availability
- Disciplined digital shelf fundamentals such as ratings, pricing, and relevance.
If machines cannot interpret your brand and product proposition clearly, consumers will not see you.
Retail media controls the moment of decision
Retail media is no longer just inventory. It is becoming accountable.
Yes, it drives visibility and demand. But the real shift lies in measurement. The winners will be the networks that connect audience, insight, and transactions, and can prove incremental impact.
This is where clean rooms and closed loop measurement come in, alongside faster feedback loops between audience, creative, inventory, and sales.
It is no longer good enough to report on media performance. You need to prove what moved the business needle.
The battleground is clear. Execution is a challenge
Brands are no longer competing through campaigns alone. They are competing inside decision environments where discovery, comparison, and purchase happen in the same moment.
- AI decides what gets seen.
- Marketplaces decide what is valuable.
- Retail media decides what gets bought.
This is the new commerce system.
Most leaders already understand what is changing:
- AI and algorithms are driving discovery, not the physical shelf.
- Marketplaces have become a benchmark for value.
- First party data is now the engine behind media, content, and decision making.
- Retailers are increasingly running as media owners.
This is not just a channel shift. It is an operating model shift. And here is the tension. Most organisations are still trying to deliver today’s performance while building tomorrow’s reality. They are optimising pieces of the system, not competing within it.
South Africa is already there
This is not a future state. It is now.
- Checkers Sixty60 grew 47 percent in the first half of 2025, nearing R19bn in sales.
- Pick n Pay expanded delivery by over 60 percent.
- Woolworths Dash is doubling down on premium convenience.
Consumers now move effortlessly between apps, stores, marketplaces, social and AI platforms in a single journey. There is no linear path anymore. There is only one moment of decision.
The shelf is no longer a place. It is an algorithm. And you do not win that through siloed channel planning.
This is where organisations need to raise their game
Many organisations are increasing media investment, including retail media, and investing in tech and data. Yet they are still seeing declining conversion, rising acquisition costs and ongoing margin pressure.
Why?
- Media is driving traffic into weak shelf propositions.
- Product content under performs in search and recommendations.
- Demand exists, but stock does not.
- Pricing is misaligned with market benchmarks.
The result was simple. You end up paying more to create demand than you can convert.
What do leaders need to do now?
- Get ruthless on value: Align pricing, promotion, media, and stock behind a clear value strategy.
- Fix the shelf properly:Treat retail environments as the primary marketing stage, not a downstream output.
- Measure what matters: Move beyond ROAS and build the capability to understand incrementality and genuine business impact.
- Build for speed: Markets move fast. Pricing shifts, competitors react, demand changes
Advantage comes from how quickly you respond.
Where we focus
At dentsu, we do not sell tools or point solutions. We see commerce as a growth system that needs to be engineered from end to end.
- We assess where value leaks across the system and how commerce is really performing.
- We identify where data and channels are disconnected and where execution falls short.
- We design strategies that drive measurable business outcomes, define the operating model and capabilities required to compete, and stay close to performance to learn fast and scale what works.
Winning in 2026 will not come from running more channels. It will belong to the organisations that win at the point of decision, consistently, visibly and at scale.
At dentsu, we see commerce as a connected growth engine. Our Commerce Accelerator OS brings together:
- Operating model design
- Data and identity
- Retail media
- Marketplace acceleration
- Closed loop measurement
All designed to move businesses from fragmented execution to scalable growth.
The market has already changed.
The question is, how you are competing in an algorithm-led world?
Ansa Leighton-Buys is BX strategic head of commerce marketing at dentsu. Connect with dentsu to assess your commerce maturity and unlock your next phase of growth.
