Boots Media Group
Boots Media Group is a UK retail media network operated by Shopper Media Group (SMG), which advises, operates, and powers Commerce Media Networks for major retailers including Boots, Asda, Morrisons, and Very Group, using an AI-powered platform (Plan-Apps) to manage $1.3B in media and deliver omnichannel ad campaigns for 1,096 brand clients.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Boots Media Group does
Boots Media Group (BMG) is a retail media network operated by Shopper Media Group Ltd (SMG), a privately held UK company founded in 2008 that functions as a full-service connected commerce group. SMG advises, operates, and powers Commerce Media Networks for major retailers, with embedded specialist teams physically located inside retailer headquarters (Boots in Nottingham, Asda in Leeds, Morrisons in Bradford, The Very Group in Liverpool, and WHSmith in North America). The firm operates 7 Commerce Media Networks managing $1.3B in media, has delivered over $650M in incremental revenue for retailers, and serves 1,096 advertiser clients including Coca-Cola, Diageo, General Mills, Kimberly-Clark, Mondelez, Britvic, Premier Foods, and AG Barr.\n\nThe company's core technology is Plan-Apps, an AI-powered commerce media operating system that connects planning, activation, and measurement across in-store, on-site, and off-site channels. Plan-Apps comprises the Media Management Platform (MMP) for ecosystem-wide operations, the Retail Media Exchange (RMX) — a marketplace launched in June 2026 that aggregates retail media inventory across networks — and the Commerce Media Network Maturity Index, a 126-data-point diagnostic framework launched in March 2026. The platform integrates with Criteo, LiveRamp, Meta, The Trade Desk, and Kevel, and powers 1.9B+ in planned media and 48K+ evaluated campaigns. AI capabilities span generative campaign summaries, predictive analytics, recommendation engines for audience targeting, and process automation across orchestration workflows.\n\nSMG operates a combined managed-services-plus-platform revenue model across three customer segments: retailers and Commerce Media Networks (managed CMN operations and consultancy), consumer brands and advertisers (campaign activation across networks), and media agencies (unified buying via RMX). Revenue is generated through media management fees on $1.3B of managed media, performance-based arrangements, professional services fees from 100+ consultancy projects, and emerging platform subscription and transaction fees from Plan-Apps and RMX. The firm is headquartered in London and New York, employs approximately 500 commerce media specialists, and is led by CEO Katie Streeter Hurle.
Boots Media Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Boots Media Group
- Legal name
- Shopper Media Group Ltd
- Website
- https://threefold.team
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Boots Media Group is a UK retail media network operated by Shopper Media Group (SMG), which advises, operates, and powers Commerce Media Networks for major retailers including Boots, Asda, Morrisons, and Very Group, using an AI-powered platform (Plan-Apps) to manage $1.3B in media and deliver omnichannel ad campaigns for 1,096 brand clients.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Boots Media Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Retail Media Networks
- NAICS
- Media Buying Agencies (54183), Media Buying Agencies (541830), Software Publishers (51321)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) Platforms (BPAEAPAA)
Keywords
Where Boots Media Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices8 records
Markets served
Boots Media Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Embedded Commerce Media Network Operations: SMG operates leading Commerce Media Networks on behalf of retailers, providing end-to-end services including staffing, strategy, activation, and measurement. Revenue is generated through media management fees and performance-based arrangements with retail partners. $1.3B of media is managed through these operated CMNs.
- Consultancy Services: SMG offers robust and customizable consultancy services designed to support businesses at any stage of the commerce media journey. Provides AdTech and proposition analysis, strategic commercial and operational evaluations, and actionable acceleration plans. Over 100 consultancy projects delivered.
- Plan-Apps Platform Licensing: Plan-Apps is the AI-powered operating system for commerce media, providing planning, activation, and measurement capabilities. Revenue may be generated through platform licensing and subscription to retailers and CMNs.
- Retail Media Exchange (RMX): RMX by Plan-Apps provides a marketplace for agencies and brands to access retail media inventory across multiple retailers through a single platform. Acts as an open, intelligent marketplace built to give agencies and brands frictionless access to retail media.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Boots Media Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Boots Media Group is the Commerce Media Network operated by SMG (Shopper Media Group) in partnership with Boots UK, leveraging first-party Boots Advantage Card data for audience targeting across onsite, offsite, in-store, and digital channels. SMG embeds specialist agency teams at Boots' Nottingham headquarters to operate the network end-to-end, providing omnichannel campaign planning, activation, and measurement powered by the proprietary Plan-Apps AI platform.
Product overview
Boots Media Group (operated by SMG - Shopper Media Group) operates as a full-service connected commerce group offering a platform-plus-services model. The core technology is Plan-Apps, an AI-enabled operating system for commerce media that serves as the orchestration layer connecting planning, activation, and measurement. Plan-Apps comprises three modules: the Media Management Platform (MMP) for ecosystem-wide operations, and the Retail Media Exchange (RMX) for multi-retailer media access. SMG operates multiple retailer-specific Commerce Media Networks including Boots Media Group, WHS Media (travel retail in North America), Very Media Group, and Morrisons Media Group. The offering combines proprietary technology (Plan-Apps, CMN Maturity Index) with consultancy services and embedded operational teams for retailers building or scaling media networks.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Plan-Apps AI-enabled operating system for commerce media that simplifies orchestration by connecting planning, activation, and measurement in one intelligent platform. Manages the entire retail media lifecycle across in-store, on-site, and off-site channels, and is used by Commerce Media Networks to power execution and insights.
- Retail Media Exchange (RMX) Open, intelligent marketplace providing agencies and brands frictionless access to retail media across multiple retailers through a single entry point, enabling unified planning, buying, activation, and measurement.
- Boots Media Group Retail media network serving Boots UK, leveraging first-party Boots Advantage Card loyalty data for omnichannel audience targeting, campaign planning, activation, and measurement across onsite, offsite, in-store, and digital channels.
- Very Media Group Full-service retail media network operated with The Very Group, harnessing first-party data from millions of loyal customers for personalized, omnichannel campaign experiences across 40+ media channels.
- Morrisons Media Group One-stop shop for media activation with Morrisons supermarket chain, combining customer insight with planning and media expertise to create bespoke campaigns reaching 10M+ weekly customer visits and 5.6M+ More Card users.
- WHS Media First-ever in-store travel Retail Media Network in North America, connecting brands to consumers across 350+ WHSmith North America travel hub locations and digital offsite channels, reaching 900 million annual travelers.
- Consultancy Services Customizable consultancy services for retailers at any stage of the commerce media journey, including AdTech and proposition analysis, strategic commercial and operational evaluations, and actionable acceleration plans for Media Networks.
- Embedded Services Full-service commerce capabilities that embed specialist agency teams in-house at retailer partners, providing end-to-end operation of Commerce Media Networks including staffing, strategy execution, and campaign management.
Quantifiable outcome
- $650M+ incremental revenue delivered for retailers
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Boots Media Group
Customer profileNamed customers17 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Boots Media Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
AI capability7 records
Feature4 records
Boots Media Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.
- Empathy Lab by EPAMcoreRMX by Plan-Apps was developed in partnership with Empathy Lab by EPAM. EPAM's Empathy Lab provides technology development for the retail media exchange platform, combining advanced technology, AI-powered intelligence, and seamless interoperability.
- The Very GroupcoreIn 2024, SMG and The Very Group launched Very Media Group, a new retail media network. Leverages rich data from 4M+ loyal customers with 96% using Very Pay. Over 200 brands have worked with Very Media Group across 40+ media channels.
- BootsflagshipSMG operates Boots Media Group (BMG), Boots' dedicated Commerce Media Network. SMG embeds teams at Boots' Nottingham headquarters and manages the full spectrum of Boots' retail media operations including onsite, offsite, in-store, and digital channels. Boots Advantage Card first-party data is a core asset powering BMG's targeting capabilities. Partnership involves collaboration with Criteo and LiveRamp for enhanced measurement.
- AsdacoreSMG embeds specialist agency teams in-house at ASDA to operate and scale its Commerce Media Network. SMG teams work from ASDA House in Leeds.
- Co-opcoreSMG operates Co-op Media Network, delivering full-service commerce capabilities including new digital store capabilities, off-site media capabilities, gamification features, an advertiser rewards program, and AI tools. Dean Harris serves as Head of Retail Media at Co-op.
- MorrisonscoreSMG operates Morrisons Media Group (MMG), providing one-stop shop media activation for Morrisons. Morrisons has 10M+ weekly customer visits and 5.6M+ More Card users. SMG teams are embedded at Morrisons' Bradford office.
- WHSmith North AmericacoreSMG operates WHS Media, the first-ever in-store travel Retail Media Network in North America. Connects brands to consumers across 350+ WHSmith North America locations in travel hubs including airports, rail stations, and resorts. Reaches 900 million annual travelers.
- DeliveroocoreSMG operates Deliveroo's retail media network, enabling brands to reach consumers through the delivery platform's on-site and off-site media channels.
- KantarcoreSMG collaborated with Kantar on the In-Store Retail Media Effectiveness research report produced with Andrew Lipsman and Colosseum Strategy. Kantar provided measurement and analytical capabilities for the study on in-store retail media as a full-funnel channel.
- Colosseum StrategycoreSMG collaborated with Colosseum Strategy and Kantar on the In-Store Retail Media report featuring Andrew Lipsman's research on the rise of in-store retail media as a full-funnel driver.
- IAB UKcoreSMG works with IAB UK to establish a unified retail media taxonomy and standardize measurement and terminology across the industry. SMG's Senior Director Ollie Shayer and other leaders participate in IAB UK Retail Media Growth Summit discussions on standards and best practices.
- ADWEEKflagshipSMG partners with ADWEEK to deliver Retail Media Summit UK, the UK's original commerce media event. ADWEEK provides media brand, audience, and content partnership for the annual summit. SMG also participates in ADWEEK House Cannes Lions events.
- CriteocoreCriteo is a technology partner listed on the Plan-Apps partner ecosystem page. Criteo provides advertising technology capabilities integrated with SMG's commerce media platforms. Boots Media Group specifically partners with Criteo for audience activation.
- LiveRampcoreLiveRamp is a technology partner on the Plan-Apps ecosystem. LiveRamp's identity resolution and data connectivity platform is used by Boots Media Group to build targeted audiences from Boots Advantage Card first-party data and enable activation across media platforms.
Scale indicators20 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Boots Media Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Moloco: ML-driven programmatic and retail media engine explicitly cited in SMG's data as powering personalization for luxury retail media. Comparable to Plan-Apps' AI capabilities and an emerging competitive threat in the ML-driven retail media space.
- LiveRamp: Identity resolution and data connectivity platform that powers much of the retail media ecosystem, including Boots Media Group. Adjacent rather than fully overlapping with SMG — provides the data plumbing underneath CMNs — but increasingly competing for the same commerce media wallet.
Direct peers
- Criteo: Global retail media AdTech platform providing audience targeting, campaign activation, and measurement for retailers and brands. Comparable to SMG because it powers the technology layer underneath multiple retail media networks (including Boots Media Group, as disclosed in SMG's partnerships) and competes for the same managed-services-and-platform wallet.
- Rokt: Ecommerce marketing technology that helps retailers and brands monetize the post-purchase moment with relevant offers. Comparable to SMG because it competes for retail-media budgets around the transaction and offers a similar technology-plus-monetization proposition to retailers.
- Kevel: Retail media API and platform provider enabling retailers to build their own ad serving and targeting infrastructure. Comparable to SMG's Plan-Apps platform and MMP product, and a Plan-Apps partner/sponsor in SMG's own podcast ecosystem.
- Tesco Media and Insight: In-house retail media network of Tesco, one of the UK's largest grocers. Operates a similar end-to-end CMN model (planning, activation, measurement) using first-party Clubcard data, and represents the 'retailer-insourced' competitive threat to SMG's managed-services model.
- Nectar360 (Sainsbury's): Retail media and loyalty business of Sainsbury's, operating the Nectar360 platform. Directly comparable to SMG because it monetizes a major UK grocer's first-party data and operates an omnichannel retail media network across onsite, offsite, and in-store channels.
Broad incumbents
- GroupM (WPP): WPP's media investment group operating across multiple global agency brands. Has a growing commerce media practice and competes with SMG for retailer and brand media mandates at scale, with the advantage of global holding-company infrastructure.
- Publicis Groupe (Epsilon / Profitero): Global advertising holding company with significant retail media and commerce media capabilities via Epsilon (data) and Profitero (commerce intelligence). Competes with SMG in commerce media services and represents the 'holding-company' threat to independent specialists like SMG.
- Omnicom Commerce Group: Omnicom's commerce and retail media practice spans multiple agency brands and competes with SMG for both retailer and brand-side commerce media mandates. Like Publicis and WPP, represents the holding-company competitive threat with global scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Boots Media Group social profiles
Digital presenceBoots Media Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Boots Media Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Boots Media Group subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries7 records
Boots Media Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Boots Media Group M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Boots Media Group
What does Boots Media Group do?
Boots Media Group is the Commerce Media Network operated by SMG (Shopper Media Group) in partnership with Boots UK, leveraging first-party Boots Advantage Card data for audience targeting across onsite, offsite, in-store, and digital channels. SMG embeds specialist agency teams at Boots' Nottingham headquarters to operate the network end-to-end, providing omnichannel campaign planning, activation, and measurement powered by the proprietary Plan-Apps AI platform.
Is Boots Media Group a public or private company?
Boots Media Group is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Boots Media Group founded?
Boots Media Group was founded in 2008. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Boots Media Group based?
Boots Media Group is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Boots Media Group make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Embedded Commerce Media Network Operations are the primary driver. The others are consultancy Services, plan-Apps Platform Licensing and retail Media Exchange (RMX).
Who are Boots Media Group's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Moloco and LiveRamp. Direct peers are Criteo, Rokt, Kevel, Tesco Media and Insight and Nectar360 (Sainsbury's). Broad incumbents are GroupM (WPP), Publicis Groupe (Epsilon / Profitero) and Omnicom Commerce Group.
Does Boots Media Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for Boots Media Group.
What industry is Boots Media Group in?
Boots Media Group's product category is Retail Media Networks. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAEAPAA, Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) Platforms. Its NAICS code is 54183 and its SIC code is 7370.