Ad market growth in Australia now runs ahead of the IMF’s 6% nominal GDP forecast, powered by an aggressive shift into retail media. That segment alone is tipped to jump 19.5% and hit $2.3bn in spend.
Brands are funnelling budgets into environments directly linked to sales outcomes. The pattern signals a clear preference for media channels that sit close to the point of purchase.
Retail media is expanding rapidly as more operators build their own advertising networks and data capabilities. Bunnings, Endeavour Group and CommBank are scaling their offers alongside earlier movers such as Woolworths Group’s Cartology, Coles 360, Amazon and Chemist Warehouse.
Traditional retailers remain core advertisers, yet new categories like insurance and automotive are piling in. They use in-store screens, ecommerce sites and offsite audience extension to tap the reach of these high-traffic platforms.
Among all channels, retail media continues as the fastest growing, but streaming TV is not far behind. Research points to a 20% lift in streaming ad revenues this year, reflecting the shift of viewing hours from broadcast to connected platforms.
Advertisers are attracted by targeting options and flexible buying models that mirror digital. At the same time, the intelligence category, which covers AI-related investments, is forecast to grow 10.4% to $5.1bn.
That spend is flowing into tools that automate buying, sharpen audience insights and optimise creative in real time. The combination of booming retail media, robust streaming growth and rising AI investment is reshaping Australia’s ad market around data-rich environments.
Budgets are concentrating where outcomes can be measured closely, whether at the checkout, inside streaming apps or through AI-enhanced platforms. For agencies and media owners, the contest is now focused on building scale, data depth and performance proof in these priority channels.
