Procter & Gamble, the maker of Crest toothpaste and Bounty paper towels, developed “Rico’s Tacos” in collaboration with Albertsons Media Collective, the supermarket chain’s ad sales and data division. The series centers on a taco stand run by a widowed father, his teenage daughter and her grandmother, and its episodes run one to two minutes each, according to Lela Coffey, P&G’s vice president of user growth acceleration for North America.
Coffey said the company does not expect shoppers to stop in the middle of an aisle and watch an entire episode. “If we can engage them in the store…they will go onto the app and theoretically watch the episode and do their shopping,” she said. She added that the fragmentation of media has made it harder for marketers to reach consumers.
Albertsons plans to screen the 15-second teasers on digital screens placed at store entrances, meat and seafood counters, and outdoor refueling stations. The screens will show QR codes linking to the Albertsons app, where shoppers can view full episodes and see the chain’s latest loyalty program offers.
Brian Monahan, senior vice president of Albertsons Media Collective, said the chain wants to not only sell ad placements but help brands create content designed to move consumers from their couches to the checkout line. “There is more that we can try together, and particularly with a partner like P&G that really understands consumers and where market growth opportunities are,” he said.
Brilla Media, the production firm hired by P&G to write and shoot the series, built episodes around 25 different types of visits that shoppers typically make to Albertsons stores, as described by the store’s own data, according to the WSJ article. In the pilot, the family’s abuela rushes to Albertsons to stock up on avocados and realizes before leaving that she also needs a new bottle of P&G’s Head & Shoulders shampoo.
In addition to the Albertsons app, clips from the show will be distributed on both the chain’s and P&G’s social-media channels. Albertsons will measure success by comparing sales in locations where the show airs to those where it does not, and by tracking visits to the app to watch episodes and make purchases, Monahan said. The chain plans to screen the show this month at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity in France to attract interest from other brands.
Andrew Lipsman, founder of retail-focused consulting firm Media, Ads + Commerce, described the initiative as an example of retail media evolving into a channel comparable to television. “It has a lot of the same benefits of television. It’s got reach, quality inventory, scarcity, cultural relevance. It just doesn’t have the same attention span,” he said. Lipsman added that shoppers are receptive to brief bursts of sponsored entertainment during supermarket excursions, especially at places like the pharmacy, checkout line and deli counter where they have to wait.
A March research report from in-store media company Grocery TV found that 41% of respondents viewed ads on “cooler screens” — digital ads on the doors of refrigerated cases — negatively. Walgreens recently faced a similar issue, the WSJ reported.
Kiri Masters, a retail media analyst and podcast host, said a number of retailers have begun working with creators to develop content that is more appealing than traditional glossy ads that often go unnoticed. Only about 3% of brands’ digital retail media spending goes to in-store ads and content, she said, but many marketers would like that number to be higher to tie spending more directly to sales.
U.S. retail media spending is projected to hit $72 billion this year, or 19% of all digital ad buys, and grow to about $95 billion in 2028, according to Emarketer.
Coffey said P&G is platform- and format-agnostic as long as its content reaches consumers at the right time and place. “As fast as everything is changing…maybe it’ll be drone shows in five years,” she said. “Who knows?”