Focus on US as retail media specialist Zitcha bags A$15 million Series A funding led by VMG Partners

Retail media platform Zitcha has secured A$15 million (US$10 million) Series A funding, led by US investment firm VMG Partners, to accelerate growth in the North American market.

Australian venture capital business OIF Ventures, which raised Zitcha’s seed funding round in 2022, has also invested in the Series A round which will go towards its plans to open new offices in the US, hire sales and customer success teams.

Zitcha currently works with retailers across seven countries including Coles Group (Australia), The Warehouse Group (New Zealand) Peavey Mart (Canada) Leroy Merlin (South Africa) and is used by brands including Unilever, Fisher & Paykel and Microsoft, Lego and Sennheiser. 

Earlier this year, it entered into a partnership with Axonet to leverage first party convenience store data and retail media touchpoints across tens of thousands of North American convenience stores (C-store).

Ocado is the latest major retailer to join the firm’s platform, becoming the first to leverage its latest iteration including new business planning tools.

Troy Townsend, Co-Founder and CEO, Zitcha, says: “The US presents an enormous opportunity for Zitcha.”

“Our platform is uniquely positioned to help retailers and brands fully leverage the third wave of digital advertising and as US retail media networks mature, the demand for integrated, data driven ad solutions has never been higher. With this investment from VMG Partners, along with their vast experience with consumer brands and retail technology, we are excited to tap into the immense prospects America offers.”

VMG Technology’s General Partner, Carle Stenmark, says: “Zitcha has enjoyed impressive momentum since launching just two years ago, driving innovation in retail media, building an industry-leading retail media platform and securing partnerships with some of the world’s preeminent retailers and brands.”

“Troy and Jack have built a talented team of specialists and pursued a scalable program of global expansion. Their ambition and deep expertise in retail media made them an ideal match for us. We look forward to supporting the business and helping drive its US acceleration.”  

Jack Byrne, Co-Founder and Zitha Chief Operating Officer, comments: “The investment from VMG Partners and OIF Ventures allows Zitcha to scale our US presence and accelerate our entry into its red hot retail media ecosystem. The region represents an important growth opportunity for us.”

“As a proudly Aussie founded business, we are excited to bring our ongoing commitment to ensuring all our retailer and brand partners receive the best of what we have to offer, including excellent service, to this new region."

Townsend will relocate to the US to spearhead the North America expansion. Australia will remain as the firm’s headquarters with APAC as its platform and engineering hub and Byrne will continue to manage operations outside of the US.

2024 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Retail media is a key focus area for the sixth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards, which is now open for entries.

The awards, sponsored by CADS, 3D Cloud, Retail Technology Show 2025, and Business France, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

It’s free to enter and you can do so across multiple categories.

Key 2024 dates

Friday, 25th October: Award entry deadline 

Tuesday, 29th October: 2024 shortlist revealed

30th October-6th November: Judging days

Thursday, 21st November: Winners announced at the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards ceremony, to be held at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London.