THG Beauty Media and The Trade Desk lay claim to new retail media approach on open internet

THG has announced a partnership with advertising technology specialist, The Trade Desk. For the first time, media buyers (advertisers and agencies) can access THG’s segments from Cult Beauty and LOOKFANTASTIC via self-serve across the digital ecosystem on The Trade Desk’s media buying Kokai platform.

“We’re extremely proud of how our retail media offering is evolving as we enter the next phase of our partnership with The Trade Desk. Over the past year, we’ve welcomed several new partners and increased our investment in marketing services to strengthen and modernise our proposition. We’re excited about what the next 12 months will bring for THG Beauty Media as we continue to expand and innovate,” says Rachel Moss, Retail Media Director at THG.

Marketers using The Trade Desk’s platform can activate their omnichannel campaigns across the open internet, including channels such as connected TV (CTV) and audio. Advertisers can extend their reach and apply retail data throughout the marketing funnel, with the afo mi helping to reduce media waste and maximise impact on business outcomes, such as direct sales or brand impact.  

“As retail data continues to play a pivotal role in marketing strategies, our first partnership with UK beauty retail leader THG presents an incredible opportunity for advertisers to help improve the effectiveness of their ad spend,” says Tim Abraham, GM of Data Partnerships at The Trade Desk.

“This partnership enables advertisers to access event-level data to build custom segments and measure performance without the need for a retailer clean room. This allows brands to leverage our proprietary AI to accurately reach the right customers based on real purchase behaviours and optimise media towards sales - creating a win-win for both marketers and consumers across the open internet.”.

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

Retail media will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards will open for entries in April. They celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Thursday, 15th October.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.