VusionGroup to acquire In-Store Media (ISM), a Barcelona retail media firm
What's the deal? VusionGroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has signed an agreement to acquire In-Store MediaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → (ISM), a Barcelona-based in-store retail media company, the French firm announced on 27 July 2026. The deal is expected to be financed with debt and has been approved by VusionGroup's board.
What each side brings: VusionGroup sells AI-powered digitalisation tools for physical stores. ISM designs, deploys, and monetises retail media networks, with relationships spanning 90 retail banners and more than 1,600 brands across nine countries in EMEA, the Americas, and APAC.
The numbers: In 2025, ISM generated revenue of roughly €120 million with what VusionGroup described as robust profitability. Its portfolio includes over 50 print and digital media solutions. The purchase price was not disclosed.
What's the endgame? VusionGroup wants to turn physical stores into digital media assets and shopper engagement hubs. The acquisition adds the advertising expertise, brand relationships, and operating capabilities needed to monetise stores at scale.
Why now? Retail media has become a major profit driver for retailers, but mostly online. Most shopper traffic and purchasing decisions still happen in physical stores — a gap VusionGroup is betting will become one of the fastest-growing areas of retail media.
“The next big digital media is the physical store,” said Thierry GadouDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, chairman and chief executive officer of VusionGroup. He argued the combination helps retailers “turn store traffic into measurable media value, new revenue streams, and more engaging shopper experiences.”
Fernando de Vicente, chief executive officer of ISM, said joining VusionGroup would let it “digitize in-store retail media at a new level” with added technology, scale, and global reach.
What could go wrong? Completion remains subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. A debt-financed deal also adds leverage as VusionGroup scales.
The signal: The deal reflects a race to extend retail media — already reshaping online commerce economics — into brick-and-mortar stores, where the bulk of purchases still happen. VusionGroup is positioning connected-store advertising as its next growth engine.
Read more: PR Newswire
