About Gosia Wajchert, Managing Director of Criteo Middle East and Africa

Gosia is a senior digital marketing and ad-tech professional with over 17 years of experience across ad-tech, digital marketing transformation, digital media investments and e-commerce.

Majority of her career till date Gosia has spent at media agencies ( Group M in London, Omnicom, Publicis and Mediabrands in Dubai ), where she led on digital investments and partnerships, and focused on performance and addressable media solutions inclusive of e-commerce.

Recognized for developing successful futureproof media strategies, digital transformation initiatives and partnerships with global tech platforms for agencies and clients from multiple verticals including Telco’s, CPGs and retailers. IAB GCC Member.

Gosia currently heads Criteo business in the Middle East and Africa where she has been concentrating on growing commerce and retail media solutions in the region. She is also undertaking an Executive MBA at London Business School (July 2023) focused on strategic management, risk and decision analysis, effective decision making and digital transformation across different sectors.

About her thoughts for the industry

As marketers begin the transition into 2023, they face a new year of uncertainty, as well as greater possibilities. There will naturally be challenges to navigate; but with every challenge will come opportunity. And marketers who leverage the power of commerce media to reach and engage consumers where they’re actively browsing and buying — as well as accurately measure commerce outcomes — will seize the advertising opportunity in the new year and beyond.

  1. The scales will tip for emerging media environments.

Emerging environments such as retail media, which sits at the center of commerce media, continue to gain traction with marketers, and this trend shows no signs of slowing down in 2023. While this is particularly true in the US, we’ll also continue to see increased adoption across Europe and the Asia-Pacific region to outpace other forms of media. For instance, while social media currently still garners more ad spend from advertisers, eMarketer predicts retail media spend will grow five times faster than social media this year.

  1. AI will be a driving force in marketing 

Against a backdrop of increased consumer privacy and data protection, 2022 was marked by innovation to improve the quality of consumer shopping and buying experiences. Retailers led this charge by launching media networks and leveraging advertising to improve the value of their eCommerce sites and apps. Elsewhere, content itself became more shoppable as media creators got into the game of bringing commerce into live streams, gaming, and out of home. 

In 2023, there are no signs of these trends slowing. Commerce is officially everywhere, every moment spent online is now a shoppable one, and for brands that own a digital touchpoint with consumers, it presents a massive opportunity. AI will be the driving force behind this innovation, enabling retailers and content creators to support next-generation shopping that better senses consumer need and provides rich information about the right brands, the perfect products and most efficient ways to choose and purchase them.

  1. Retailers and publishers will emerge as partners.

In conversations about retail media, there’s a lingering misconception that retailers and publishers are now in competition. Yet, through commerce media, retailers and publishers can partner to create curated commerce experiences on publishers’ sites that result in a win for all parties. Commerce media builds on the retail media model by adding a vast publisher network across the open internet.

Through the convergence of content, commerce, and first-party data, publishers can serve as a point of discovery, while retailers help enable easier transactions for consumers via new commerce experiences on publishers’ sites. This creates a win-win scenario for retailers building out their media capabilities and publishers looking to drive commerce through shoppable ads, sponsored listings, and digital storefronts tied to retailers.