The move comes as shopping habits continue to change across the UK convenience sector. Customers are visiting smaller stores more frequently but purchasing fewer products during each trip. Morrisons says its expanded advertising arrangements will reflect these differences, giving suppliers access to customer insights and campaign planning suited to different shopping environments.
Morrisons Brings 1,700 Convenience Stores Into Its Advertising Network
The expansion means Morrisons Media Group (MMG), operated by retail media specialist SMG, will now cover the retailer’s convenience estate alongside its supermarkets. Suppliers will have a single point of contact for advertising campaigns across both formats, supported by the group’s existing planning and client services.
According to Morrisons’ official announcement, published on 11 November, the expanded arrangement combines the retailer’s knowledge of its customers with SMG’s retail media capabilities. The intention is to help suppliers organise campaigns around the different reasons customers visit supermarkets and local convenience stores.
The retailer will also provide access to insights drawn from MoreViu, its first-party customer data ecosystem. These insights will support decisions about campaign planning, customer shopping patterns and suppliers’ commercial objectives.
Steve Newbould, head of commercial data and media at Morrisons Media Group, described the expansion as an important development in the retailer’s relationship with suppliers.
“Our customers shop across different formats for different reasons, and bringing these opportunities together allows us to offer brands a more comprehensive way to engage with them,” he said.
Katie Jackson, from Morrisons Media Group, also emphasised the need for campaigns to reflect differences between shopping environments. She said suppliers would receive the same strategic support available through the existing network, with advertising approaches adapted to convenience customers. Morrisons has not announced a separate revenue target or a complete deployment timetable for the expanded offering.
Changing Shopping Habits Underline the Importance of Convenience Stores
The decision comes against a backdrop of changing consumer behaviour and continued growth expectations for the UK convenience market.
According to figures from IGD cited by Morrisons, the UK convenience sector is forecast to increase in value from £49.2 billion in 2025 to £56.2 billion by 2030. These figures relate to the wider convenience market rather than Morrisons’ advertising operations.
Shopping frequency is changing as well. Research from Lumina Intelligence, also referenced in the announcement, found that convenience store visits increased by 5% year on year, while the number of items purchased per trip declined by 7%.
These contrasting figures form part of the reasoning behind Morrisons’ decision to treat convenience shopping differently from supermarket visits. The retailer says customer needs, store locations and purchasing occasions must be considered when planning campaigns.
Rosie Houston, managing director of UK Retail Media Networks at SMG, said the partnership would bring together retail expertise, customer insights and strategic planning to help suppliers connect their advertising activity across different shopping environments.
The expanded Morrisons Media Group offering will therefore give suppliers access to a coordinated planning structure spanning supermarkets and approximately 1,700 convenience stores, while retaining separate approaches for each retail format.
