I first met Molly Hjelm, Head of Retail Media at Ace Hardware, during a panel at the RMN Ascendant Event in Silicon Valley, and right away I was struck by her candor and data-driven mindset. In this episode, I share the highlights from our conversation that didn’t make it into my full profile piece for The Drum.

We dive into how Ace Hardware has intentionally taken its time entering retail media, what it means to integrate retail media into a merchant’s P&L, and how Molly’s pragmatic approach to data, partnerships, and culture is helping Ace build Red Vest Media the right way. From leveraging Epsilon as a transparent tech partner, to bringing print back into in-store media, Molly’s perspective challenges a lot of industry assumptions, and offers a refreshing blueprint for sustainable growth in retail media.

This episode is sponsored by Mirakl Ads

Timeline

[01:01] – The #1 theme: retail media should show up in the merchant’s P&L (not as a tax, but as a tool to hit business KPIs).

[02:07] – How data storytelling and reporting shifted internal conversations from “you’re cluttering my site with ads” to “let’s solve this problem together.”

[02:45] – Why Ace Hardware went all-in with Epsilon as a full-stack tech partner (and why transparency and simplicity matter to advertisers).

[04:39] – Red Vest Media’s unconventional start with print-based in-store media, and how independent Ace operators are already innovating locally.

[06:03] – Molly opens up about the toxic dynamic of unrealistic growth projections, and why breathing room to set your own targets is game-changing.

[07:12] – Wrapping up with Molly’s guiding principle: retail media should be a precision tool, not a revenue tax

Links & Resources

• Read my full Molly Hjelm profile for The Drum - Here’s how Ace Hardware is breaking down the silos between merchants and retail media teams
• How a former agency founder is pushing grocery retail media beyond sponsored product ads - Brian Monahan's 'Bloody Obvious' Bets Are Shaking Up Albertsons Media Collective -
• Why rural America's 90 million shoppers represent retail media's next frontier - Inside Austin Leonard's Plan For Dollar General Media Network
• How category specialists can become infrastructure for the entire industry - Best Buy Wants To Become An Ad Platform, Not Just Another RMN
• Follow Molly Hjelm on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletter
• Follow Kiri on LinkedIn