Paul Stafford was named head of Very Media Group last year in October 2025.
With over 18 years experience in brand, digital marketing and retail media, he helped build Superdrug’s retail media network Optimo.
He explains that his primary challenge at Very Media Group is to “drive engagement outside the traditional retail media growth set”.
He says: “By that, I mean brands beyond consumer-packaged goods in categories such as electricals, toys, gaming, home, fashion, and sports.
“To date, the UK and the wider industry has seen massive growth concentrated around grocery and beauty. I want to ensure we are supporting these “new” categories as they shift their focus toward retail media.”
He believes that by constantly refining its “proposition” it offers something different for brands who want to “explore” retail media. It also means that is “ensures its brand partners have a platform that delivers”.
Very Media Group is backed by first part customer data, instead of borrowing from the blueprint set out by grocery and CPG.
The firm brings together commerce, data and creative under one umbrella and that can give brands the advantage as it is a “genuine one-stop shop”.
Stafford says: “I can’t think of another Retail Media Network in the UK that offers such a wide range of services – from creative and data to planning – all under one roof.”
“The quality of work we are producing is the same as any ‘big shop’. Global brands like Apple and adidas are increasingly entrusting our teams to lead the creative element of campaigns.
He added: “Since launching VMG, we’ve added a layer where we dig into our huge cache of first party data and insights to activate holistically across the media funnel. Brands can now launch data-powered on and offsite campaigns, created in-house, to deliver highly targeted, conversion-led activations.
Stafford explains that when looking at if data improves outcomes, it comes down to how brands assign value to data. Some firms want to target small niches and are happy to do so. Others want to activate at scale. He explains that this is where the challenge lies as The Very Media Network can build multiple audience segments and lookalikes but this can quickly become financially impractical.
He says: “The best use of data is when you want to solve a specific challenge: for example, identifying customers with a high potential to trade up their TV during a World Cup year, or identifying those with a high affinity for home DIY.”
He adds: “The customer experience is our number one priority. If you slow down that journey or impinge on it, you negatively affect conversion rates, which is not what anyone wants.
“We are meticulous with A/B testing when launching new products or assessing existing ones. We use a suite of tools to understand the impact of every placement and determine if we are truly adding value to the customer journey.”
According to Stafford, the firm has 2000 brands on its site, each with its own yearly objectives and seasonal calendar.
He comments: “Some brands are constantly innovating and want to drive consideration for NPD among their existing base while others want to drive sales during key peaks like Mother’s Day or Back to School.
“Then there are global events like the World Cup, where a brief might focus on upselling a customer from an entry-level TV to a more advanced model. The variety is what makes this role so enjoyable… you never quite know what the next brief will look like!”
And, measuring success can be difficult, Stafford explains that Very Media Group aims to “demonstrate the performance of every pound spent”.
He says: “We utilise several different attribution models, covering everything from upper-funnel awareness to lower-funnel conversion. To us, incrementality means generating sales above and beyond what would have occurred naturally. With the best-in-class data and insights within VMG, we have the robust reporting in place to prove that value.”
He adds: “It is an established fact that creativity disproportionately drives performance, and we are hammering this home with our teams. Whatever your objective, you need the most relevant, high-quality creative to achieve it.
“Brands most often get it wrong by re-hashing old assets that aren’t fit for the specific media they are buying. The biggest challenge is usually the quality of the initial brief, but here at Very Media Group our team collaborates with HelloStudio, The Very Group’s in house creative studio, to drill down to the brand’s wants and needs to bring campaign briefs to life.”
Stafford explains that there is a spectrum of engagement, the company generally sees two types of brands- those that see Very Media Group as a creative show and those who sit on the conversion end.
However, he believes the most successful brands are those that sit in the middle- the ones that use the Group as a full service, end-to-end agency.
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