Observed Signal · Jun 22, 2026 · Rebrand · Source: Adweek · Impact: 3/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Walmart Rebrands Sam's Club Ad Network as Sam's Club Connect
Walmart is folding Sam’s Club’s retail media business more tightly into its broader advertising operation by rebranding Sam’s Club MAP as Sam’s Club Connect to mirror Walmart Connect. The move, pitched at Cannes Lions 2026, is intended to create a more integrated offering across Walmart’s properties and to replicate the parent company’s ad-revenue growth at Sam’s Club. Walmart has more than tripled its ad revenue over the past five years, reaching nearly $6.4 billion in 2025. Seth Dallaire, Walmart’s chief growth officer, who gained oversight of the ad, membership and marketplace businesses after a reorganization in early 2026, described the integration as key to scaling advertising at the bulk-retailer brand.
Major retailer expands and integrates its retail media offering, which can increase advertising inventory and first-party data activation opportunities but is not a platform-level policy or technical shift.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Walmart's ad revenue more than tripled over the past five years, hitting nearly $6.4 billion in 2025.
- Sam's Club's ad business debuted in 2009 and was relaunched as Sam's Club MAP in 2017.
- Sam's Club MAP has been rebranded as Sam's Club Connect to align with Walmart Connect.
- Walmart pitched the Sam's Club Connect rebrand at Cannes Lions 2026.
- Seth Dallaire, Walmart chief growth officer, oversees the company's ad business alongside membership and marketplace after a reorganization in early 2026.
Connected Companies & Entities
1 Entity mappedRelated Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Walmart Centralizes Parts of Sam’s Club Operations
Walmart has incrementally assumed greater corporate control over Sam’s Club operations, consolidating teams and sharing platforms across supply chain, e-commerce technology and retail media. The consolidation began with a 2024 merge of Sam’s Club’s corporate supply chain team into Walmart’s supply chain, and in September 2025 Sam’s Club launched a website and app front-end that mirrors Walmart’s design and functionality. The reporting emphasizes ongoing integration efforts at the corporate level and situates this as part of a broader shift in how large retailers operate their warehouse-club banners.
Walmart's Ad Revenue Soars to $6.4 Billion in 2025
Walmart reported $6.4 billion in advertising revenue for 2025, driven by its Walmart Connect business and associated assets including VIZIO. The figure represents a 37% global increase and a 41% domestic increase for Walmart Connect. Company executives said advertising and membership fees contributed materially to recent quarterly profit, and highlighted ecommerce investments — including a growing third-party marketplace and rapid delivery options — as accelerants for ad monetization. Walmart noted strong ad growth but warned of softer consumer signals among lower-income shoppers and investor concerns about ecommerce cannibalizing higher-margin in-store sales. Walmart also disclosed usage signals for its agentic shopper assistant, Sparky, noting higher order values among users.
Walmart Consolidates Ads as Amazon Prepares for AI
Adweek reports that Walmart and Amazon made strategic advertising moves in June signaling divergent priorities: Walmart consolidated its ad businesses, folding Sam’s Club advertising closer into Walmart Connect to increase scale and enable linking of Sam’s Club identities into its retail ad platform. Amazon is preparing for an AI-driven commerce future, integrating Rufus into the Alexa+ family and exploring how AI agents might purchase on consumers’ behalf. The moves highlight intensifying retail-media competition and early steps toward agent-enabled shopping experiences. The article was written by Lauren Johnson and published on July 7, 2026.
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