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“We’re going to be the largest radio station in the United States with 250 million monthly listeners. All of our ads are generated from text to voice by AI.” – Mario Mijares, VP of Marketing, Loyalty, and Monetization at 7-Eleven
Commerce and shopper media is undergoing a profound transformation. What was once seen as a channel for last-mile conversions is now being reimagined as a full-funnel opportunity to test, engage, and influence consumers in real time.
In the latest episode of Time for a Reset: Marketing Podcast: Insights from Global Brand Marketers, host Fiona Davis sits down with Mario Mijares, VP of Marketing, Loyalty, and Monetization at 7-Eleven, to unpack how one of the world’s most recognized convenience retailers is turning stores into media platforms, and data into dynamic, real-time signals.
From AI-powered in-store radio and behavior-first audience targeting to an end-to-end innovation engine built for CPG experimentation, 7-Eleven is redefining what’s possible in physical retail.
Building an Innovation Platform for Speed, Scale, and Certainty
7-Eleven has developed an integrated innovation system that streamlines marketing and product development. Instead of relying on separate tools and teams, the company unifies data, analytics, consumer research, product testing, media, and loyalty. Customer insights from transactions and loyalty programs feed into the BrainFreeze Collective, a 300,000-member research community segmented by real shopping behavior. New concepts are tested in the Lab Store, a live retail environment. These insights then refine marketing and loyalty efforts, enabling brands to rapidly transition from data to action. This approach reduces risk and friction, allowing for efficient test-and-learn marketing at scale.
Transforming the Store Into a Real-Time Media Channel
7-Eleven is revolutionizing retail media by integrating AI-powered advertising directly into its stores. Its in-store radio network, set to be the largest in the U.S. with 250 million monthly listeners, influences customers in real time before purchases. Using text-to-voice AI, ads are dynamically generated, localized, and optimized based on time and format. Linked to transactional data, the system measures ad effectiveness, creating a feedback loop similar to digital marketing. This transforms stores into high-frequency advertising spaces, giving brands precise control and accountability while engaging customers at the crucial moment before they buy.
Targeting Shoppers Who Are Ready to Shift
7-Eleven refines retail media strategy by focusing on the “Movable Middle”—shoppers open to switching brands under the right conditions. Unlike traditional targeting of loyal customers or price-sensitive buyers, this approach identifies consumers based on price elasticity, purchase frequency, and brand-switching behavior. By engaging those most likely to be influenced, brands maximize marketing impact instead of wasting budgets on unlikely conversions. This shift from reach-based planning to influence-driven strategy enables smarter, more efficient growth for CPG brands in competitive markets, ensuring campaigns target behavioral insights rather than broad demographic assumptions.
Using AI to Close the Gap Between Intent and Action
7-Eleven’s BrainFreeze Collective enhances customer research by combining real purchase data with AI-driven analysis. Traditional methods often misinterpret intent or struggle with large-scale open-text responses, but this approach ensures insights are based on observed behavior. Brands can directly engage specific shopper segments, like lapsed buyers, for qualitative input through video or text. AI tools then analyze sentiment, themes, and patterns, uncovering insights beyond traditional methods. This helps brands understand not just what customers say but why they act, enabling more effective messaging, creative development, and internal alignment while reducing bias and increasing agility in decision-making.
Making Gen Z the Center of the Innovation Strategy
Gen Z’s shopping habits align with 7-Eleven’s convenience-driven model, making them an ideal audience for CPG innovation. Unlike older consumers, they are open to new products, less brand loyal, and driven by trends. With frequent visits and single-serve purchases, they provide a low-risk environment for brands to test and refine products quickly. 7-Eleven’s combination of behavioral data, test-and-learn infrastructure, and Gen Z’s engagement creates a powerful launchpad for innovation. Rather than mass launches, brands gain fast feedback and rapid iteration, learning directly from the consumers shaping the future of retail.
Conclusion: Embracing the Future of Retail Media
As the role of retail media continues to evolve, 7-Eleven is showing what it looks like when a retailer leans all the way in. From data-driven audience targeting to AI-powered in-store media, and from behavioral research to Gen Z innovation pipelines, the brand is building a model where retail media is no longer an afterthought; it’s a driver of strategy, insight, and growth.
This episode offers a glimpse into what’s possible when marketing, analytics, and operations work in sync and when the shelf becomes not just a space to sell but a signal to learn, engage, and innovate. For marketing leaders navigating transformation, 7-Eleven’s approach is more than a case study. It’s a blueprint for what retail media can become.
🎧 Want to learn more? Tune into this episode of Time for a Reset Marketing Podcast for an in-depth look at how retail media is evolving and how you can leverage these insights to take your brand to the next level.
