Hannaleena Koskinen
SVP, Retail Media Business (Europe)
Driving Measurable Growth Through Retail Media Collaboration
Kouvolan Lakritsi × Tokmanni
Kouvolan Lakritsi demonstrates how retail media delivers tangible business results when brands and retailers align around a shared commercial objective. Rather than focusing on visibility alone, the collaboration with Tokmanni retail media was designed end-to-end to drive sell-through and scalable growth.
“When brands collaborate with us, the shared goal must be clear: both parties should maximize sales. Retail media only delivers real value when it converts visibility into transactions,” says Veli-Pekka Ääri, Commercial Director, Tokmanni.
“What attracted us was Tokmanni’s willingness to build deeper partnerships—not just sell media. While they had mainly worked with large international brands, they were equally committed to proving this model with a Finnish challenger brand. The outcome exceeded expectations,” adds Timo Nisula, Owner and Creative Director, Kouvolan Lakritsi.
Business Impact at a Glance
+38% sales growth
Kouvolan Lakritsi recorded a 38% increase in sales during the campaign period.
Demand outpaced supply
The effectiveness of the campaign drove demand faster than production capacity, requiring temporary delivery limits—an unambiguous indicator of incremental sales impact.
Halo effect beyond the retailer
Strong visibility and instore activation within Tokmanni retail media increased demand across other retail partners, demonstrating brand lift beyond the primary channel.
Retail Media as a Commercial Growth Platform
Tokmanni retail media illustrates how modern retail media functions as a full-funnel commercial platform, combining:
- Instore activation at the point of purchase
- Highreach printed promotional formats
- Scaled digital audiences
Rather than operating as isolated media placements, these touchpoints are orchestrated to support conversion throughout the customer journey.
Scalable Reach With High Purchase Intent
- Over one million weekly store visitors
- More than two million printed promotional impressions per cycle
- Nearly two million digital reach weekly
Campaigns are executed simultaneously across physical and digital environments—maximizing recall, consideration, and purchase intent at the moment closest to sale.
When Retail Media Becomes an Internal Growth Engine
The success of the Kouvolan Lakritsi campaign resonated not only with consumers but also internally within Tokmanni.
Store teams across the country actively competed on sales performance, amplifying the campaign effect through stronger instore execution and staff engagement.
“This level of internal activation became a force multiplier. It was one of the reasons sales accelerated so quickly,” Nisula notes.
What Made the Collaboration Work
A shared commercial objective
Both parties aligned on a single KPI: sales performance. Media planning, store execution, and content were all optimized to support sell-through—not just reach.
Cocreated content and storytelling
The campaign included jointly produced creative assets—film and instore materials—designed specifically for the retail environment. Bold storytelling ensured differentiation in a crowded media landscape.
Instore activation and frontline engagement
Retail staff engagement translated strategy into execution. Store level competition and ownership significantly increased visibility and conversion at the shelf.
A Model for Performance Driven Retail Media
The Kouvolan Lakritsi × Tokmanni partnership shows how retail media delivers its strongest results when it is treated as a strategic commercial partnership, not a media buy.
Clear shared goals, integrated activation, broad but relevant reach, and distinctive creative execution together create measurable, scalable growth—making retail media a core component of modern goto market strategies.
