PALO ALTO, California — May 13, 2026
Executive Summary
Topsort has announced a partnership with Avolta to power commerce media capabilities across Avolta’s global travel retail and food & beverage operations. The partnership marks an expansion of Topsort’s commerce media infrastructure into large-scale travel retail environments spanning airports, duty-free stores, convenience locations, and selected food & beverage touchpoints worldwide.
According to the companies, the collaboration is designed to support scalable commerce media monetization across Avolta’s extensive global network while integrating digital and physical retail experiences. The partnership also reflects the growing role of travel environments within commerce media strategies as retailers and operators seek to connect purchase intent, consumer attention, and transaction opportunities across physical and digital touchpoints.
Announcement Overview
Topsort announced that it has entered into a partnership with Avolta to support commerce media operations across Avolta’s international travel retail and food & beverage ecosystem. The partnership extends Topsort’s infrastructure capabilities into one of the most operationally complex retail environments globally, incorporating airport retail, duty-free locations, convenience retail, and selected food & beverage environments.
The announcement comes as commerce media continues to expand beyond traditional ecommerce retail environments into broader physical commerce ecosystems. According to the companies, travel retail environments create high-intent purchasing opportunities where travelers interact with both physical and digital shopping experiences during various stages of their journeys.
The partnership also follows Topsort’s previous work with Despegar, one of Latin America’s largest online travel agencies, and represents an additional expansion into the travel sector. The companies stated that the collaboration is intended to support scalable commerce media infrastructure capable of operating across multiple countries, store formats, and traveler touchpoints throughout Avolta’s global network.
Key Announcement Details
- Partnership Type: Commerce media infrastructure partnership between Topsort and Avolta
- Announcement Date: May 13, 2026
- Companies Involved: Topsort and Avolta
- Primary Focus: Commerce media capabilities across travel retail and food & beverage operations
- Infrastructure Scope: AI-native monetization infrastructure for global travel retail environments
- Operational Coverage: Airports, duty-free, convenience retail, and selected food & beverage touchpoints
- Geographic Reach: Operations spanning more than 70 countries
- Avolta Network Scale: Approximately 5,100 outlets worldwide across nearly 1,000 locations
- Commerce Environment: Integration of physical and digital retail touchpoints
- Retail Categories Covered: Travel retail, airport retail, duty-free, convenience, and food & beverage
- Strategic Objective: Scalable commerce media monetization across global travel environments
- Technology Focus: Auction-powered commerce media infrastructure using first-party data and measurable outcomes
- Operational Complexity Areas: Multiple markets, multiple store formats, and traveler journey touchpoints
- Industry Segment: Global travel retail and commerce media
- Topsort Expansion Focus: Expansion of commerce media infrastructure into physical travel retail ecosystems
- Avolta Presence: Operations across airports, motorways, cruise lines, ferries, rail environments, and high-traffic travel locations
- Leadership Commentary Focus: Scalability, infrastructure flexibility, and operational complexity management
- Commerce Media Context: Expansion of commerce media beyond ecommerce into physical retail environments
- Traveler Experience Focus: Integration of shopping, dining, and traveler engagement experiences
- Business Objective: Supporting scalable and flexible commerce media operations across global travel retail and food & beverage networks
Commerce Media Expansion Across Travel Retail
The partnership between Topsort and Avolta reflects the continued expansion of commerce media infrastructure into travel-focused retail environments where customer attention and purchasing activity occur across multiple physical and digital channels.
According to the announcement, commerce media has traditionally developed within ecommerce retail environments. However, the companies noted that purchasing activity increasingly occurs in physical travel environments, including:
- Airport retail stores
- Duty-free shopping locations
- Convenience retail outlets
- Food & beverage touchpoints
- Traveler transit environments
- Passenger journey interaction points
The companies stated that these environments combine:
- Customer attention
- Contextual purchasing opportunities
- Transaction intent
- Physical retail engagement
- Digital interaction points
The partnership is intended to provide infrastructure capable of supporting monetization systems across these interconnected retail environments while operating at global scale.
Avolta’s Global Retail and Food & Beverage Network
Avolta operates as a global travel retail and food & beverage operator with a broad international footprint spanning multiple travel-related retail categories and operational environments.
According to the announcement, Avolta’s operational scale includes:
- Operations across six continents
- Presence in more than 70 countries
- Approximately 5,100 outlets worldwide
- Operations across nearly 1,000 locations
The company’s travel-focused operations include:
- Airports
- Motorways
- Cruise lines
- Rail environments
- Ferry terminals
- High-traffic travel locations
The partnership with Topsort is intended to support commerce media capabilities across these environments while accommodating operational requirements associated with:
- Multiple international markets
- Different store formats
- Integrated physical and digital touchpoints
- Large-scale retail operations
- Traveler-centric purchasing environments
According to the companies, the scale and complexity of these operations were central considerations in the partnership arrangement.
Infrastructure and Operational Complexity
The announcement highlighted the operational complexity associated with implementing commerce media infrastructure across global travel retail environments.
According to the companies, the partnership involves operational factors including:
- Global market coverage
- Cross-border retail operations
- Physical retail integration
- Digital commerce touchpoints
- Airport retail environments
- Duty-free retail systems
- Food & beverage operations
- Convenience retail locations
The companies stated that commerce media infrastructure within travel environments differs from traditional ecommerce retail media due to the integration of physical and digital shopping moments throughout traveler journeys.
These environments may include:
- Pre-flight retail activity
- In-terminal purchases
- Duty-free shopping interactions
- Food and beverage purchases
- Travel-related convenience shopping
- Adjacent traveler experiences
According to the announcement, the partnership is designed to support infrastructure scalability while maintaining flexibility across multiple operational categories and international retail environments.
Statements From Avolta Leadership
Richy Ugwu, Global SVP Advertising & Commercialization at Avolta, commented on the partnership and the company’s priorities regarding commerce media infrastructure.
Ugwu stated that Avolta continues to expand its commercial and digital capabilities throughout its global operations and identified scalable commerce media infrastructure as a strategic priority for the organization.
According to Ugwu, the company evaluated Topsort’s ability to manage the complexity associated with Avolta’s operational environment, including:
- Multiple international markets
- Various store formats
- Physical and digital integration requirements
- Global travel retail operations
- Food & beverage network scalability
Ugwu said:
“As we continue to evolve our commercial and digital capabilities across Avolta’s global footprint, building a scalable and flexible approach to commerce media is a clear priority. We were particularly impressed by Topsort’s ability to handle the complexity of our environment — from multiple markets and store formats to the integration of physical and digital touchpoints. We needed infrastructure that could scale globally across our travel retail and food & beverage network, and Topsort stood out in that regard.”
The announcement also separately highlighted an additional statement attributed to Ugwu regarding infrastructure scalability requirements across Avolta’s network.
Ugwu stated:
“We needed commerce media infrastructure that could scale with the complexity of our global travel retail and food & beverage network, and Topsort stood out in that regard.”
Statements From Topsort Leadership
Regina Ye, Chief Executive Officer at Topsort, commented on broader developments occurring within commerce media and travel retail environments.
According to Ye, travel environments are becoming increasingly important within global commerce media strategies due to the combination of:
- Scale
- Complexity
- High-intent purchasing moments
- International retail exposure
- Traveler interaction points
Ye stated that Avolta’s operational footprint includes multiple countries and store formats across different stages of traveler journeys, which the company identified as significant factors within the partnership.
Ye said:
“This partnership reflects a broader shift we’re seeing across the market. Travel is becoming one of the most strategically important environments for commerce media globally. What makes Avolta unique is the combination of scale and complexity — multiple countries, store formats, and high-intent moments across the traveler journey. When operators at that level choose to invest in commerce media infrastructure, it signals that this is becoming a core capability, not an experiment.”
According to the announcement, Topsort views the partnership as part of a broader expansion of commerce media beyond online marketplaces and grocery retail into physical commerce environments where transaction data, discovery opportunities, and customer intent intersect.
Commerce Media Trends in Travel Environments
The announcement identified travel media as an increasingly significant category within the broader commerce media landscape.
According to the companies:
- Travel retail combines physical and digital interactions
- Traveler purchasing behavior occurs across multiple environments
- Airports create concentrated high-intent shopping opportunities
- Retail engagement occurs throughout passenger journeys
The companies also stated that travel environments differ from traditional ecommerce retail media because purchasing interactions occur across:
- Physical retail locations
- Digital touchpoints
- Transit environments
- Passenger engagement experiences
- Retail and dining interactions
According to the announcement, these characteristics are contributing to the expansion of commerce media infrastructure into travel-focused retail ecosystems.
Topsort’s Commerce Media Infrastructure Capabilities
According to the company, Topsort provides commerce media infrastructure designed to support retailers, marketplaces, and commerce platforms seeking scalable monetization systems.
The company stated that its infrastructure capabilities include:
- Auction-powered monetization systems
- First-party data integration
- Transparent commerce media operations
- Measurable outcome frameworks
- Scalable monetization infrastructure
Topsort also stated that it currently provides infrastructure services to enterprises operating across more than 40 countries.
The company identified organizations including:
- Coles
- DoorDash
- Woolworths
- Falabella
as part of its enterprise customer base. According to the announcement, the Avolta partnership further expands Topsort’s presence within global commerce and travel retail environments.
Avolta’s Traveler-Centric Operational Strategy
According to the company, Avolta’s operational strategy focuses on integrated shopping and dining experiences within travel environments.
The company stated that its traveler-centric strategy incorporates:
- Digital capabilities
- Data-driven operations
- Continuous innovation initiatives
- Integrated retail and dining experiences
- Global travel environment operations
Avolta operates across multiple categories connected to traveler movement and transit activity, including:
- Airports
- Motorways
- Cruise lines
- Ferries
- Rail systems
- Other high-traffic travel locations
The partnership with Topsort is intended to support commerce media capabilities within these operational environments while aligning with the company’s broader digital and commercialization initiatives.
About Topsort
Topsort is a commerce media infrastructure company that supports retailers, marketplaces, and commerce platforms in building monetization systems powered by auctions, first-party data, and measurable outcomes.
According to the company, its infrastructure is designed to provide:
- Scalable monetization capabilities
- Transparent commerce media systems
- Auction-powered operational frameworks
- Data-driven commerce infrastructure
The company stated that it currently provides infrastructure services across more than 40 countries and works with enterprise organizations including:
- Coles
- DoorDash
- Woolworths
- Falabella
According to the announcement, the partnership with Avolta further expands Topsort’s role within global travel retail and commerce media operations.
About Avolta
Avolta operates at the intersection of travel retail and food & beverage services, providing integrated shopping and dining experiences across a wide range of travel environments worldwide.
According to the company:
- Operations span more than 70 countries
- The company manages approximately 5,100 points of sale
- Operations extend across nearly 1,000 locations
- Its presence includes six continents
Avolta’s operational footprint includes:
- Airports
- Motorways
- Cruise lines
- Ferry services
- Rail environments
- Other travel-related locations
The company stated that its operational strategy is centered on:
- Traveler-focused experiences
- Digital integration
- Data-driven systems
- Continuous innovation initiatives
According to the announcement, the company continues to expand its digital and commercialization capabilities across its global operations.
Media Contact
For additional information, visit topsort.com.
Source Attribution
Source: Company announcement
