Happy Friday, everyone. Autumn arrived this week, and you all know what that means: Time to buy.

Buy what? Doesn’t matter, but all of us consumers have to do what our identity says and consume. That’s why all the new ads are coming out, and all the new ads businesses, and all the new capabilities existing ad businesses offer. To cap off the week, we’ve got McDonald’s plans to build a $1 billion ad-selling business.

Best Buy, which has a well-established ad-selling business, is now expanding into studio production.

Meanwhile, consumers are about to get new ways to get their stuff—thanks to Lowe’s experiments with drone delivery.

Of course, it’s not buying season for everybody. The Trade Desk, for instance, is trying to keep its employees motivated, because its stock has crashed so heavily that the price to buy them is more than what the shares are worth. Kendra Barnett reports on how the battered adtech firm is trying to do that.

And just to round things out, Latin Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Joaquina has been announced as e.l.f. Cosmetics’ new brand ambassador.

Ryan Joe, editor in chief

Must Reads

1. McDonald's Wants to Build a $1 Billion Ad Business

Get ready for McDonald’s Media Network, a new ad biz from the fast-food giant that lets other brands buy access to McD’s customer data and inventory across its in-store touchpoints: its app, kiosks, in-store menu boards, etc. Global CMO Morgan Flatley said during an investor day that McDonald’s is gunning for $1 billion in ad revenue across its 70 million daily customers. The program has been tested in 450 U.S. company-owned stores since August, and it’s looking to bring it to franchised locations next.

2. Best Buy Pitches Itself as a Media Production Company With Studios and Influencers

McDonald’s might just be warming up the grill, but Best Buy’s ad biz is already cooking with oil, so much so that it’s taking the next step by offering full-on production capabilities. At its upfront presentation—which featured pretty much its entire C-level executive bench—the electronics retailer touted its 70,000 square-foot production facility in Minneapolis, a creator network, and expanded connections with CTV companies like Amazon, Roku, and LG.

Lowe's Pilots Drone Delivery as New Way to Quickly Buy Paintbrushes or Batteries

That’s not rain; it’s latex paint. Lowe’s drone delivery is taking off in the Charlotte, N.C. area, as the company is partnering with Alphabet’s Wing and DoorDash to deliver small items. That includes paint, batteries, and hand tools. There’s a strict 2.5-pound weight cap, though even that seems kind of on the heavy side if a pack of molly bolts lands on your neck. That being said, drone delivery seems to be the wave of the future. While Lowe’s is the first home improvement retailer getting into the space, Amazon and Walmart are both aggressively scaling up their drone delivery capabilities.

The Trade Desk, Worried Stock Slide Could 'Substantially Harm' Retention, Moves to Reprice Employee Options

The great thing about working at a hot tech company is that a lot of your comp is in stock. But if that heat ever dies down… So, The Trade Desk wants to replace about 15.6 million stock options—about 80% of which are held by its staffers—after the company’s stock plummeted 90% since late 2024, when it had a $69 billion market cap. Tech reporter Kendra Barnett parsed the SEC filing, which notes that it now costs more to buy them than they’re worth.

E.l.f. Cosmetics has a new brand ambassador: Latin Grammy winner Joaquina, who just released an original song, "Ya no estoy," as part of the brand's second music album, Mirror Mix, which comes out…today! Joaquina told ADWEEK that the brand gave her creative freedom to write from personal experience, rather than producing just another branded jingle. She recognizes a broader shift of brands entering an artist’s creative space, rather than just having them name-check a product. And it’s a philosophy Joaquina also applied to a previous collaboration, when she designed a clothing line for JCPenney.

The Round Up

Michelob Ultra scores multi-year NHL partnership (ADWEEK).
Journalists return to the White House after Trump ban (ADWEEK).
Kalshi took someone’s video, swapped his race, and made him host an ad (Futurism).
Converse CEO apologizes for ad outrage (Bloomberg).
Starbucks to close 250 underperforming stores (WSJ).
Who paid for Trump’s midterm ad? You did (NYT).
A24 and NYT among Letterboxd suitors (THR).
Former Disney CEO Bob Chapek says Bob Iger ran a three-year campaign to fire him (Variety).
Barry Diller withdraws bid for MGM Resorts (Reuters).
Cat owners spend more, boosting pet retailers (CNBC).
Citi also enters commerce media arena (Business Insider).
The leveling up of AI (Brandshare from Treasure AI).

Revolving Door

Gut holds onto Tim Hortons after competitive agency review (ADWEEK).
Gut and Mediaplus named creative and media AORs for Dave & Buster’s. Game on (ADWEEK).
Havas Chicago names Energy BBDO vet Larry Gies as new chief strategy officer (LBB).
Scowtt appointed Ben Trenda as chief revenue officer (PRNewswire).

Ads of the Week

Chase, Peloton, Target, Beats, and more are behind the week’s most notable ads.

One More Thing

Check out the top 25 leaders that the healthcare marketing platform Doceree honored who are innovating in healthcare AI.

1. McDonald's Wants to Build a $1 Billion Ad Business

2. Best Buy Pitches Itself as a Media Production Company With Studios and Influencers

3. Lowe's Pilots Drone Delivery as New Way to Quickly Buy Paintbrushes or Batteries

4. The Trade Desk, Worried Stock Slide Could 'Substantially Harm' Retention, Moves to Reprice Employee Options

5. E.l.f. Cosmetics Names Joaquina Its Brand Ambassador Alongside Second Album Drop