Technology the Talk of the Town at Groceryshop Vegas

Last week three of Nextuple’s best and brightest, Josh Brammer, Das Pattathil and Abhishek Kalra, attended the Groceryshop event in Las Vegas from September 19-21. We sat down with them to learn what their biggest takeaways were.

For those who couldn’t make it, Groceryshop is the world’s leading in-person event for supermarkets, drug stores, warehouse clubs, discount stores, CPG brands, and non-traditional grocery retailers. The event focuses on understanding new trends, technologies and business models companies need to embrace in a rapidly changing industry. Groceryshop brings together a community of 5,000+ industry leaders to address the challenges and opportunities created by the evolution of how consumers shop for products ranging from food and beverage to health, beauty, personal care, household and pet supplies.

The clear buzz of this year’s show was . . . technology. No big surprise there. AI was a leading topic of conversation, ranging from improving customer experience to optimizing supply chain management. Implementing AI and chatbots in the grocery industry can enhance efficiency, improve customer satisfaction, reduce operational costs, and ultimately drive revenue growth. However, it’s essential to consider data privacy, security, transparency, and customer trust when implementing these technologies.

For all the AI and Chat GPT buzz, the resounding theme seemed to be that grocers are taking a cautious approach to see how AI will best fit into the grocery space. While the newness of AI has some industry leaders playing the wait and see game, we think the uses and benefits will eventually outweigh the concerns. Love it or hate it, AI is here to stay.

Shopper technology platforms like Instacart and DoorDash were the talk of the town. These companies were already established before the pandemic, but their success skyrocketed during the global health crisis. Instacart, for instance, experienced a staggering 500 percent increase in order volumes in 2020.

In addition to expanding reach and visibility, Instacart provides a platform and app that seamlessly integrates with a store's inventory management system. Despite experiencing a decline in profits from the peak of the pandemic, the company is actively working towards personalization. In August, they unveiled enhanced features that allow retailers to create customized landing pages, incorporate dynamic content on homepages and develop shoppable campaigns.

But it hasn’t been all smooth sailing and not every grocery company loves the idea of using shopper tech. These companies’ fees and commissions, loss of control and brand dilution can all be deterrents to using the popular platforms. The platform charges fees and commissions, which can impact a company’s profit margins. These additional costs can erode the bottom line and make it challenging to maintain competitive pricing. When a grocery company partners with a shopper tech platform, it relinquishes some control over the shopping and delivery process. This can cause problems, as it may lead to inconsistent customer experiences. Additionally, using these platforms means sharing the spotlight with other brands and products on the platform. This can dilute a grocery company’s brand identity, making it harder to differentiate themselves in a crowded market.

Josh Brammer noted, “A lot of the retailers there were successful because they were on Instacart and DoorDash during the pandemic, they’re now trying to think through “How can we bring a lot of this in-house? What can we do to transition away?”” However, it can be costly for grocers to build their own platform. Additionally, grocers with in-house tech seem to be struggling with picking, picking without substitutions or cancels, volume changes, and staffing.

That's where our expertise comes in. At Nextuple, we offer customizable microservices solutions that cover everything from promising and inventory to order management and fulfillment. We take pride in our ability to deliver exceptional Omni Channel fulfillment microservices. Our dedication lies in revolutionizing the grocery industry by providing innovative technology solutions that empower grocers to thrive in an ever-changing market. To learn more about how we can assist you, please visit www.nextuple.com.