IoT Connected Experience In Stores

The in-store shopping experience is going to continue to be more interactive.  Digital relationships are a must for the store of the future, happening today.

I first really jumped at this with BLE, bluetooth, interactions with smart phones and then smart watches.  That is still ongoing but there is a real opportunity to do it a different way and it appears Kroger is teaming up with Microsoft to do just that.

Read the story here:

https://www.mobilepaymentstoday.com/news/microsoft-kroger-to-test-connected-experience-grocery-stores-in-pilot/

Here is the blurb that should catch your eye:

Store associates will also be able to use the technology to speed up curbside pickup and Kroger will use the Edge technology to sell digital advertising space to consumer packaged goods brands, according to the release.

Thank to a few of the folks previously from MCX who pointed this piece out on LinkedIn.  You know who you are.  :-)

What we absolutely know is the impact the great recession, combined with ever-improving store brand generics is having on traditional consumer packaged goods. During a recession shoppers cut back.  They try out the store brand version of whatever CPG widget or food stuff they think suits them.  The quality of these has increased dramatically over the decades and the average consumer likes it, then never goes back to the more expensive "name brand" version.  CPGs are desperate to get customers back and they have huge advertising dollars to work with.  Enter the Edge technology system.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Online eCommerce Grocery Sales to Grow Fast

The toughest nuts to crack are often the best.

Not sure that is the case here but I'm still convinced we will see quite a shift in our Supermarket shopping habits as the Information Age continues to change our daily lives.

These folks continue to think grocery will move to online.

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Online sales of groceries continue to grow much faster than the overall market and that web growth is expected to continue, according to recently released datafrom the United Kingdom-based Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD).

Yes, it references the UK but the data is U.S. focused.

Here is the full article:

https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2018/12/17/all-signs-point-to-continued-growth-in-online-grocery-sales/

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Kellogg Cereal Cafe

Is anyone talking about brands working on their direct to consumer approach?

Me?

Others?

Yeap.

Kellogg's has opened a "Cereal Cafe" to very positive word of mouth (so the story says).  Wow.

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Kellogg's expanding cereal cafe concept in New York City is part of a larger trend of CPG companies opening stores in order to market their products directly to consumers.

While traditional methods of CPG brand extension may involve, say, developing new products, this new form of extension calls for brands to extend into a service experience at a store. This type of branding can be beneficial for CPG companies looking to stay ahead of evolving consumer preferences.

Here is the whole story:

https://retailleader.com/kellogg-takes-cpg-brand-extension-new-level

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Amazon Acquires Whole Foods - What Does It Mean?

When the news broke that online retailer and all-around everything super-center Amazon was acquiring Whole Foods my instinct was to get straight to my blog.  I have thoughts on this, of course, but I also knew there would be a slew of industry leaders leaning in on this deal.  So I decided to wait a bit and gather the best articles in one place.

First, my thoughts.

Clearly Amazon wants to become more like Walmart as Walmart continues to try to be more like Amazon.

If I were to look in to the future of retail and how digital will ultimately impact it I think we'll see a new normal settled upon in the very near future.  Within that normal there will be room for all kinds of players so long as they define a clear space that differentiates them from others.  Pure online, pure mobile, pure physical retail, and everything in between will be the new reality.  The largest players will be heavy in physical AND digital, while smaller players will excel at only one or the other.

So Walmart might one day be 70/30 physical to digital and Amazon might become 30/70 physical to digital.  Something like that.  You'll still see the mom & pop shop on Main Street, and the little niche mobile-only player that gets the job done too.  Great time to be a customer huh?

The Food Marketing Institute back around 2012 was predicting roughly 10% of current Supermarket business would shift online.  Most of that, 80%, would be taken from packaged center store goods that were easily shipped and often good targets for subscription models (such as diapers).  Don't see any reason this prediction was off and that means big changes for Supermarkets across the country.  They are suddenly too large for their needs.  We should see stores removing aisles to make room for more fresh and prepared in-store options.  Combined with a robust digital presence the best Supermarket chains will survive and thrive (Wegmans).

Now to it and there is a lot of reading for you should you choose to do so.

RIS weighs in with their slew of experts:
https://risnews.com/experts-weigh-amazon-snatches-organic-grocer-whole-foods-137-billion

Re/Code tell you how to keep Amazon from swallowing your business too:
https://www.recode.net/2017/6/19/15832958/amazon-whole-foods-jeff-bezos-acquisition-aws-vendor-tips-cloud-open-source

RetailDive tells us how the war between Amazon and Walmart is accelerating:
http://www.retaildive.com/news/amazon-vs-walmart-why-the-whole-foods-deal-escalates-the-war-for-the-amer/445294/

Bloomberg tells us Amazon is after every single thing you buy (which is exactly what Walmart is after by the way):
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-06-20/amazon-s-real-target-isn-t-whole-foods-it-s-everything-you-buy

Digital Transactions tells us why Amazon is changing the checkout (payment) process with this acquisition:
http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/With-Its-Deal-for-Whole-Foods_-Amazon-Could-Usher-in-Seismic-Change-for-the-Checkout

Business Insider is always a good read and they say Walmart and Kroger (supermarket) should be terrified by this deal:
http://www.businessinsider.com/amazons-whole-foods-acquisition-should-terrify-walmart-kroger-2017-6

Finally the NRF (National Retail Federation) tells us the retail reinvention is just getting started but also cautions against the belief that traditional retail is imploding (correct):
https://nrf.com/news/retails-reinvention-story-is-just-getting-started

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Amazon Go - New Brick & Mortar for the Information Age

Here we go.

Mobile first, mobile only.  Yes?  You bet.

You have to have a smart phone with you, the Amazon Go mobile app installed, to even get in the store.  No checkout, no lines, just grab and go.

The future of retail?

Some folks thought there was no end to the Amazon eCommerce model.  Nope.  They have limitations just like anyone, but those of us who thought a simple, traditional retail version of Amazon was the answer were quite likely wrong.  Amazon recognizes they need physical stores just like everyone, but they have no desire to put in place the same style of physical store as everyone else.

Check it out.

Here is the official Amazon entry for this, worth watching the video just to get a good view at what they are up to:

https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=16008589011

Here is one attempt to get inside the store:

http://arstechnica.com/business/2016/12/trying-and-failing-to-sneak-into-amazons-skynet-take-on-grocery-shopping/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Amazon's foray into the world of brick-and-mortar grocery shopping has been all but confirmed for nearly a year thanks to leaks such as spotted permit applications. The rumor became reality on Monday with the announcement of Amazon Go, an experiment in grocery shopping that removes the clerks.

This is not just another idle announcement, either: the company's pilot store is now open for business. It's attached to one of Amazon's headquarter buildings in Seattle's South Lake Union neighborhood and is already stocked with food options (and a giant staff of cooks and food preparers). There's just one catch—only full-time "blue badge" Amazon staffers can get in right now.

Never one to take "no" for an answer, I grabbed a camera and walked up to the front door...

More?

The MorningNewsBeat guy has it covered well as usual:

http://www.morningnewsbeat.com/News/Detail/50915/2016-12-06/

Wondering where all of the middle-class jobs are going in the United States?  Blame tech.  Notice, there isn't anyone actually working at this store, really, is there?

Oh, do you think every executive at every Supermarket chain in the world is taking notice of this?  You bet.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Hershey's Center Store Kiosk

Center store, literally the center of the supermarket, has seen sales steadily decline over the years as shopping behavior migrates towards fresh and the perimeter of the store.  Company's with processed foods such as Hershey's chocolates have had a negative impact as a result.  They aren't sitting still.

Hershey's has a kiosk to place in the center of the aisle, in the center of the store, that customers must smile in to for a sample product.

Brilliant.

Here is the story:

http://www.wired.com/2015/07/even-tom-brady-smash-phone-itd-make-zero-sense/

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant