31st May 10
Sainsbury’s technology to beat the weather
by Adam Richards
For many years, competition among supermarkets has intensified, with the major players turning to increasingly-sophisticated systems for tracking and predicting shopping trends at ever-higher granularities. Now, Sainsbury’s is to invest millions of pounds in technology aimed at giving it the ability to work around weather patterns that can leave the retailer with stock left unsold on shelves.
The simplest examples of the kinds of problems Sainsbury’s is hoping to forestall are ordering too much ice-cream before a cool summer or stocking in large amounts of fresh salad, only to see a rainy weekend wash out the expected picnics and barbecues. Britain’s notoriously unpredictable weather can cost a supermarket big money, so it’s worth investing big money to avoid. The added promise of huge environmental benefits has modern retailers scrambling to find scientific solutions to their bottom-line woes.
While refusing to divulge exactly how much it is going to be spending on its new systems, Sainsbury’s was keen to point out that it would see benefits in both stock management and greenhouse gas emissions. It expects the level of unsold stock to drop by 15%. This works out to a saving of more than 1,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Sainsbury’s new system is likely to work primarily by reducing the length of time it takes the supermarket chain to respond to sudden changes in buying patterns. Sainsbury’s expects to be able to make changes the same day, instead of overnight. As a result, decisions can be made before stock leaves depots.
For many years, competition among supermarkets has intensified, with the major players turning to increasingly-sophisticated systems for tracking and predicting shopping trends at ever-higher granularities. Now, Sainsbury’s is to invest millions of pounds in technology aimed at giving it the ability to work around weather patterns that can leave the retailer with stock left unsold on shelves.
The simplest examples of the kinds of problems Sainsbury’s is hoping to forestall are ordering too much ice-cream before a cool summer or stocking in large amounts of fresh salad, only to see a rainy weekend wash out the expected picnics and barbecues. Britain’s notoriously unpredictable weather can cost a supermarket big money, so it’s worth investing big money to avoid. The added promise of huge environmental benefits has modern retailers scrambling to find scientific solutions to their bottom-line woes.
While refusing to divulge exactly how much it is going to be spending on its new systems, Sainsbury’s was keen to point out that it would see benefits in both stock management and greenhouse gas emissions. It expects the level of unsold stock to drop by 15%. This works out to a saving of more than 1,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Sainsbury’s new system is likely to work primarily by reducing the length of time it takes the supermarket chain to respond to sudden changes in buying patterns. Sainsbury’s expects to be able to make changes the same day, instead of overnight. As a result, decisions can be made before stock leaves depots.
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