Amazon Fresh Cuts Prices, Relocalize Raises Cash
Presto learns Spanish, kiosks improve sales
That’s right, robots take Memorial Day off too! But we’ll catch you up to speed quickly, with big news from Amazon, Relocalize, Presto and more.
Amazon Fresh Cuts Prices to Drive Sales
Amazon Fresh, the automated grocery store owned by the Seattle-based shopping giant, is turning to a tried and trued model as it looks to restore flagging foot traffic and sales: lower prices. The supermarket is reportedly looking to cut some prices by as much as 30%, including both white label and branded items, as it heads back to growth mode after retooling it checkout tech. Earlier visits by OttOmate to various Fresh markets found that prices were not much different than at traditional retailers, making it unclear to consumers what the benefit is of all the labor-saving tech.
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Relocalize Raises $5.8 Million
Montreal-based startup Relocalize has raised $5.8 million, $1M more than initially planned, as it looks to deploy its F&B micro-factories at grocery distribution centers. Relocalize pitches this as both a labor-saving, and GHG-reducing, service, thanks to reduced shipping needs. The company’s clients include Southeastern Grocers, which uses Relocalize’s tech to autonomously manufacture ice. The funding round was led by Desjardins Capital, with support by i4 Capital, Waterpoint Lane and RGS Ice.
Presto Learns Spanish
Presto Automation, maker of AI-powered voice ordering systems for fast food restaurants, is rolling out a Spanish language option, to complement its traditional English offering. The new feature is currently being piloted in Southern California, before being more widely rolled out. The company’s pivot to voice-based ordering has been rocky, with Presto’s recent quarterly results seeing a $18.1 million loss on revenue of $4.5 million.
Do Ordering Kiosks Improve Sales?
With restaurant staff costs rising in many states, economical merchants are turning to self-ordering kiosks as a way to trim, or reallocate, headcount. But new data suggests that these flashy tablets might help drive additional sales on top of cutting costs. Sam Zietz, CEO of kiosk-maker Grubbrr, notes that since consumers feel in control of the ordering process, they end up “self selecting additional items.” Plus, thanks to improve upselling, “We’re seeing across brands a 12% to 22% uplift [in check size].”
In Other News
Kernel’s Steve Ells shares how he foresees humans and robots cooperating. Viam builds tennis playing robot. Picnic teams up with Roboworx for support and maintenance needs.