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Retail Initiatives
   
Gyromino.com
   
   
   
   
   
   

 

  

Gyromino is the first supermarket devoted to the use of robot technology.  It is  a long-term project and experiment to install robot technology -  from the back-end to the front cashes. Customers will make their order online, products will be assembled in the warehouse by robots, and will be finalized and ready for pick-up in-store or sent to the customer's residence by self-driving cars.  It is an attempt to merge and unify customer -friendly front-end zone with a back-end fulfillment centre.

   
 
 
 
 

 
Concept
 
In the good old days - the 1970s, there was a company called Consumers Distributing, once owned by Provigo in the 1990s, that was a catalogue- based distribution centre. This same model can now be updated to mobile phones and touch screen technology.
 
As consumers get younger and an increasing number no longer shop in stores but rather instead shop online, we must bring the store to them  --- "push retail instead of pull retail.". We can no longer pull them in, we must push our products to the consumer. A combination of online ordering and fast delivery system must be explored.
Click and go and delivery is promising. But the scale required is expensive and time-consuming.
 

50/50
 
We can use the 50/50 idea in two ways: shoppers 50 and over will continue to shop in stores. Those under 50 will increasingly shop online. There is also the oncoming reality that only 50% of sales will be physical transactions and 50% will be online transactions. We must adapt to this new reality. Eventually, we may see one day the 25/75 reality, and will have to adjust accordingly.
 
Under this proposal, only four to six massive  stores/warehouses/fulfillment centres will be built in each city across the country. The stores will be located in the four quadrants of a city, for complete physical coverage of a city allowing fast, efficient delivery. The company that wins the delivery wars will win the battle.
 
As new fulfillment centres are being built, older, under-performing stores can be closed. Costs will be reduced  - transportations, buildings, payroll, inventory, making the venture profitable and promising.
 
We will serve more customers with fewer people. This will lead to increased  efficiency and profitability. Under this plan, 25% of stores can be closed, with the underlying reduction in costs.
 
 
Front End
 
Customers will enter the store, go to the order desk, pick out their dry goods selections, then go through the fresh food departments, and when this is finished, their order will be ready for pick-up at the reception desk. This will save them time and their entire order will be 100% completed. Nothing missing.
 
 
Because fewer items are on the floor, along with new warehouse/robot technology, we will stock more items in less space, with faster order processing and delivery times.
 
 
Back End
 
In the back-end of the centre will be located the brains of the enterprise. powered by

RadicalThink:
     
Robot   The
Assisted

&

 Historical
Delivery & Information
Identyfying   Needed for
Customer   Knowledge
Analysis    
List    
     

(Robot Assisted Delivery & Identifying Customer Analysis List & The Historical Intelligence Needed for Knowledge) a procedure combining artificial intelligence and robot technology.
 
Since a large percentage of shoppers will shop by mobile, they will not even enter a physical store. This is an attempt to predict their future shopping needs. fulfilling the order, and delivering the order at the customer's desired time period.
 
Customers who enter the store can select their fresh products, but as for dry goods, only a small selection of products will be visible. Rather, customers will select their items on touchscreens located on the counter, or through their phones. As they make their selections, the order will be transmitted to back-end robots who will assemble the order, and after a short waiting period, the assembled order will appear on he counter. The customer can take home immediately or request delivery by electric vans.
 
Under this plan the real challenge will be to predict future shopping needs. We offer points and deals to shoppers based on past shopping history. The objective in the future should be to try and predict future shopping needs. Based on prior history, we must offer the shopper new items, new recipes, and new items to try. Things they might never think of. In store, we will have concierges/chefs offering suggestions and ideas to shoppers. Online, we must provide the same options. When the customer adds an item to his basket, there must be a corresponding suggestion.
 
As the customer walks through the store, sensors and signals must send information to their phone, providing the same information. The key is more information, and the more data we can acquire on each customer, the better we can tailor these suggestions to the customer. We should try to know what the customer wants before the customer knows it.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Canada's New Innovation Centres:
 
 
Amazon Warehouse:
 
 
Alibaba's Automated Warehouse:
 
 
Robotics company Symbotic:
 
 
 

 
 
 
 

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