Increases operational efficiency of the field teams
Danone’s Challenge: Optimizing Retail Execution with
AI-Powered Solutions
Operating in over 130 countries, Danone has a diverse portfolio of international and local brands, ranging from dairy products to bottled water. With operations spread across 10,000 stores, managing product visibility, on-shelf availability (OSA), and pricing compliance became increasingly complex. Danone needed a more efficient way to manage retail execution and monitor product performance in real time, as their existing methods of manual audits were time-consuming and lacked accuracy.
Key initiatives
In 2017, Danone partnered with Ailet to pilot its AI-driven retail solutions, aiming to leverage Image Recognition technology to streamline in-store auditing processes. The goal was to assess the accuracy and speed of product recognition, while also reducing the time field staff spent on store visits.
Ailet’s Solutions: Price Monitoring & Retail Execution
To address Danone’s challenges, Ailet deployed its Price Monitoring and Retail Execution solutions, focusing on delivering accurate, real-time data on product placement and availability.
- Price Monitoring: With Price Monitoring solution, Danone was able to track product pricing across all stores in real time. This ensured pricing accuracy and allowed Danone to quickly adjust pricing strategies to remain competitive. Ailet’s dashboard provided instant notifications when pricing discrepancies were identified, ensuring that all products were aligned with promotional and market pricing.
- Retail Execution: Ailet’s Retail Execution automated the process of recognizing product placement, availability, and shelf compliance. With Image Recognition technology, field staff could quickly audit product layouts, reducing time spent at each store visit.
Results: Streamlined Audits and Increased Accuracy
The results of the pilot implementation exceeded expectations, delivering tangible benefits across Danone’s operations:
- Faster Store Audits: The recognition and preparation of layout reports on mobile devices took no more than 20 seconds per section, allowing Danone’s field teams to complete store visits far more efficiently than before.
- High Accuracy in Product Recognition:
- 93.7% SKU Accuracy: Ailet’s system provided an impressive 93.7% accuracy in recognizing individual Danone SKU facings, enabling the company to track product visibility with confidence.
- 97.1% On-Shelf Availability (OSA): The recognition of OSA was equally precise, reaching 97.1%, which ensured that Danone’s products were consistently available and properly positioned on shelves. This high level of accuracy was critical in reducing stockouts and missed sales opportunities.
- Seamless Integration and Quick Implementation:
Within just two months, Ailet’s system was trained to recognize over 400 Danone SKUs, and the solution was successfully integrated into Danone’s operations, involving merchandisers and sales representatives across both iOS and Android platforms.
Additional Benefits and Long-Term Advantages
- Real-Time Insights: The real-time nature of Ailet’s platform provided Danone with instant access to product performance data. Field teams and managers could now make data-driven decisions, optimizing stock levels and ensuring timely replenishments.
- Cost Savings Through Efficiency: By significantly reducing the time spent on in-store audits, Danone’s field teams were able to cover more stores in less time, resulting in cost savings and increased operational efficiency.
- Scalability: The success of this pilot project demonstrates that Ailet’s solution can be scaled across Danone’s global operations. The system can be quickly adapted to recognize new SKUs, providing a flexible solution that grows alongside Danone’s evolving needs.
- Improved Strategic Decisions: With accurate data on product visibility and pricing, Danone can better understand customer behavior and competitors, enabling more strategic decisions regarding product placement, promotions, and pricing adjustments.
Are you ready to see how Ailet can transform your retail operations?
Schedule a demo today and discover how our AI solutions can help you drive sales, optimize your retail execution, and improve customer satisfaction.
