Eyes in the Aisles: Schnucks

Incorporating innovations ranging from shelf- and inventory-optimization robots to interactive endcaps in its alc bev departments, Schnuck Markets is an 83-year-old, Midwest grocer working to enhance both its in-store experience and online presence. Founded in St. Louis in 1939, Schnuck Markets is a third- and fourth-generation, family-owned grocery retailer operating 111 Schnucks stores across Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. Path to Purchase Institute editors recently visited two Schnucks stores in Champaign, Illinois. Among the highlights:Just in time for Super Bowl 2022 gatherings, the grocer launched order-ahead party planning through its Schnucks Rewards mobile application and Schnucks.com at 59 stores. Shoppers can now order sides, soups, salads, appetizers, entrees, select bakery items and party platters, such as a tray of sandwiches filled with deli meat from Boar’s Head Brand. Boar’s Head also gets the spotlight in the deli section via an in-aisle cooler display outfitted with a screen playing videos from the brand. Elsewhere near the deli section, a self-serve, Panera Bread-branded hot soup station lets shoppers purchase ready-to-eat soups. An adjacent cooler case also stocks cold, packaged soup from the brand. Tally robots from Simbe Robotics roam the aisles at more than 60 Schnucks stores. The robots traverse store aisles up to three times daily, autonomously capturing on-shelf data, including inventory position, price accuracy and promotional execution. Schnucks first piloted Tally in July of 2017 and expanded to additional stores in 2018 and 2020. In the summer of 2021, the retailer inked a multiyear deal to roll out the robots to all stores, making Schnucks the first grocer in the world to use AI-powered inventory management technology at scale, according to a media release from the retailer.Most Schnucks stores have a display outfitted with a "storytelling" tablet from North Carolina retail tech startup Looma. Looma's program, known as Loop, highlights winemakers and brewers behind various alc bev brands, such as Lagunitas Brewing Company, by playing short videos on the tablet. As of August 2021, 89 Schnucks beer and wine departments had a tablet installed. National beer and liquor brands also receive the spotlight in the retailer's stores through displays and signage. Boston Beer's Twisted Tea tied in to the start of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's football season in the fall with a spectacular depicting the logo for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.To browse more recent images from Schnucks, click here.

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