Wakefern Leaning Into AI to Strengthen Promotions
Wakefern Food Corp., the nation’s largest retailer-owned supermarket cooperative, is deepening its investment in artificial intelligence to enhance customer engagement and promotional effectiveness.
Following a successful pilot program, Wakefern will roll out Birdzi’s customer intelligence platform across its supermarket banners, which include ShopRite, Price Rite Marketplace and The Fresh Grocer. The move is designed to strengthen personalized marketing campaigns and sharpen forecasting and planning.
“Working with Birdzi enables our supermarket banners to better respond to shopper needs as grocery retail enters an AI-driven era,” said Darren Caudill, chief sales officer, Wakefern.
Birdzi’s role will be to provide the technology backbone for this effort, including its AI-driven campaign engine, Visper, and advanced shopper analytics.
Wakefern’s decision reflects a broader trend in grocery retail, as industry leaders explore how AI can create value for both customers and retailers. Recent research shows that 93% of grocery c-suite executives view AI as a competitive necessity, up from 81% in 2023, according to eMarketer.
Related: Wakefern Increases Use of AI Robots
The pilot program delivered higher returns on marketing investment and gave Wakefern greater flexibility to design and target personalized campaigns, according to a media release. Key benefits included:
- More responsive, creative shopper outreach.
- Data-informed promotional planning to attract and retain customers.
- Richer customer insights to guide and optimize marketing strategies.
