Tel Aviv, Israel, and Munich, Germany, May 23, 2023 — Grocery smart cart provider Shopic announced today that the company is partnering with the Microsoft Experience Center EMEA in Munich to showcase its innovative smart cart technology.
Microsoft Experience Centers are located in four locations around the world, enabling businesses to explore game-changing technology through immersive experiences and deep technical engagement. Startups which are showcased at Microsoft Experience Centers enjoy an unprecedented opportunity to present the full potential of their solution to a wide audience, and build important relationships with future customers.
Microsoft has invited Shopic to demo its solution in the Munich facility’s recently relaunched grocery retail tech area. Shopic joins SES-imagotag’s VUSION solution for electronic shelf labels (ESLs) as one of only two Microsoft partner organizations slated for the Microsoft Experience Center grocery retail area relaunch.
Microsoft and Shopic are already discussing the potential for expanding this collaboration to additional Microsoft Experience Centers locations.
Shopic’s solution was developed to resolve the challenge that faces grocery stores around the world: how to cut the time that consumers spend waiting in line for checkout, while reducing friction from the shopping experience. Shopic uses computer vision AI algorithms to identify every item as shoppers place it in their cart in order to enjoy a seamless and fast checkout experience.
The solution employs a clip-on device that attaches to any standard grocery cart, removing the need for grocery chains to invest in expensive new carts and infrastructure. The device displays a running total in real time, so shoppers can track their purchases, and its built-in retail media platform promotes relevant, personalized special offers.
With Shopic, shoppers can complete their visit more quickly and with less hassle, while grocers can differentiate themselves from the competition, improve customer experience, gain valuable anonymized data insights and boost revenue at minimal risk.
The Shopic-Microsoft Experience Center collaboration announcement follows several busy months for the startup. Over the past year, Shopic has doubled its employee count, completed a successful $35 million Series B funding round, and deployed pilots in a number of leading retailers across North and South America, including two Wegmans locations in New York.
Shufersal, Israel’s largest grocery chain, also announced its commercial-scale expanded rollout of Shopic carts to at least 30 stores, making this the largest deployment of a smart cart solution to be announced to date. The Shufersal rollout follows a major pilot, where the chain reported that Shopic boosted basket size by 78% and monthly spending by 8%. In February, the Shufersal-Shopic partnership earned a 2023 RETA Award for Best AI.
The Microsoft Experience Center demo also represents the next stage in the growing relationship between Microsoft and Shopic. Shopic recently joined the Microsoft Cloud for Retail booth at the prestigious EuroShop conference in Dusseldorf and at the National Retail Federation’s flagship conference, NRF Retail's Big Show 2023, in New York.
