Data capture tech provider Scandit today said it has acquired a package of shelf audit automation technology from MarketLab, a Polish image recognition and AI software company specializing in the retail industry.
In addition to gaining the firm’s technology, Zurich-based Scandit will also absorb MarketLab's employees, who will now join Scandit to build and expand the new offering.
According to Scandit, MarketLab's expertise in fixed camera solutions complements Scandit's existing ShelfView mobile capture approach, combining to provide a hybrid data capture shelf intelligence solution for retailers.
The combined inventory visibility platform could deliver increased workforce efficiency and automate time-intensive store operations processes for companies in the global retail sector, they said. In turn, that could enable retailers to gain insights into on-shelf availability, planogram compliance, and pricing issues to maintain optimal store conditions, maximize sales, and reduce lost revenues due to stockouts, particularly in high-SKU volume environments like grocery stores.
Finally, the expanded platform will provide AI-enabled notifications to improve store key performance indicators (KPIs) and flag issues in near-real time to store associates and management.
In addition to bosting technology, the move will expand Scandit's existing retail customer base—which includes eight out of the top ten U.S. grocers—by adding MarketLab's accounts, including Carrefour Poland.
The acquisition could also open new markets by providing insights to consumer packaged goods (CPGs) and merchandising agencies. And it could help Scandit to find new customers beyond the retail sector, such as adding fixed camera deployments in warehousing environments to automate logistics workflows, Scandit said.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
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