Technology of the future straight from Poland. Shopping will never be the same again

Jan Wojtal, “Wprost”: Mr. Adam, I heard that you have a technology that can mix up in retail. What exactly is your solution?

Adam Beniowski, Pro Business Solutions: In short – the point is that store shelves are always arranged as the customer expects. This is the basis of the so -called Category Management, i.e. product categories management. For years I worked in companies such as Mars or Danone, so I know that if the client is looking for chocolate, he should find it quickly and exactly where he expects her. The problem is that until now verification of the arrangement of products in stores was very imperfect – manual, expensive, susceptible to mistakes.

What was it about?

It was once done literally with a card and a pen – someone went to the store and checked if everything agreed with the planogram, i.e. the previously established layout of the products. Then applications appeared, but they still required manual data entering. It was a tedious job, and mistakes often reached up to 40%. And yet, based on such data, marketing activities are planned, changing shelves, decides about the presence of products. If the data is wrong – the whole strategy is falling apart.

That’s right, and here your technology comes in?

Yes. We have created a pro.display application that works on smartphones or tablets. The store employee opens it, directs the camera to the shelf and in real time receives an analysis of what he sees: what products are present, where they lie, whether they are arranged correctly. Everything takes place in a few dozen seconds – without the need to connect to the Internet. It works offline, which is crucial in stores, because not everywhere the range is perfect.

So the system is independent of the network? It sounds really practically.

Exactly. Our application acts like an autonomous unit. We say a bit jokingly that like a terminator – she makes decisions herself, she does not need a cloud, i.e. sending data to servers for verification and waiting for the results. This is important because it reduces the time of action, allows you to act in all conditions, and protects data. What’s more, we achieve accuracy above 95%, and in some projects up to 98%.

Can ordinary store employees use this or do you need a special training?

That’s what we wanted – that it would be very easy. The employee launches the application, does a scan and the application shows him what is good and what to improve. He does not have to know the planogram by heart, he does not have to look for anything – everything is sewn in the application. We already have several thousand active users in Europe. The system operates in Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria, Spain, Great Britain – and we are planning more markets.

Sounds as if you have really momentum. Who are you working with?

Our clients are global brands – Mars, Mondelēz, L’Oréal, Johnson & Johnson, Adamed, Maspex, Sopro and many others. We also support various industries – not only FMCG, but also pharmacy, cosmetics and even DIY. Some companies monitor with us even over 50,000 stores a month and only in one country. Last year, we answered over half a billion specific “shelf questions”, i.e. verification of specific exposure details.

Okay, but what next? Ai is developing quickly. What are you planning for the coming years?

It’s true – and we also have to be a step ahead. We have a separate department in the company – AI Lab – which follows the latest research and develops technology. We work, among others Above the parallel operation of several AI models on one device – thanks to this we will be able to recognize not only products, but e.g. prices, labels, missing planogram elements. We also strive for our system to understand more than just a specific zone or exhibition – that it knows the entire space of the store.

You have previously mentioned augmented reality. Will it be possible to find a specific product with an application in hand, for example?

Yes! Since we are scanning 3D space, we can use it. In the future, the customer could enter the store with a shopping list, start the application and get a path leading directly to the products sought – a bit like in Pokémon Go, only instead of pikachu you will find a chocolate plate. This solution is already technologically possible – now only the issue of implementation.

Sounds very futuristic, but at the same time … real. And practically.

That’s what it is about. And and it is not supposed to be a fairy tale from the future. It is to help today – in simple, daily activities. Thanks to Pro.Display, employees have more time for what is really important – e.g. a conversation with a client that no application can replace.

Great. Thank you for the conversation – a specific, interesting and opening eyes to how much the ordinary, everyday reality of stores can change.

Also, thank you and I hope that readers will see more than just a “AI gadget”. Because it is a real tool that already works and brings specific results.

BIO: Adam Beniowski-co-founder and CEO of PBS IT, an expert with over 20 years of experience in the FMCG industry. He worked in the sales structures of companies such as Mars and Danone, where he corresponded to the Category Management and optimization of product exhibitions. For 10 years, he has been developing the proprietary Pro. Display technology, which, using AI and augmented reality, helps retailers and producers to manage store shelves better. Supporter of a practical approach to artificial intelligence and its use for real support of daily work in trade.