Kum & Go Rolling Out AI Solution Chainwide to Address Buyability Issues

WES DOINES, Iowa — After a successful six-month deployment across half of its 400 convenience stores, Kum & Go LC is rolling out CB4's artificial intelligence (AI) solution for its store teams chainwide.

The partnership focuses on improving the in-store experience of Kum & Go shoppers by solving buyability issues that make it difficult for them to purchase the products they love most, such as presentation issues, difficult-to-find items, out-of-stocks, and unclear pricing and promotional signs, reported Business Insider.

"Kum & Go is preparing to move to an all-store rollout of CB4 based on the successes we have found over the first six months," said Kum & Go Vice President of Operations Marty Roush. "We're seeing measurable sales lift at the item level by identifying operational execution opportunities uniquely tailored to each store."

The CB4 app alerts store teams to replenish products, and if there are escalating out-of-stocks and ticketing errors that need to be corrected. According to the convenience retailer, under a quarter of the issues they found with CB4 were related to presentation.

With patented AI and machine learning algorithms, CB4 alerts users to only the most important opportunities in each store circumnavigating high retail labor costs and limited store team availability, the report continued.

"Store associates enjoy using the mobile app to problem solve while investigating the item recommendations," said Roush. "We give stores four days to capture opportunities by responding to recommendations each week, but most stores get into them right away. This tells us they see how valuable CB4 is in helping them drive their business."

New York-based technology firm CB4 helps retailers generate new sales by making meaningful corrections to shelf visibility and inventory. Leading grocery, convenience, specialty and apparel retailers have adopted CB4, tripling the number of stores using CB4 from 600 to 1,500 stores in 2020.

"It's impressive to see the Kum & Go operations team execute so fast," said Yoni Benshaul, CEO of CB4. "In just six months, they deployed weekly sales opportunities to 200-plus stores, measured ROI, and laid out plans to reach over 400 stores within weeks."

Des Moines-based Kum & Go operates 400 stores across 11 states.