Turning Shelf Data into Business Growth

Store interiors are the last remaining data desert in retail—retailers know when inventory arrives and when it sells, but have little visibility into what happens in between. Some of the biggest headaches for grocery stores come from a lack of visibility at the shelf level: out-of-stocks, pricing errors, missed promotions, and poor planogram compliance. Without knowing exactly what’s happening on your shelves, you miss understanding what drives consumer purchases at the point of decision. This is why in-store inefficiencies cost retailers an average of 6% gross sales and 5% operating margin each year.

To overcome these challenges, top retailers are embracing technologies that provide the data needed to transform the store interior into actionable insights. Advanced solutions like autonomous mobile robots equipped with computer vision have the potential to fix discrepancies caused by phantom inventory, close execution gaps, and better understand true demand versus sales. However, unlocking the full value of these technologies requires solutions that can scale across departments and integrate with existing operations—ensuring data can be applied effectively across the business.

By following a four-step path to deployment and adoption of store intelligence solutions, retailers can unlock value for shoppers, employees, suppliers, and shareholders.

Step 1: Unlock Shelf-Level Visibility

The first step to building store intelligence maturity is gaining visibility into what’s happening when shoppers decide to purchase items (or not) at the shelf. Technologies that continuously capture real-time data on inventory, pricing, item location, and product placement can provide the transparency needed to address inaccuracies and inefficiencies as they arise.

With near real-time data delivered, teams can quickly adjust pricing errors, fill online orders, and prioritize restocking efforts – or locate items they otherwise would have believed to be out-of-stock and unavailable for sale. This immediate access to data empowers employees to fix issues that could otherwise lead to revenue loss, while also improving the shopper experience. For retailers looking to minimize out-of-stock rates and optimize shelf space, this level of visibility is critical.

Step 2: Automate In-Store Data Capture

Once stores have shelf-level visibility, the next step is to automate repetitive tasks like inventory checks and audits. Traditionally, these tasks have been a huge drain on employee time, with manual audits identifying only a fraction of pricing and promotion errors. Repetitive, monotonous tasks are a major factor behind the over 90% attrition rate among hourly retail workers, according to one study. By introducing automation that flags needed action items in real-time, retailers improve audit accuracy — refocusing employees on resolving errors rather than finding them, while freeing up to 50 hours a week to focus on higher-value tasks, like assisting customers or improving in-store experiences.

Automation also enables a more data-driven approach to labor management, helping retailers staff and stock in line with demand. Beyond inventory, these systems also ensure planogram compliance and keep promotions aligned with merchandising strategies, giving retailers more control over store layouts and profitability.

Step 3: Scale Visibility Beyond the Shelves

As retailers advance in their journey toward store intelligence maturity, it’s important to extend visibility beyond the shelves. Real-time data on inventory and customer demand can improve not only in-store operations but also strengthening supplier relationships, merchandising strategies, enhancing logistics, and improving customer satisfaction across multiple touchpoints.

By sharing data with suppliers, retailers can help their partners better understand shopper demand and optimize direct store delivery. Accurate shelf-level data also enhances collaboration with third-party shopping apps and e-commerce solutions, ensuring shoppers get the products they need while improving overall product flow and reducing phantom inventory.

For Schnuck Markets, better visibility has enabled smarter decisions across merchandising, supply chain management, and even customer-facing tools resulting in a 30% improvement in stock conditions. They also use store intelligence to keep their electronic shelf labels and app up to date, which helps store associates and customers locate products quickly and optimizes in-store shopping routes.

Finally, by integrating data-driven insights into their merchandising strategies, retailers can collaborate more effectively with their partners on product launches, seasonal promotions, and localized marketing campaigns. This level of precision leads to better-targeted promotions and improved merchandising execution, ultimately driving revenue growth and building stronger partnerships.

Step 4: Rethink Business Strategies

True store intelligence maturity allows retailers to reimagine their cost structures and operating model. Continuous visibility into customer behavior and shelf conditions provides opportunities for new revenue streams, from optimizing retail media strategies to monetizing data insights for suppliers.

With a clear view of how products move through stores and interact with other business systems, retailers can explore advanced strategies like dynamic pricing, personalized in-store marketing, and more targeted promotions. By integrating these insights across operations, retailers reduce inefficiencies and drive long-term business growth.

Find the Right Partner

Achieving store intelligence maturity requires the right technology and support to turn data into smarter decisions and new growth opportunities. The more visibility retailers have into their stores, the more they can take proactive action—whether by addressing issues at the shelf level, automating key processes, or refining supply chain strategies.

Retailers looking to embrace this path can benefit from solutions that provide continuous, scalable insights across their operations. Solutions like Simbe’s Store Intelligence™ platform, with its combination of AI, computer vision, and data integration, are designed to meet these needs—helping retailers reclaim margin, improve efficiency, and drive revenue growth at every stage of their journey.