Blendid, Jamba Team on 1st Co-Branded Location
In its first co-branded location, Blendid, developer of an autonomous smoothie-making kiosk, will create contactless, customized Jamba by Blendid smoothies. The Jamba by Blendid kiosk makes its debut Dec. 1 at a Walmart location in Dixon, California.
Blendid’s food automation platform leverages machine learning, robotics and artificial intelligence to create on-demand customized food options, while Jamba is already well known for its freshly blended fruit and vegetable smoothies, made-to-order bowls, fresh-squeezed juices, and shots, boosts and bites. The co-branded location encompasses both brands’ strengths and adaptabilities while offering a contactless dining option employing cutting-edge digital and consumer robotics technology.
“Blendid is on a mission to make delicious and customized food accessible to all through the use of robotics and AI,” explained Vipin Jain, CEO and co-founder of Sunnyvale, California-based Blendid. “Launching our first Jamba by Blendid kiosk further expands our goals and accessibility. We’re proud to team up with the leading smoothie brand on this new opportunity to provide a solution for contactless food preparation and delivery, which has become imperative during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“At Jamba, we’ve made significant investments in technology over the past two years to drive more value and accessibility for guests,” noted Geoff Henry, president of Atlanta-based Jamba, which has more than 850 locations in 36 states, as well as in The Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand and Japan. “Jamba by Blendid is yet another way technology can help us deliver on guest needs. We see an opportunity to get Jamba into more locations, make it even more accessible and create solutions where our team members can leverage the latest in technology to efficiently serve our guests. We look forward to working with the Blendid team to gain a better understanding of the role robotic kiosks could play in our brand and how our guests respond to this new experience.”
The Jamba by Blendid kiosk provides plant-forward Blendid smoothies and custom-created Jamba and Blendid smoothies inspired by familiar flavors found at Jamba, in addition to proprietary Jamba Boosts: the 3g Energy Boost with guarana and green tea, or the Daily Vitamin Boost containing vitamins A, C, D, K, and zinc. One boost can be added free of charge to the smoothies, just like at all Jamba locations.
Blendid’s contactless kiosk consists of a robotic arm, blenders, a refrigeration system, and various dispensers that store and dispense a range of ingredients: solids (such as fruits and vegetables), liquids (such as coconut water and kefir), and superfood boosts (such as multivitamins and zinc). The company’s proprietary food-operating system processes the orders and payment, measures and dispenses precise amounts of ingredients for customized drinks, and blends, pours and stores each smoothie until a customer comes to pick it up.
The system can serve a fresh made-to-order smoothie in less three minutes and process as many as 45 drinks an hour and nine beverages at the same time.
Jamba by Blendid will be open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. within the Dixon Walmart. Customers can order in person at the kiosk or order ahead via the Blendid app.
In October, Blendid opened an automated kiosk at a Walmart in Fremont, California. Blendid also has three other kiosks in the Bay Area.
Bentonville, Arkansas-based Walmart operates more than 11,300 stores under 58 banners in 27 countries, and e-commerce websites, employing 2.2 million-plus associates worldwide. Walmart U.S. is No. 1 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America, while Walmart-owned Sam’s Club ranks No. 9 on the list.
