New Funding to Help Fuel Grocers’ Digital Transformation
End-to-end digital commerce solution provider Stor.ai can now better help food retailers thrive in an increasingly digitized market, thanks to the $21 million raised in an extended Series A round.
The pandemic has made online grocery shopping the new norm for many consumers. While some grocers have implemented e-commerce solutions or apps to quickly meet the increased demand, Stor.ai warns that these platforms aren't a viable strategy for long-term profitability and risk decreasing brand loyalty and ultimately putting grocers out of business.
Stor.ai provides all grocers, from smaller local retailers to national chains, with hundreds of branches, with the tools to build and manage their own catalog of inventory and leverage advanced fulfillment methods to propel online business and meet growing consumer needs. Stor.ai's quick time to market empowers grocers to swiftly move online, ensuring that customers continue to have the positive experience they already associate with the brand.
The latest funding will accelerate Stor.ai's go-to-market offering of new, next-gen in-store shopping technology. These new AI-based tools will complement Stor.ai's existing flagship offerings, which include an e-commerce solution seamlessly integrated with grocers' POS systems, and Stor.ai's Picker-App, which customizes and maps in-store grocery fulfillment.
With its broadened product suite, Stor.ai will further empower retailers to offer shoppers a holistic, customer-first experience, whether they prefer to shop in-store or online.
"I am delighted to see Stor.ai build on the 250% year-on-year growth we achieved over the past 12 months and begin an exciting new era for the company, in which we are set to expand both our product offering and our customer base," said Orlee Tal, CEO of Israel-based Stor.ai. "Our digital transformation platform provides a win-win scenario for customers and grocers alike: Shoppers replicate the in-store experience at their favorite stores, while stores can seamlessly integrate a range of digital solutions at a time when facilitating online shopping is integral to their business. Customer-first commerce is the future of this industry."
As a result of the funding round, Stor.ai will also continue its growth and expansion in North America and broaden its development in new markets in Latin America and Europe. At present, Stor.ai works with hundreds of grocers in North America and worldwide to implement bespoke digital systems.
Stor.ai has already made inroads in the U.S. market in 2021.
Last month, Stor.ai launched the Smart Basket tool. By harnessing AI to support personalization efforts, Smart Basket is designed to guide the purchase journey and is tailored to individual customers. Customers can benefit from intuitive experiences, including product promotions, the option to repurchase a "one-click" basket, reminders based on previous purchase history, and recommendations for alternative or complementary products.
The company has also partnered with Mountain View, California-based Tortoise, the remote-controlled sidewalk home delivery provider, to offer an automated same-day delivery solution for grocers. Tortoise is currently working with Albertsons to test its last-mile delivery vehicle in northern California.
Additionally, Stor.ai has helped food retailers better serve lower-income consumers by introducing a new capability that enables grocers of all sizes to accept and process digital transactions involving food stamps. Most Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments today are made through electronic benefit transfer (EBT) payment cards. Stor.ai now enables grocers to accept split payments involving multiple payment methods, as well as automatically adding virtual tags to retailers’ online interfaces displaying which items are EBT-eligible.
Stor.ai's latest funding was led by Meitav Dash and Mizrahi Tefahot, and supported by existing investor Kli Capital and individual investors including Mayer Gniwisch.
"Stor.ai has established a reputation as a market leader providing top-of-the range technological solutions, helping retailers realign to customers' needs during the most challenging time for business in recent history," noted Guy Mani, Meitav Dash's CIO for provident and pension funds. "We are proud to support such exciting e-commerce products as online grocery shopping continues to capture record market shares, with Stor.ai ideally placed to build on its current growth and expand throughout 2021 and beyond."
Founded in 2014, Stor.ai (formally known as Self Point) is a digital transformation partner for retailers and wholesalers, providing immersive experiences across digital touchpoints inside and outside the store. Serving as a change agent for the industry, the Stor.ai technology suite supports food retailers' transition to online, integrating fulfillment methods and point-of-sale and retail catalogs into a mobile-first, custom-branded e-commerce experience within days.
