Hello Omni Talk Fans!
In today’s Retail Daily Minute:
- Walmart and Wing add seven new metro markets to their drone delivery expansion plan, targeting operations from 270-plus stores by 2027.
- B&R Stores, a family-owned Midwest grocer, deploys Simbe’s Tally autonomous shelf-scanning robots to capture real-time inventory data and free associates from up to 30 hours per week of manual auditing tasks.
- Grocery Outlet partners with Afresh to roll out AI-powered ordering across its fresh, center store, and general merchandise departments, becoming the first retailer to deploy Afresh’s full-store, multi-category solution across its roughly 550 locations.
Plus, a quote I am surprised I have not used yet given how often robots and AI make the headlines.
👇 Listen now
Today’s Top Headlines
1. Walmart & Wing Expand Drone Delivery to 7 New US Markets
Walmart expands drone delivery with Wing to 7 new metro areas—New Orleans, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, Bay Area, Salt Lake City & Memphis—targeting 40M residents by 2027. Wing drones deliver in ~30 mins at 60 mph. Walmart hit 1M drone deliveries in Q1, now covering 66 locations across 4 states. (Read More)
2. B&R Stores Deploys Tally Robots for Real-Time Shelf Insights
B&R Stores deploys Simbe’s Tally autonomous robots across Nebraska locations to capture real-time shelf data on pricing, availability & placement. The move eliminates up to 30 hrs/week of manual inventory tasks, freeing associates for customer service & replenishment. B&R joins Wakefern, SpartanNash & others using Tally. (Read More)
3. Grocery Outlet Taps Afresh AI for Full-Store Order Management
Grocery Outlet partners with AI firm Afresh to deploy full-store ordering across fresh, center store & general merchandise at ~550 locations across 16 states. Afresh’s platform cuts order time by 50%, boosts sales 3% & reduces shrink 25% on average. Grocery Outlet is the first retailer to use Afresh’s multi-category solution. (Read More)
4. Starship Pivots Its Campus Robots Toward U.S. Grocery Delivery
Starship Technologies is exiting U.S. university campuses to focus on retail grocery and hot food delivery across Europe and the U.S., redeploying 1,200+ robots. In Finland, it already handles ~20% of grocery deliveries at $3–4 less per delivery than traditional couriers, signaling strong unit economics at scale. (Read More)
5. DoorDash Adds Five New Ad Tools to CPG Retail Media Network
DoorDash is expanding its retail media network with five new tools for CPG brands: a spotlight ad format delivering 2x higher click-through rates, offsite scaling via Symbiosys, privacy-safe measurement through a LiveRamp clean room partnership, enhanced Smart Campaigns with BOGO support, and auto-bidding with minimum ROAS targeting. (Read More)
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Be careful out there,
— Chris and the entire Omni Talk team
Omni Talk® is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton founded Omni Talk® in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail.