Schnuck Markets, Inc and Instacart, North America's leading grocery technology company, announced they would expand their omnichannel partnership by deploying Caper Carts, Instacart's smart carts, in select stores.
Caper Carts automatically identify items as they are added to the cart using computer vision and artificial intelligence (AI), allowing customers to bag as they shop, skip the line and seamlessly checkout on the cart from anywhere in the store. Caper Carts will first roll out at select Schnucks St. Louis stores this fall, with a broader planned rollout later this year following successful initial deployments.
"As a third and fourth-generation, family-owned grocer, we're always thinking about how we can best serve our customers while also driving the digital transformation of the grocery industry. As part of that effort, we're proud to deepen our partnership with Instacart and further bridge the gap between in-store and online shopping for Schnucks customers," said Chace MacMullan, Senior Director of Digital Experience at Schnucks.
"We believe the future of grocery will lean heavily into personalisation, whether achieved through in-store smart carts or by providing our customers with the best possible e-commerce experience. We aim to make customers feel like each shopping experience was custom-made for them, and we're excited to take another big step forward with the rollout of this Instacart's Caper Carts pilot."
Select Caper Carts will feature a bottom rack for bulky and heavy items for the first time. In addition to fully automated Caper Carts that automatically detect items as they are placed in the cart, Schnucks would also be testing a Lite version, where customers manually scan items before placing them in the cart. Caper Carts can be wirelessly upgraded with new features. They are the only smart cart on the market to offer stacked charging so that they do not have to be plugged in individually or undergo labour-intensive battery swaps.
Customers can also use their Schnucks Rewards account with the Caper Cart to get a more convenient, personalised experience, giving them easy access to clipped promotions and viewing deals from the weekly circular as they browse the aisles.
"We're proud to partner with Schnucks on their rollout of Instacart's Caper Carts, which bring together the best of online and in-store shopping to spearhead their digital transformation and create a truly convenient and personalised experience for customers," said David McIntosh, Vice President and General Manager of Connected Stores at Instacart.
"With this launch, Schnucks is building on their existing Instacart-powered offerings across e-commerce, ads, electronic shelf labels (ESLs), and more – redefining in-store shopping and checkout for customers. At Instacart, we're committed to developing new and innovative technologies that help retailers seamlessly create a unified commerce experience. We are excited to work with Schnucks to reimagine the future of grocery together."
Schnucks has long partnered with Instacart to bring its omnichannel strategy to life, and the debut of Instacart's Caper Carts is the next step in their efforts to connect the online and in-store shopping experience for customers. Schnucks first partnered with Instacart in 2017 to introduce same-day delivery and has since deployed several Instacart Platform technologies to digitise its stores and serve its customers through E-commerce, Carrot Ads, Eversight, and Carrot Tags.
