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German grocery giant Rewe is using AI for space optimisation through shelf space in approximately 4,000 of its stores, product assortment optimisation, plus hyper-personalisation as part of Rewe Bonus, Rewe CEO Lionel Souque told World Retail Congress delegates this morning.

He has been at Rewe for 30 years and said that Germany is dominated by four major grocery groups, with the discount sector around twice the size of most of the markets in Europe. For first time the company achieved €100 billion in total revenue, has grown to over 12,000 stores across 21 countries, with Germany representing two thirds of revenue.

“It is a difficult economy at the moment and the customer is not very loyal and is also very price conscious and private labels are very strong,” Souque said. “We are also facing a multi-dimensional crisis globally, which has a lot of influence for our company.”

He said that the response has been a focus on the consumer which he stressed was the most important element for the business, plus strong company culture.

In terms of digital transformation, he described delivery as an investment in the future, especially as omnichannel shoppers typically spend more overall.

“We are testing a lot of solutions for last mile delivery, and trialling autonomous vehicles,” he added.

For using AI to create new store formats, beyond the domestic market Rewe is also trialling new concepts in Romania and Lithuania.

“We have many projects for technology in-store, to help improve the process and also to improve the shopping experience,” he said. “But we have to remember we’re in a business run by people, for people.”