"A win-win-win: for the planet, for people, and for-profit"
Too Good To Go has announced the launch of its brand new flagship platform, an end-to-end surplus food management system.
Too Good To Go has built a name for itself among retailers and consumers alike with its user-friendly app that helps consumers bag a cheap deal while facilitating retailers to make money off food that would otherwise go to waste - a business model that is truly a win-win for all parties involved. Now, TGTG has used its expertise in food redistribution tech to formulate an AI-driven platform to reallocate surplus food at all levels of the value chain.
Crucially, food waste represents a loss of 2 per cent of grocery retailers’ net sales - a figure that rivals average margins. TGTG’s latest AI platform can help retailers optimise their in-store inventory management and save money while preventing food waste.
Key features
TGTG’s platform features five key, customisable features. Partners can choose their food surplus strategy, assisted by a range of tools to support their approach:
Intelligent discounting: Too Good To Go’s AI can draw upon data such as stock, previous price points and how close the product is to its expiry date to generate a discount price for each item. Employees can use a handheld printer to print the label which sends the information directly to the resource planning system.
Expiry Date Management: By digitising expiry dates, using the Too Good To Go platform can reduce the time taken by employees to manually check expiry dates, as well as reduce the risk of human error. In fact, up to an hour per employee per day can be saved by automating this process.
Recommendations: The platform uses AI to generate recommendations that are totally customisable depending on the retailer’s individual strategy and approach. A recommendation will let an employee know whether a near-expired product should be put on sale, popped into a Surprise Bag for the Too Good To Go app, or donated.
Donations: Any donations made by the store are logged automatically on a downloadable spreadsheet that can be easily integrated into the store’s business analysis and social value portfolios.
Marketplace: Retailers can upload their surplus items directly onto the Too Good To Go marketplace from the new platform. Crucially, this integrates inventory management with the previous functions and popularity of the app.
The Marketplace function ultimately ties TGTG’s success over the years in retailing redistribution tech with its new operations tech. The platform is integrated with the world’s largest consumer marketplace for surplus food, with 85 million members.
This huge audience puts Too Good To Go in a strong position to roll out its AI platform, with a massive reach already under its belt. Mette Lykke, CEO of Too Good To Go, commented: “At Too Good To Go we partner with some of the world’s biggest names in grocery retail, such as Carrefour, Auchan, SPAR, ALDI, Coop and many more. Every day, we drive many thousands of users into retail stores, helping our partners generate revenue and footfall from surplus food. With the introduction of Too Good To Go Platform, we can now also support their in-store inventory management, helping them make a significant difference to both their bottom line and the reduction of food waste.”
It’s not only the value of the particular discounted item that a customer purchases that is generated. Too Good To Go’s large platform brings footfall into stores that customers may otherwise not come into, and acts as an advertisement for many stores and restaurants. Managing director for Too Good To Go UK, Sophie Trueman, explained: “A lot of users that we bring to our partner stores visit that store for the first time. According to our data, more than half of the users who collect a Surprise Bag, were otherwise not planning to visit that store that day. Additionally, nearly half of Surprise Bag customers end up purchasing additional items in-store.”
Combining business acumen and operations optimisation with social impact and waste reduction so seamlessly is an impressive feat. After winning a coveted award at Apple’s App Store Awards, Mr Lykke commented: “This award served as evidence that, through technology, companies can deliver a strong social impact. Now, from expiry date tracking to final distribution, Too Good To Go Platform enables data-driven decision-making on food waste reduction. It is a win-win-win: for the planet, for people, and for profit.”