Houston — Salata, a leading built-to-order salad kitchen with 90 locations, has named Briton Smetzer as vice president of information technology. With a background in a variety of industries, including fast-casual restaurants, construction, ATM and technology services, Smetzer brings his expertise to the growing concept to lead the modernization of Salata’s IT infrastructure. Smetzer most recently served as director of ATM management & software deployment at NCR, an information technology company that manufactures self-service kiosks, point-of-sale terminals and automated teller machines. Smetzer will be the first to hold the vice …
software/technology
Tel Aviv, Israel, and Munich, Germany — Trigo, an Israel-based computer vision company that builds systems for autonomous checkout and retail analytics, has rolled out Germany’s first fully-autonomous cashierless supermarket in partnership with German grocery giant REWE Group. The new “Pick&Go” supermarket in the Bavarian capital Munich allows customers to walk in, select their items off the shelves, and leave without having to pay at checkout. Unlike self-checkout devices such as stationary or mobile scanners and digital carts, Pick&Go shoppers only scan once on their phones when they enter the …
Kansas City, Mo. — Service Management Group (SMG), a global customer, employee and brand experience management partner to more than 500 brands, has formed a new partnership with Rubio’s Coastal Grill. The fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in Baja-inspired Mexican food selected SMG to improve real-time, prescriptive feedback across its guest journey. Based in Carlsbad, Calif., Rubio’s has more than 150 locations across California, Arizona and Nevada. Co-founder Ralph Rubio opened the first location as a walk-up taco stand in 1983 in San Diego’s Mission Bay, and the brand’s reputation and …
Newton, Mass. — Voicify, a conversational AI (Artificial Intelligence) platform used to deliver custom voice assistants, and Paytronix Systems, Inc., the most advanced digital guest experience platform for restaurants and retail, have formed a new partnership that enables restaurants to incorporate voice ordering across all customer touch points. Integrating the Voicify voice food ordering assistant with the Paytronix customer experience platform (CXP) allows both organizations to accelerate business development goals in the restaurant industry while offering expanded digital products and services to shared customers. Restaurant ordering options range from mobile …
Union, N.J. — Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. has named Scott Lindblom as chief technology & digital officer, effective immediately. Lindblom has served as the company’s chief technology officer since September 2020, and will now be responsible for managing the company’s digital channel. He will report directly to Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.’s president and CEO, Sue Gove. “We are proud to leverage our organization’s strong talent and elevate Scott, an accomplished leader who possesses significant digital transformation and IT solutions expertise. Scott has experience modernizing technology capabilities for leading …
Berlin and New York — ALDI U.S. and Spryker Systems have been working together to develop a new online food & grocery shopping experience for the U.S. market, offering grocery delivery or curbside pickup for ALDI U.S. shoppers. The new digital commerce platform is currently being tested with a select group of U.S. customers and is planned to be rolled out nationally in a phased approach. “Our partnership with Spryker will allow our shoppers another way to access the incredible value they expect from ALDI,” says Scott Patton, ALDI’s vice …
— By Ashik Ahmed — Scheduling hacks to foster a thriving workplace. Across industries, happy employees are likely to be more productive and yield favorable customer satisfaction rates in return. This is especially true for restaurants and retailers. Most hourly workers today juggle other responsibilities when they’re not clocked in — from attending classes to raising a family, or holding down another job. It’s crucial for employers to demonstrate empathy toward employees and meet them where they are. One of the most effective ways to accomplish this …
Bentonville, Ark., and San Diego — Sam’s Club®, a division of Walmart Inc. and a leading membership warehouse club, has completed a national, chainwide rollout of ‘Inventory Scan’ towers that have been added to its existing fleet of robotic scrubbers in partnership with Brain Corp, an artificial intelligence (AI) company creating transformative core technology in robotics. “Our initial goal at Sam’s Club was to convert time historically spent on scrubbers to more member-focused activities. Our autonomous scrubbers have exceeded this goal. In addition to increasing the consistency and frequency of …
Dallas — Ziosk®, an industry-leading technology platform that helps restaurants increase operational efficiency and optimize the guest experience, is ushering in a new era of innovation with the appointment of three new executive leadership team members: Eric Neilson, chief technology officer; Steve Beckham, chief marketing and brand officer; and Sandro Natale, chief innovation officer. “As we continue our journey toward elevating the dining experience, our goal at Ziosk is to better understand our clients’ guests and ensure that we’re providing the tools necessary to help meet their needs on their …
Frederick, Md. — Roy Rogers Restaurants, a western-themed quick-service restaurant chain based in Frederick, Md., has made key investments in remodeling and technology initiatives to drive brand growth with franchise partners. Renovating a collection of restaurants that were built in different decades and survived a host of design trends was a challenging goal. The stores needed changes, both inside and out, to ultimately look and feel like they belong to the same family. The design had to respect the past, while improving convenience for guests and speed of service — …