Ten robots are helping Bilka Odense shop floor stuff with physical and time consuming Click and Collect tasks.

This is the result of a collaboration between the Danish supermarket retailer and startup Coalescent Mobile Robotics (CMR).

On average, about 40% of the time on the ToGo Click and Collect process is spent performing the same arduous and physically demanding tasks, such as pulling and pushing heavy trolleys.

The robots will help by transporting the trolleys from the warehouse to the store and vice versa.

Mark Nielsen, CEO at Bilka, says: “The process is streamlined, employees are freed from heavy tasks, the working environment is improved and time is freed to improve our customer service.”

“We see great potential in the robots, which in the future could be included in all our supermarkets and which could perhaps be used for more tasks, possibly for replenishment.”

The robot has been named Serena, after tennis star Serena Williams, because according to Clionadh Martin, CEO at CMR, she is “strong, influential and not afraid to challenge the status quo”.

Martin comments: “Serena is designed to be approachable and is unique in its easily accessible non-industrial design. Many people are afraid of robots, but we want to demystify that and show that they can be great partners. It is important to make robots affordable and to make them useful in a fun and healthy way.”

“After a year and a half of cooperation, the robots are now ready to optimise the processes in the BIlka ToGo service.”

“This comes at a time when ToGo orders have increased from 20 to 400-500 daily orders as a result of the pandemic and when there is a shortage of labour. The robots will bring about multiple benefits to Denmark’s only hypermarket.”

Thomas Greve, Group Director IT at Bilka owner Salling Group, says: “For us, it’s also about collaborating with startups for inspiration. We want to be visionary and need technological innovation.”

“We have had a very constructive collaboration with Clionadh all the way. She didn’t come with a ready made solution, but had ideas and was good at listening to realistic experiences, rather than thinking she was going to revolutionise the world of retail.”

“This gave us a great opportunity to influence the process. It has been a positive and educational process.”

CMR plans to install more robots in stores across Denmark, and also expand to other European countries.

The company secured investment of DKK 11 million in 2021.

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