It is incredibly difficult for grocery retailers to order the optimal amount of fresh produce. The startup´s solution for this is their AI, which gives supermarkets´ fresh produce departments the opportunity to place the perfect order for every item, every day.
Founded in Berlin by two AI researchers, Avik Mukhija and Carmine Paolino, Freshflow is the first solution in Europe to be built from the ground up for fresh produce – and fruit and vegetables in particular. So-called “automatic replenishment systems” for dry goods have been used successfully in retail for years. However, they fall short when it comes to fresh produce: short variable shelf lives, incorrect stock levels as it is sold by weight and not by piece, seasonality, etc. For the most part, it is therefore still a manual, paper-based ordering process. Designed to be plug-and-play and compatible with any conventional ERP system, Freshflow aims to change this.
Zero inventories negatively impact sales, whereas markdowns reduce the margin. For Freshflow, placing the perfect order means finding the fine balance between the two on a daily basis. Its AI enables you to do just that. Moreover, this is also aided by the data being collected. For example, the company takes into account factors such as the weather, local events, holidays, shelf life, seasonality and dozens of others.
The primary aim of the company is to reduce food retailers´ food waste by at least 30 percent. The long-term vision is to offer the Freshflow solution beyond food retail to the rest of the food supply chain, as the food waste problem exists along the entire chain.
