The Business of Making Humans Very Productive with Max Pedró, Co-Founder & President of Takeoff Technologies

This episode features an interview with Max Pedró, Co-Founder & President of Takeoff Technologies. As an eCommerce and Financial Services entrepreneur, Max is working to transform online grocery by developing an ecosystem of automated micro-fulfillment centers.

On this episode, Max takes us inside the backroom of what he calls “the beehive of automation,” discusses why price cannot be overlooked in favor of speed and convenience, and lays out his vision for the grocery store of the future.

3 Takeaways:

• By making humans 10x more productive, automation allows for the investment in click-and-pick technology. A Takeoff micro-fulfillment center can assemble 130 units per labor hour vs. 20 units in a brick-and-mortar supermarket. It also increases online volume by 20%.
• Online grocery is here to stay. Four years ago, 0.5% of purchases were online. This year, it is projecting to be north of 10% – a 20x increase. This behavior is going to stick post-pandemic, and customers are going to continue to expect same in-store prices and two-hour delivery.
• Love your lamb chops but don’t care about roaming the aisles for toilet paper? The grocery store of the future will feature a combined shopping experience where “wants” items (meats, coffee, flowers) are still made available to pick and enjoy in-store, while routine items are set aside for drive-through and delivery fulfillment.

Key Quotes: 

• “Let’s face it, companies like Amazon and Walmart are making this the new norm: same price as in-stores, no additional fees. You choose pickup or home delivery within two hours. The only way that you can actually build viable businesses is if you put automation very close to where their shoppers are; therefore, hyper-local micro fulfillments.”
• “We can help reimagine retail, and in doing so we can actually democratize access of quality foods at even cheaper prices, all while adding convenience.”
• “In a world without shelves, shoppers just want convenience and not to pay more for it.”

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This podcast is presented by Dell Technologies and Intel. Together they help you realize digital transformation across retail by driving IT innovation to better engage with today’s connected consumer. Learn more at DellTechnologies.com/retail and Intel.com/retail.