SymphonyAI, a leader in vertical AI solutions, has partnered with Central Co-op, Lincolnshire, and Midcounties co-operatives to deploy its AI-powered Connected Retail platform across over 700 stores in the UK. This initiative enhances operational efficiency, localizes assortments, and improves member experiences for more than 1.3 million shoppers.
SymphonyAI’s Connected Retail platform empowers UK co-operatives to address rising costs and shifting consumer demands through AI-driven insights. The platform integrates predictive and generative AI to optimize inventory management, shelf execution, and supply chain operations. “The UK is a strategic growth market for us, and AI — especially generative AI — is at the heart of how we’re helping retailers unlock new value,” said Manish Choudhary, President, Symphony Retail CPG. “Our platform empowers real-time, intelligent decision-making that goes far beyond automation. It transforms complexity into opportunity — with measurable results for both retailers and shoppers.”
The platform enables co-ops to tailor assortments to local community needs, ensuring high on-shelf availability and reducing waste. “As a member-owned business, our shoppers’ needs and preferences take top priority. With SymphonyAI’s connected retail platform, we have seamlessly integrated operations, ensuring shoppers are presented with the optimum range and high on-shelf availability,” said Selina Butterfield-Mashoofi, Chief Finance and Technology Officer, Central Co-operative. This focus drives loyalty and enhances the shopping experience for over 1.3 million members.
By automating labor-intensive tasks, the platform allows store teams to prioritize exceptional service. “With SymphonyAI’s range and space planning, we can quickly adjust our assortments to meet changing member-shopper preferences while automating labour-intensive tasks to allow our teams to focus on delivering exceptional service,” said Jacob Isherwood, CIO, Midcounties Co-op. Similarly, Lincolnshire Co-op benefits from reduced overheads and improved efficiency. “Our priority is to keep shelves stocked with the right products, reduce waste, and minimise overhead costs. With SymphonyAI’s platform, we’re able to enhance our operational efficiency and meet the evolving needs of our shoppers,” said Steve Leach, COO, Lincolnshire Co-op.
The platform delivers measurable outcomes, including localized assortments tailored to community preferences, smarter shelf execution with store-specific planograms, and operational efficiency through predictive analytics and automated workflows. These capabilities enable co-ops to achieve results in weeks, enhancing both retailer performance and shopper satisfaction across diverse UK regions.
SymphonyAI’s partnership with Central, Lincolnshire, and Midcounties co-operatives marks a significant step in modernizing retail operations, leveraging AI to deliver hyper-local, efficient, and member-focused experiences in a competitive market.
Central Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK, with a heritage stretching back over 175 years. It has over 440 trading outlets, a family of around 7,700 colleagues, and more than 330,000 regular trading members.
Lincolnshire Co-op is owned by its 300,000 members, the people of Lincolnshire and surrounding counties, and has been for more than 160 years. It runs 221 trading outlets, including 100 food stores.
The Midcounties Co-operative is one of the UK’s largest independent consumer co-operative societies. It operates a range of businesses across Travel, Food Retail, Early Years, Utilities, Post Offices and Flexible Benefits. The society has over 750,000 members, employs over 6,000 colleagues and has an annual turnover of £1.5 billion. With headquarters in Warwickshire, Midcounties Co-operative also has trading outlets across Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Shropshire, West Midlands, Avon, Somerset, Dorset, Worcestershire, and the surrounding counties.
SymphonyAI builds vertical AI applications that help enterprises tackle their most complex, high-value challenges—like stopping financial crime, improving store performance, and boosting manufacturing efficiency. Trusted by more than 2,000 enterprise customers in 26 countries, including 200 of the top financial institutions, top 25 CPGs, and many of the world’s largest grocers and industrial manufacturers. SymphonyAI delivers domain-trained applications and pre-built agents, ready to work on day one.
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