Ireland rugby captain and MACE Ambassador Johnny Sexton joined MACE retailers from across Ireland at a special business forum discussing Ideas and Opportunities within Irish grocery retailing recently. Also showcased on the day were a number of technologies and solutions to support the continued growth of MACE retailers’ businesses with this suite of supporting technologies launching across MACE over the next 12 months..
Held at the Kilashee Resort & Spa in Naas, Co. Kildare, this was the first in-person MACE retailer event in more than three years due to the Covid-19 pandemic and was very well attended. Among the new solutions showcased on the day was BWG Foods’ new predictive AI stock management system, ShopLink PRO, which leverages hundreds of complex data points to predict consumer demand for in-store products, allowing for smarter forecasting of stock requirements, while also considering business promotions and category management to deliver the next 5-day sales forecasts. The BWG team also revealed an innovative new HR Support service for retailers to manage this very important part of their business.
BWG Foods, owners and operators of the MACE brand in Ireland, also showcased a number of their latest food and beverage concepts including Háo Chi Bar, The Local Tea Company, Popsicle, Pazza @ Home and I-Scream, the exclusive ice cream offering.
Speaking at the event, Peter Dwan said, “it was wonderful that so many MACE retailers were able to get together for this very important and informative meeting. It’s been over 3 years since the MACE family got together which made today’s event even more enjoyable. Retailing evolved over this period, so it was more important than ever that we got together as we all know, retailers learn from each other. Businesses are facing huge challenges with the extraordinary rate of increase in energy costs as well as rising inflation, collectively we need to help each other over the coming weeks and months as we navigate this latest challenge. Today’s event showcased how technology ‘ innovation and a joined up approach will support retailers into the future”.
Johnny Sexton was a terrific addition to the forum with the Ireland captain taking the opportunity to interact with MACE retailers during the BBQ event.
