CHICAGO - IRI announced Monday that Albertsons, the second-largest grocery chain in the United States, has selected IRI as its preferred partner for point-of-sale data, consumer panel insights and strategic growth initiatives to support joint business collaboration.
“Albertsons’ new relationship with IRI is designed to help us achieve our goals of not only driving growth, but delighting our customers,” stated Shane Sampson, EVP, chief marketing and merchandising officer, Albertsons LLC. “And by integrating our data with IRI’s technology, we’ll also be able to collaborate with our valued suppliers to drive effective merchandising strategies.”
Under the agreement, IRI will become Albertsons Companies’ preferred insights provider of category hierarchy and geographies data, which will help the grocer create a single source of truth for shopper and market information. Albertsons Companies has more than 2,200 grocery stores across 33 states and the District of Columbia under well-known banners, including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons and Jewel-Osco.
IRI will work with Albertsons to facilitate collaboration between Albertsons Companies and its manufacturer partners to make better and faster decisions, founded in data and insights. For Albertsons’ manufacturer partners, this new partnership provides access to expanded and fully integrated datasets from the 18 banners that make up Albertsons Companies for increased ability to drive growth. Manufacturers will have access to shopper insights that more accurately reflect shopper attitudes and behaviors, so they can make better, more informed decisions regarding all critical product and market questions, such as new product development, pricing, packaging, and advertising and promotions.
IRI will provide Albertsons with its Liquid Data technology platform that integrates best-in-class data, including premium causal data (weather, gas and economic), integrated perishables data, health and wellness attributions as well as IRI’s proprietary shopper segmentations.
“We are thrilled to partner with Albertsons Companies, a true powerhouse in the grocery industry,” said Andrew Appel, president and CEO, IRI. “The marketplace for grocery retailers is increasingly competitive and complex, so one of the key ways retailers will win in this environment is through the strategic use of data, technology and prescriptive analytics. IRI has been hard at work in developing market-leading solutions for retailers, and we’ll help Albertsons understand what their shoppers are doing both inside and outside of their stores and unlock new pockets of growth.”