Category: News

Vertical Retail Meeting at Almeida Junior headquarters

Three retail solutions startups were selected by Almeida Junior during the first pitch organized by the company to accelerate projects focused on the retail market. “Inside the Box”, “Deconve” e “Wifeed” were the selected startups set to make pilot projects at all Almeida Junior malls in the southern state of Santa Catarina. “We have here in our area a range of startups working on solutions that can help our business, they are 100% ready to start or in need of little improving”, says Rafael Fiedler, the company’s Digital Marketing Director.
The next step is getting these solutions to work and analyzing their results. Fiedler mentions that this is a very important step and he believes in the possibility of making new pitches in the near future, thus creating more opportunities to new ACATE (Santa Catarina’s technology companies association) verticals and selecting other startups. “Our market is constantly changing and startups have the ability of being efficient and disruptive at the same time” he adds.

The meeting brought together about 50 entrepreneurs at the headquarters of Almeida Junior

Complied with the “open innovation” concept, Almeida Junior has opened its doors to set the third official meeting with ACATE´s Vertical Retail. The meeting gathered around 50 businessmen and it was held at Almeida Junior´s headquarters. The topics were related to developing projects that aim at improving the retail market. João Satt, Grupo G5´s CEO opened the event and talked about new brands and digital transformation. “The brands we have nowadays are facing an identity and meaning crises. They need to start making people and purpose a priority.” he said. He emphasized that today growth is exponential rather than linear, making everything faster, cheaper and more cutting-edge.”

The businessman André Krummenauer, Vertical Retail’s director, said that the group has surprisingly moved forward with the work groups and has achieved fine results since last February, when Vertical Retail was created. Currently, there are 17 companies at Vertical that are mainly developing retail management solutions and new technologies.

André Krummenauer, director of Vertical Retail and Rafael Fiedler, Marketing and Digital Director of Almeida Junior

Some of the companies that live in the innovation ecosystem of Santa Catarina Technology Association (ACATE) took part in the launch of Vertical Varejo yesterday afternoon (02/19). The initiative sponsored by Almeida Junior – the largest chain of shopping malls in the South of Brazil – aims to bring shopkeepers, startups and technology companies focused on the segment closer. The first work meeting of Vertical Varejo is already scheduled: March 19 at 9:00 am.

Almeida Junior’s Corporate Marketing Superintendent, Monique Campos – who will represent the company at Vertical Varejo – commented on the investment that retail companies have made in technology to ensure the consumer experience. According to Monique, companies must follow the trends in this transformation in the customer profile. “With this partnership, we will be able to be a benchmark, and can expand and show our expertise outside the State,” she said.

During the launch of Vertical Varejo, Carlos Zilli, Imaginarium entrepreneur and board member, commented on trends and his experience of over 30 years in the market. According to him, there are only 200 retail technology startups in Brazil and they lack this kind of partnership between companies so that projects can be boosted.

 

 

About Almeida Junior

Almeida Junior has been operating in the market for 39 years and manages six shopping malls in Santa Catarina. In 2016, the company created its own Experimental Innovation Laboratory, called AJ.LABS. The following year, it launched SHOPPromo – a new platform that works within the Almeida Junior APP – offering discounts and exclusive offers and adopting the omnichannel concept. Other initiatives have also been developed, such as the analysis of customer behavior in the virtual environment and the partnership with an online reputation management startup.

The aim is to connect retailers with technology companies and foster innovation 

The Santa Catarina Technology Association (ACATE) is launching a new vertical to bring together retailers, startups, and large technology companies focused on retail. Partnering with this initiative is Almeida Junior, the largest shopping mall company in the South of Brazil. Vertical Varejo is ACATE’s 13th business group, which aims to foster innovation through technology in different economic segments. The launch event will take place on February 19 at the ACATE – Primavera Innovation Center.

The initiative will operate in the same way as the association’s other Verticals, offering events and discussions about the sector, and already has the support of a major sponsor, Almeida Junior. For the company’s head of corporate marketing, Monique Campos, “the desire for instantaneousness and convenience, as well as changes in consumer behavior and consumption have led retailers to invest in other areas, especially technology.”

“Almeida Junior created the Experimental Innovation Center (AJ.LABS), in-house, and is now going to share experiences and encourage the technology segment to bet on new tools aimed at retail, being a sponsor of Vertical Varejo,” she adds.

 

About Vertical Varejo

The Vertical Varejo is focused on accelerating the digitalization of the sector by uniting different ends of the retail industry with technology companies. For Daniel Leipnitz, president of the Santa Catarina Technology Association, “Vertical Varejo will facilitate the identification of new retail problems that technology can solve, opening up new opportunities for companies and merchants.”

In this new economic scenario in Brazil, many companies still need to reinvent themselves in order to survive on the market. More than ever, consumers have been looking for value-added products and companies that invest in purchase experiences and efficiency in processes, and that offer the facilities of the digital universe to their customers. “Innovation is required for the sector to start growing again in the coming years, and we are sure that the Vertical Varejo will facilitate this process,” adds Leipnitz.