Sainsbury’s plans to ‘revolutionise’ its commercial systems through a new tech partnership

Sainsbury’s said that by consolidating its legacy systems it will “achieve increased business agility through cloud-based solutions, as well as a simplified and cost optimised technology estate”.

Enterprise software group SAP has been appointed to lead the design of the new Sainsbury’s solution, in partnership with Accenture and Amazon Web Services.

Sainsbury’s said the tech transformation will “enable future system flexibility” and allow it to “respond to ever-evolving customer propositions and needs”. By adding new capability and capacity to its commercial systems, the retailer will be able “to manage products on promotion in increasingly flexible ways, allowing a more tailored value experience for its customers”.

The project, which will take some years to complete, is expected to benefit customers, suppliers, staff and shareholders by “simplifying and integrating systems and tools into one cohesive platform and creating a single ecosystem for colleagues and suppliers to communicate”. This will ”reduce complexity and improve efficiency for suppliers, helping drive returns”.

Sainsbury’s chief food commercial officer Rhian Bartlett said: “We’re excited to be working with a brilliant partner network to completely revolutionise our commercial systems, which are the heart and lungs of our business operations. This is a huge step forward in our Next Level Sainsbury’s plan, as we continue to invest in market-leading technology that allows us to keep growing at pace and maintain our momentum towards becoming first choice for food.”

SAP UK and Ireland managing director Leila Romane said: “We all appreciate the opportunity in front of us and, with our valued ecosystem partners, match Sainsbury’s ambition to set a gold standard across the food retail industry to drive growth and provide an exceptional customer experience.”