Retailers back connected store plans at Logile summit

Logile held its first Connect EMEA summit in Worcester, where retailers including bp, Booths, Co-op and Morrisons outlined how they are linking store planning with day-to-day execution.

The event brought together retail and grocery operations leaders from across the UK and wider EMEA region to discuss what participants described as the connected store. The concept is that forecasting, labour planning, fresh and inventory decisions should draw on shared data so central teams and store staff work from the same operational picture.

Speakers from several major retailers described how they are applying that approach in their businesses. Tony Robinson, Head of Intelligent Operations at bp, opened the customer sessions with a presentation on using digital tools on the shop floor.

At Booths, Labour Planning Manager Chris Thompson reviewed five years of workforce management work at the supermarket chain. Later sessions featured Co-op Head of Operational Change Delivery & Capacity Jay Brereton and Labour Planning Manager Steve Nolan, alongside Morrisons Head of Productivity - Labour Planning Alex Rose.

The sessions focused on the practical steps retailers have taken as workforce planning systems move from early adoption to established operating processes. A recurring theme was that changes in store operations tend to last only when workforce planning reflects what happens in shops and central teams work closely with frontline colleagues.

Retailers also highlighted lessons from their own programmes, including the need to listen to store teams, adjust plans during implementation and keep refining processes after launch. The emphasis was less on technology alone and more on whether systems are being used in ways that match the reality of daily trading.

James Freshwater, Vice President - UK, EMEA & International at Logile, said many retailers already have a clear plan but struggle to maintain it under live trading conditions.

"Most retailers we work with already have a plan they believe in," Freshwater said. "The harder part is getting that plan to hold up at 4 p.m. on a busy Saturday, when the people on the shop floor need the same picture as the people who built the schedule. We started Connect EMEA because retailers learn more from each other about closing that gap than they do from any vendor pitch, ours included."

Operational focus

The event also included an opening keynote from Chris Love, Co-Founder of TCN Capital, and a fireside chat led by Evelyn McMullen, Research Director at Nucleus Research, on what she called the connected store imperative.

McMullen's remarks focused on a wider problem facing retailers as they add separate systems to tackle individual challenges.

"We're seeing retailers add individual technology solutions to address specific challenges, only to find that disconnected systems create additional cost and complexity," McMullen said. "As stores take on more responsibilities, from traditional shopping to online fulfillment and other services, the need for coordinated planning and execution becomes even more important. Connecting workforce, inventory and other operational functions around a shared demand signal helps retailers make more consistent decisions across the business, with opportunities to reduce costs, improve customer satisfaction and lower operational risk."

That message reflects pressure across the grocery and wider retail sector to manage stores that now handle more than in-person shopping alone. Many chains are balancing online order fulfilment, local service functions and tighter cost control, making store-level coordination a bigger management issue than in earlier operating models.

Logile used the summit to outline product plans for its Connected Workforce Platform. The roadmap builds on its forecasting, workforce planning and store operations tools, adding an Enterprise Productivity Simulator, long-term staff planning and AI agents designed to provide guidance and handle routine work.

Beyond go-live

Another session addressed the gap between installing workforce systems and achieving measurable changes in how stores are run. FrontlineXP Co-Founder Rob Bate argued that implementation alone is not the point at which a project should be judged.

"Implementing workforce technology is often the easy part. Getting real value from it is much harder," Bate said. "The retailers that get it right see it as an opportunity to transform how they operate. That starts with understanding how things work today, what needs to change and how managers can make better decisions. Go-live is just a milestone, not a measure of success. The real test comes afterwards, measuring the impact, reinforcing new ways of working and making sure old ways don't creep back in. That's what turns the technology investment into real, measurable improvements in business performance."