Today’s consumers expect flexible, often fast, product delivery. In fact, 68% of consumers say availability of shorter delivery windows is a “determining factor” when they’re ready to purchase a product, according to Roadie research. For small businesses, meeting these expectations is a challenge, largely because they do not have the operational infrastructure to support them. That is why AutoStore has launched Pio, a plug-and-play automated warehouse system designed for U.S.-based small and midsize ecommerce businesses.
AutoStore has proprietary cube store technology designed to offer “the densest product and inventory storage solution on the market,” naming large brands such as Macy’s, Ikea and Puma as clients. AutoStore created Pio and its P100 automated warehouse system to extend these capabilities, as well as automated inventory management and order fulfillment features, to smaller businesses, such as Privada Cigar Club, Sunday Swagger, Souko, Barnes 4WD, and AI Stone.
Improving Ecommerce Performance
Pio is designed to pick and pack 360 orders per hour, reducing labor costs by up to 80%, and save SMBs hundreds of thousands of dollars per year on their ecommerce business operations. To date, Pio customers have seen a full return-on-investment (ROI) in less than a year.
For example, Famme, a women’s athletic brand, has been able to get customers their orders faster and save nearly $400,000 in unnecessary costs since implementing Pio, according to Co-founder and CEO Greg Taube. “The compact storage holds all of our inventory, the robots work day and night preparing orders for same-day delivery, and the app syncs with our e-commerce platform so that we can easily manage inventory in real-time.”
“SMB ecommerce brands face two major challenges in the U.S. — high labor costs and extremely high customer expectations regarding order fulfillment and delivery,” said Magne Hatteland, VP and Head of Pio, in a statement. “Overcoming these two challenges isn’t possible without automation. With Pio, any brand, no matter its size, has access to the same best-in-class warehouse automation system as big box retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods or Best Buy, enabling them to compete at the same level or even outperform. As Shopify streamlines online store operations with digital features to help manage inventory and shipping, Pio’s cube storage technology and robots automate the next step in your logistics by eliminating any backlog and authorizing same-day order processing. This means your team can stop digging through and sorting boxes, and instead, spend their time growing the business to new heights.”
To celebrate its expansion into the U.S., Pio is giving away a P100, a $121,999 value, plus a free one-month subscription to its robots-as-a-service solution. SMBs can enter here for a chance to win.
