Countdown to Groceryshop 2019: Innovator Spotlight Profiles — Leaf Logistics

Groceryshop 2019

The Coresight Research team will be attending and participating in the Groceryshop 2019 conference, which runs September 15-18 in Las Vegas.

The conference is expected to bring together over 3,000 attendees and more than 200 speakers. Discussion topics will include the transformation of the retail industry, including convenience stores, supermarkets and e-commerce, and changes in the production and distribution of CPGs across multiple retail verticals.

The event also covers the rapid shifts in how consumers discover, shop and buy — from the use of new technologies and business models to the latest shopper trends.

Emerging Technology Spotlight Session

This is the second year the Coresight Research team will support Groceryshop’s early-stage technology startup event: On September 15, Coresight Research CEO and Founder Deborah Weinswig will emcee the Emerging Technology Spotlight, which features 20 innovative technology companies presenting their solutions to solve major retail problems.

Groceryshop selected the participating startups based on their solutions, looking for companies that solve some of the most pressing challenges in grocery, e-commerce, food and CPG. All participating startups offer business-to-business (B2B) solutions. Over 130 companies applied to present at the event: From that group, we selected the 20 using a rigorous vetting process.

These are some of the selection criteria:

• Early-stage, defined as pre-series A funding.
• Relevant to the grocery and/or CPG industries.
• B2B solutions (not consumer-facing).
• Scalable (good growth prospects).
• Highly innovative (deep differentiation).
• Important (solving a major industry problem).

The companies span several countries, although most are based in the US:

• US: 14
• Canada: 2
• Israel: 2
• Australia: 1
• Spain: 1

We categorized the 20 companies into four buckets of retail disruption:

Data and Insights: Digital technology is creating new metrics and capabilities to glean insights and understand the best way to meet and exceed customer expectations.

Improved Shopping Experiences: Shoppers demand intuitive and more seamless grocery experiences, both online and in-store. Grocery retailers face challenges in keeping their assortment up to date and in sync with fast-changing consumer demand.

Next-Generation Marketing: With so many different touchpoints and channels to reach consumers, engagement has become more complex than ever. And, there are rapid shifts in how consumers discover, shop and buy. New marketing technologies help grocery retailers and CPG’s engage and acquire customers.

Operations and Supply Chain: Over the next few years, new omnichannel grocery offerings will likely go mainstream, giving consumers new experiences as well as more convenient delivery and pickup options. Simultaneously, technologies such as robotics, AI and IOT are changing how grocery items move from producer to store to consumer.

Leaf Logistics at a Glance

Founded in 2017, Leaf Logistics provides a data and analytics platform to increase cost and service predictability in the transportation industry. The company used predictive analytics and artificial intelligence to create a freight contracting platform. The platform provides an end-to-end service for carriers, shippers, and logistics service providers and helps them secure future transportation capacity, rates and service through the company’s forward contracts. Pricing data from these contracts, combined with additional analytics and contracting, establish the foundation for a futures market for logistics, allowing participants hedge transportation costs.

What Problem Does Leaf Logistics Solve?

Leaf Logistics enables shippers, carriers, brokers and logistics service providers to quickly identify the best contracting opportunities for their logistics network, cutting cost and improving operations.

Headquarters

New York.

Funding Stage

n/a.

Management Team

Cofounder and CTO Stefan Friederichs has over 15 years’ technology and software development experience. He was chief product officer at Park Jockey prior to founding Leaf Logistics. Stefan holds a PhD in operations research and analytics.

Cofounder and CEO Anshu Prasad led A.T. Kearney’s global analytics practice for 13 years prior to founding Leaf Logistics. He graduated from Cornell University with a degree in biochemistry, and from Oxford University with an MBA.

Market Potential

According to IDC, the market for big data and business analytics will grow from $130.1 billion in 2016 to over $203 billion in 2020 globally, a compound annual growth rate of 11.7%.

Company Outlook

Leaf Logistics was formerly known as the Logistics Exchange. The company has been in beta mode for the past year and a half.