I worked at every job in a supermarket, from bagger through to store manager, eventually landing as Kroger’s corporate VP of customer loyalty. I was privileged to help create and lead the industry leading KrogerPlus loyalty program (starting with the King Soopers SooperCard) in 1996. KrogerPlus still operates today, as one of the most customer-preferred supermarket loyalty programs in North America. I recruited dunnhumby to partner with Kroger in 2001, and later helped install the transformative customer-first strategy there.
One of the secrets of Kroger’s success is its application of the KrogerPlus data to improve the shopping experience, which takes it far beyond just a CRM or personalised offers programme – improving pricing, promotions, assortment, communications, policies, and services throughout the store. And this is a key distinction, an approach I call “Big L” (with an upper-case letter) Loyalty. Using data and analytics to get the store right (bricks and online), get the messages right, and get the right supporting processes right.
After retiring from Kroger, I joined dunnhumby to help clients grow their sales and loyalty by creating better customer experiences, using data and analytics, of course.