“Wholesale needs a people-first approach to AI”
ADVERTORIAL
AI has arrived in wholesale and first movers are seeing its value. Here, one of OpenInfo’s founders, Noah Francis, shares how wholesalers can navigate this tech revolution
AI is flooding into our lives at home and at work and it’s rising to the top of every business’s priority list. Early movers are already seeing it transform how their sales, ops and finance teams operate every day.
We’re seeing a shift in how people view this technology. Where previously there was apprehension, now there is ambition. Leaders are realising that AI is here to help, saving time on the mundane and repetitive tasks so teams can focus on more valuable work.
Adopting AI must be done with care, but businesses have to keep up with the rate of change. Those who don’t embrace it run the very real risk of being left behind.
HOW DID OPENINFO BEGIN?
OpenInfo was founded by Tom, Bobby and myself – we wanted to build a business that focused on combining the latest AI capabilities with products that genuinely add value to how people work each day.
It began with Tom, who spent years running a food supplements business with his brothers, building their tech infrastructure while spending countless hours on the warehouse floor. He felt the challenge of building advanced software that’s also easy to adopt for teams working on the ground.
It was this challenge that led us to start OpenInfo. We are building the most capable AI tools in the industry in close collaboration with the people that use them day in, day out.
Wholesale is a people-first industry and it needs people-first AI solutions.
WHY SHOULD WE PRIORITISE AI NOW?
The technology has reached a tipping point where it is now saving considerable time in businesses who’ve embraced it. In a tough economic environment, these saved hours are so valuable and can be spent on more valuable tasks.
As developments accelerate, the gap between those who adopt AI and those who don’t will only grow – there will be winners and losers.
This technology will be central to the future of British businesses. You only have to look at the government’s recently announced AI Opportunities Action Plan – which covers increased adoption in the private sector – to see how seriously they’re taking it.
A good example of how AI is adding value in wholesale is through automated order processing. We’re already seeing voicemail, email and WhatsApp orders being processed more accurately in 80% less time.
This is a great real-world example of how AI can help, providing your customers with complete flexibility to order how they want with no additional work for your teams – a win-win for everyone.
HOW DO YOU TAKE A PEOPLE-FIRST APPROACH?
Businesses need a trusted AI partner to help navigate this technology. You understand your problems better than anybody – so we listen. Where we help is knowing which AI solutions are possible and how they can work for your operation.
We spend a lot of time on site building and iterating our products with the teams that will use them. Our partnerships are collaborative and long term. For wholesalers, this means you work with a partner who genuinely cares about your future, while we get to build the best possible products for the industry.
We’re lucky that our existing customer base shares this view. We’ve kicked off projects with ambitious businesses who want to lead on AI, such as Castell Howell, J&R Foodservice, Trevors Foodservice and Carron Lodge.
“OpenInfo have been great and simple to implement. AI is going to be a priority across multiple areas of our business going forward, and Tom and Noah are the right partners for that.”
Matthew Hitchen, Trevors Foodservice
GET STARTED
It’s an exciting year ahead and we’re scaling up the team to help more and more businesses. We want to help wholesalers take their first steps in AI adoption – even if it’s just simple solutions to begin with.
Starting, no matter how small, is the most important step.
Get in touch at open-info.co.uk
