Technology at Midwinter: How Food Retail Is Evolving

The FMI Midwinter Executive Conference will examine how technology is reshaping food retail and helping leaders stay competitive.

By: Doug Baker, Vice President, Industry Relations, FMI

If you spend time in stores, distribution centers, or in conversation with operations teams across the industry, one thing becomes clear: technology has fundamentally changed how we do business. We see it influencing day-to-day decisions, labor models, inventory accuracy, demand planning, and—more than ever—customer expectations.

What I appreciate about this year’s Midwinter Executive Conference technology sessions is that, together, they tell a real-world story about where food retail operations are heading and what leaders need to pay attention to in order to compete.

The Tech-Driven Store

We begin with The Future of Grocery Through the Tech-Driven Store, a discussion grounded not only in research, but also in operator experience. Autonomous checkout, computer vision shelf monitoring, and new store formats aren’t abstract ideas—they’re tools that force us to rethink how we deploy labor, maintain standards, and manage the customer experience at scale. The balance between automation and human interaction is becoming one of the defining questions for industry.

Artificial Intelligence in Action

Several sessions delve into AI’s expanding role: Delivering AI ROI from Strategy to Shelf and Generative AI in Grocery examine where AI is already producing measurable improvements. Whether through better forecasting, more accurate personalization, or smarter task automation, these tools are beginning to shift cost structures and change how work gets done. The key is not the technology itself, but how it is applied, governed, and measured.

Data Discipline and Connected Systems

From Real-Time Visibility to Predictive Retail shows how improvements in price accuracy, product availability, and ecommerce fulfillment stem from better data discipline and more connected store systems. Reinventing Loyalty, The Connected Workforce, and Supply Chain Reimagined extends that theme to different parts of the business, but the same underlying trend toward transparency, adaptability, and more intelligent workflows.

Innovation at the Edge

Innovation isn’t limited to established players. The FMItech Pitch Competition spotlights ingenuity at the edge of our industry, with finalists BetterBasket, Geniun, and Swish. They are building technology that solves immediate retail problems and demonstrates how quickly new capabilities are being adopted into the mainstream.

The Agentic Consumer

Friday’s keynote, Winning the Agentic Consumer, addresses a shift that none of us can ignore. As consumers use AI to plan, shop, and even transact on their behalf, we face a new layer between retailers and the shopper. The question becomes: how do retailers and brands remain relevant when an algorithm, rather than a shopper, decides what goes into the basket?

Practical Solutions and Collaboration

The FMItech Program also includes Exchanges, which are focused, 20-minute conversations with technology partners offering practical, in-market solutions for today’s operational challenges.

Navigating Change Together

Taken together, these sessions and exchanges, along with the rest of the Midwinter program, reflect the operational reality we’re all navigating: a retail environment defined by constant change, new pressures, and new tools. Midwinter gives us space to step back, compare notes, and make sense of where the momentum is headed.

Looking forward to seeing you in California!

FMI Midwinter Agenda