Reimagining the In-Market Shopping Experience

Tell me about your role as a Digital Leader.
I’m the CEO and founder of Ubamarket.

Ubamarket is a household name in the UK. Tell me about how this popular app got it got its start.
Ubamarket puts a shopper’s entire journey into one handy app. The idea was borne out of a frustrating trip I had to the supermarket in 2012! Our household grocery list was sent to me by text. I walked into the store and thought, “OMG, I don’t know where to start! Wouldn’t it be cool if this text message list of items jumped into the right order and told me where everything in the market was located?” That was the genesis of the original idea.

But Ubamarket does more than showing shoppers where items are located in market. Tell us about its other features.
The app informs shoppers in real-time about special promotions, tracks loyalty points, suggests additional purchases the consumer might not have considered, and even tells them if a product line recycles. Consumers use the app to scan their items as they go with the best scanning technology in the business. We like to say, the entire shopping experience is covered, from writing the shopping list to obtaining the post-purchase e-receipt.

Ubamarket is on a roll. You won a Global Mobile Award (GLOMO) for Digital Commerce Innovation, a UK e-Commerce Award for Innovation, the IGD Mobile Innovation Award and were Highly Commended at the UK IT Industry Award Mobile App of the Year. Why is Ubamarket so innovative?

We’ve reimagined the in-store shopping experience while incorporating the convenience that today’s consumers expect online. It’s just about putting the customer in control. In the past, it was all about trying to manipulate the customer; trying to get them to go the back of the store and getting them to buy something along the way. With Ubamarket, we’ve created a sort of hybrid between online shopping and a brick and mortar experience. It’s not the “store of the future”. It’s how things can be right now!

Many retailers are struggling to survive. How can Ubamarket help?
Retailers need to adapt to the expectations of today’s shoppers by creating hyper-personalized experiences. Ubamarket delivers that solution. We’ve created an affordable, high-quality, simple-to-use system for retailers to communicate with their shoppers before, during and after they walk into the store. From large supermarket chains to the tiny store on the street corner, we can have this system up-and-running within a month and increase retailers’ business, on average, by 20 percent straight away as a result.

DMI prides itself on delivering human-centric solutions for our customers. What has your experience been like working with our team?
That customer-centric, user-centric viewpoint absolutely comes through! I have a close relationship with the DMI team on the ground. I talk to them every day. They go above-and-beyond because they really want to create something amazing and help make my vision a reality. Initially, it was sort of a really friendly dictatorship. DMI wanted me to explain to them exactly how I envisioned the product and I drove it. We sat around ideating with post-it notes covering the walls. The team was flexible and expertly put up with me. Now, I’m at a point where they’re giving me suggestions based on their expertise. I have so much trust I say, ‘Great, let’s go for it!’ Bottom line, the DMI team loves the Ubamarket brand as much as I do and I can really sense that enthusiasm throughout the entire team.

What’s next for Ubamarket?
We’re getting interest from retailers around the world. After getting our start in the UK, we are now talking to companies across Europe, in the U.S. and in India, as we eye expansion into new markets. We just need to keep being the best, keep improving and keep innovating all the time!