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How AI Reduces Cost and Improves Efficiency in Retail
A Founder Interview with Winmore Digital’s Zhang Jiabo
As artificial intelligence reshapes global industries, retail is undergoing a structural transformation. Labor-intensive operations, rising costs, and low efficiency are forcing retailers to rethink how stores are managed.
In this interview, Zhang Jiabo, Founder of Winmore Digital, shares his perspective on how AI-driven retail systems can reduce operating costs, improve efficiency, and unlock long-term productivity—without disrupting daily operations.
From Labor-Driven Retail to Intelligent Systems
Zhang Jiabo spent more than 15 years working in retail technology before founding Winmore Digital. A pivotal moment came in 2018, when he and his partners conducted in-depth market research in the United States and Japan.
They observed a striking contrast:
A 10,000-square-meter supermarket in China typically requires 60–80 employees, while a similar store in the U.S. often operates with fewer than 30 staff members. More importantly, frontline employees abroad were no longer tied to repetitive tasks—they were focused on customer service and higher-value work.
“Retail is inevitably moving from labor-dependent management toward equipment-driven, intelligent, and automated systems,” Zhang explains. “Just as the steam engine and the internet reshaped productivity, AI will redefine how retail operates.”
Founding Winmore Digital: Solving Real Retail Problems with AI
Winmore Digital was founded with a clear goal: to build practical AI products that retailers can deploy easily, locally, and at scale.
Instead of focusing on experimental or cloud-heavy AI concepts, the company chose a different approach—edge-based AI designed for real store environments.
Today, Winmore Digital’s solutions include:
- AI visual weighing and product recognition systems
- AI-powered self-checkout loss prevention
- Digital human shopping assistants for in-store guidance and engagement
All solutions are designed to run locally on store devices, reducing dependency on cloud infrastructure while ensuring stability, speed, and data control.
Measurable Cost Reduction at the Store Level
One of the most immediate impacts of retail AI is cost reduction.
In traditional fresh-food stores, each weighing station often requires one or two dedicated staff members. Employees must memorize product codes, print labels, and manually manage pricing—processes that are both time-consuming and error-prone.
With AI-based weighing systems, a single device can automatically recognize products, generate pricing, and complete transactions. According to Winmore Digital’s deployment experience:
* Hardware investment per device is minimal
* Paper and consumable costs are significantly reduced
* Stores can save the equivalent of two or more full-time staff positions annually
For many small and mid-sized supermarkets, this translates into clear, measurable ROI within the first year.
Efficiency Without Overtime Culture
Zhang Jiabo also believes that efficiency should apply not only to customers, but to employees as well.
Winmore Digital operates without a mandatory overtime culture. Instead, the company emphasizes autonomy, responsibility, and outcome-driven work. Teams focus on solving real problems efficiently rather than extending working hours.
“People don’t become more productive by working longer,” Zhang says. “They become productive when tools and systems remove unnecessary friction.”
This philosophy extends directly into the company’s product design—technology should simplify work, not add complexity.
Digital Humans and the Future of In-Store Experience
Beyond cost reduction, Winmore Digital is actively exploring how digital humans and intelligent displays can reshape in-store interactions.
Digital human systems can:
- Answer product questions
- Guide customers through stores
- Deliver personalized promotions
- Operate continuously without increasing labor costs
Zhang believes that in the future, a single intelligent screen combined with a digital human may handle many customer-facing tasks—warm, responsive, and context-aware rather than cold or mechanical.
A Global Opportunity for Retail AI
Zhang Jiabo views the current AI wave as a fair and global opportunity. Success will not depend on geography, but on whether technology delivers real value.
“Only AI that genuinely reduces cost and improves efficiency will survive long term.”
Winmore Digital is already serving customers across China, Australia, Singapore, and Europe, with the long-term vision of helping retailers worldwide transition to intelligent, sustainable operations.
Conclusion: Let People Stay in Control
At its core, Winmore Digital’s philosophy is simple:
Technology should work quietly in the background—reducing cost, improving efficiency, and giving control back to people.
As retail continues its digital transformation, companies that align AI with real operational needs will define the next era of intelligent commerce.