Leading global retail technology business and specialists in preventing food waste, Gander, has announced a major milestone in its journey towards reducing food waste and fostering sustainability within Australia’s grocery retail industry.
Since making its debut in Australia in July 2023, the SaaS company has already launched with independently owned SPAR Chevron in the Gold Coast. Operated by managing director Nash Attwal, it is the first store within the SPAR Australia network to partner with Gander, leading the charge in the fight against food waste.
In 2021, SPAR International, the world’s largest food retail voluntary chain with over 13,900 stores in 48 countries, embarked on a global partnership with Gander to provide the worldwide SPAR network with the tools to tackle food waste head-on. After a successful partnership in Northern Ireland with the Henderson Group, Gander has continued to expand out into the wider UK market. This milestone in Australia is another string to Gander’s bow, setting the stage for wider implementation across all Spar markets.
Damien Corcoran, chief operating officer, at Gander, said: “Our launch in Australia with Spar Chevron highlights our continued commitment to combating food waste on a global scale. By using our digital solution in food waste reduction, we are delighted to have the opportunity to provide Australian shoppers with the availability of marked down products in stores for the first time.
“Gander offers retailers a real-time automated mobile platform to help sell more of their reduce-to-clear items by creating greater visibility of discounted products and offering shoppers more value.
“The Gander platform enables retailers to automatically display to shoppers, in real-time, all markdowns available in store. Participating retailers allow customers to make real savings and reduce food waste in their local community by purchasing the price-reduced products available each day.”
Spar Chevron joined the Gander platform, marking a significant milestone as the first Spar store in Australia to partner with Gander. This collaboration positions Spar Chevron as a leader in the fight against food waste in the independent retail sector. Leveraging Gander’s real-time automated mobile platform, Spar Chevron ensures that discounted, near-expiry products are visible to shoppers, effectively reducing food waste while offering customers greater value.
Nash Attwal, managing director of Spar Chevron, adds: “I’m excited to bring Gander to our community. With food prices on the rise and growing concern for our environment, Gander offers more than just savings – it’s an opportunity for shoppers to take control of their grocery expenses while we, as retailers, address food waste and financial challenges. Together, we will make a real impact, one markdown at a time.”
Gander’s platform enhances its capability by connecting with retailers’ Point of Sale (POS) systems. This connection ensures seamless functionality and a real-time, one-way feed that updates shoppers on markdowns, including products that are created, sold, or marked as waste in-store. Once retailers connect their systems with the Gander platform, all discounted products are automatically displayed to shoppers in real-time, eliminating the need for additional efforts from store teams.
Gander is also working across the entire independent sector in Australia with Metcash, Australian United Retailers, and the IGA, FoodWorks, Spar and other independents (Country Grocers) brands.
Corcoran concludes: “We are very excited about what we can achieve in Australia. Our ambition is to prevent food on retailers’ shelves from becoming waste across the nation. It will give millions of people in the country the benefit of being able to purchase great quality food at a discounted price.
“Our objective is to aid the Australian Government’s National Food Waste Strategy, which aims to achieve a 50% reduction in food waste by 2030.”
Gander has successfully integrated with several leading Point of Sale providers in the UK and Australia, including WorldSmart, Independent Solutions, EDGEPoS and GPK.
Gander recently announced its second consecutive nomination for The Earthshot Prize in recognition for its exceptional contribution to environmental sustainability efforts and its pivotal role in reducing global waste.
To find out more, visit Gander