Discount Grocer Food Basics Uses AI to Help Launch Click and Collect Service

Food Basics is now offering online grocery, rolling out its new click and collect service this month. 

Shopping Food Basics online will still provide customers access to the same range of products as in store at the same always low prices, weekly promotions and current offers found in store. 

To launch the new service with impact, Food Basics partnered with creative agency Open – and all with the help of AI.  

“As Food Basics steps into the realm of e-commerce, we’re also delving into new capabilities, and it includes AI.” said Mathieu Robitaille, head of marketing, Metro Ontario Inc. “The influence of AI played a crucial role in defining the campaign's visual identity.”  

“This is a new service offering for the brand, so it needed to feel distinctly Food Basics but also standout as exciting news for our existing customer base,” said Katie Chan, director of marketing, Food Basics.  

What better way to launch a digital service than to use AI 

The choice to go with AI-generated imagery was driven by its cost-effectiveness and flexibility compared to relying on actual photography, which entails booking a studio, purchasing food samples, and so forth. 

"AI generated images really speak to the speed and ease of online grocery shopping at Food Basics." says Anne Ngo, director of client service at Open. 

"We were interested in diving headfirst into AI. It's a great addition to our toolbox. We don't view AI as a threat to our services but rather as a great compliment to creativity" says Martin Beauvais, partner at Open. 

The campaign launched as a geotargeted digital and social media campaign, along with in-store POS and targeted email marketing where the service is available. 

Since 1995, Food Basics has been helping customers save money on their grocery needs by providing Always More for Less. Food Basics operates on three guiding principles: Always Fresh, Always in Stock and Always at Great Prices. Food Basics is the discount banner of Metro Ontario Inc. and currently operates 144 stores across Ontario.