Ocado Opening U.S. Office in DC Area

U.K.-based e-grocer Ocado has revealed that it will establish a North American base for its Ocado Solutions division next month in Tysons, Va., ahead of establishing a permanent location in the Washington, D.C. area.

As Ocado’s partnerships with the Kroger Co., No. 2 on Progressive Grocer’s 2018 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States, and Canadian grocer Sobeys continue to gain steam, the new base of operations will be vital in coordinating the delivery of Ocado’s technology, in addition to support and engineering services, to sites across North America.

“The new office will give us a direct presence in North America from which to oversee the delivery of our innovative partnerships with Kroger and Sobeys,” noted Luke Jensen, CEO of Ocado Solutions. “We selected the D.C. area for its great connections to cities across the U.S.A. and Canada, as well as for its strong technology and engineering talent pools.”

Added Jensen: “From this office, we will also coordinate the recruitment and training of hundreds of highly skilled technologists and engineers across North America. We look forward to welcoming this new talent to support the relentless pursuit of innovation at the core of Ocado’s mission.”

Ocado and Cincinnati-based Kroger joined forces in 2018, giving the grocer exclusive use in the United States of the Ocado Smart Platform, the company’s end-to-end technology and automation solutions. The solutions will be deployed at 20 highly automated customer fulfillment centers (CFCs) set to roll out across the country in the coming years. Additionally, the development of a CFC for Sobeys is now well underway for the greater Toronto area.