Asda has partnered with Ocado Group to implement its technology and improve operations on its website, mobile app and home delivery service.

Under the agreement, the supermarket intends to roll out the new ecommerce, fulfilment and delivery technology from 2027.

Asda said the move will improve the shopping experience for its customers, who place over 700,000 online grocery orders each week.

The first phase of the rollout will focus on Asda’s digital channels, with the retailer planning to introduce a rebuilt ecommerce platform featuring improved search functionality, more personalised product recommendations and a simplified checkout process.

Asda said the new technology would provide a more stable platform for online shoppers while helping the business improve conversion and customer experience.

The retailer will then deploy Ocado’s Smart Platform solutions across store fulfilment and last-mile delivery operations. The technology aims to help stores manage online orders more efficiently, improve delivery punctuality and increase available delivery slots through better use of Asda’s existing fleet.

Over 1,000 stores around the world currently use Ocado’s in-store fulfilment technology, while the wider platform supports around 70 million orders each year.

Asda said it will retain full control of its pricing, customer proposition and online operations under the agreement. Orders for scheduled home delivery and click and collect will continue to be fulfilled through Asda stores and existing fulfilment hubs.

The retailer also confirmed that rapid delivery orders placed through partners including Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats will continue to be delivered by those providers, while the picking operations will use Ocado’s technology.

Allan Leighton, executive chairman at Asda, said the retailer needed to continue investing in customer experience to remain competitive in the online grocery market.

“We know that continued success in this highly competitive market is dependent on providing a positive experience for customers every time they shop,” he added. “Partnering with Ocado will strengthen our online offer and provide a consistent and high-quality experience for millions of shoppers, from order through to delivery, while supporting our formula for growth.”

At the beginning of the year, Ocado announced that it had ended mutual exclusivity with retailers in most of its markets where its technology is live.

This included US-based retail and department store chain Kroger as well as grocery retailer Coles in Australia.

The move enabled Ocado to offer its solutions to retailers in some of the world’s largest grocery markets.

Ocado’s solutions include store-based automation, AI-powered manual fulfilment and automated customer fulfilment centres (CFCs) in a range of sizes.

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