Kroger has announced that it is locating its new digital headquarters in downtown Cincinnati and expects to grow its digital team to more than 1,000 over the next three years.
The new digital team headquarters, located in the Atrium Two building, will initially house approximately 600 Kroger digital associates.
"We decided to locate Kroger's Digital HQ here because we love Cincinnati," said Rodney McMullen, Kroger's chairman and CEO. "We believe growing our digital team here will support Cincinnati becoming a destination for digital and tech talent."
Starting in July, Kroger will begin moving about 500 existing digital jobs from Blue Ash, and approximately 100 from its general offices on Vine St., to Atrium Two.
"Kroger is creating a seamless shopping environment so customers can choose how to engage with us, both in-store and online, because the future of retail will include both physical and digital experiences," said Yael Cosset, Kroger's chief digital officer. "As part of Restock Kroger, our plan to redefine the grocery customer experience, we are investing in innovative digital and technology infrastructure. Our new Digital HQ is an important step on our journey to create a truly seamless shopping environment."
Kroger recently announced an exclusive partnership with online grocery supermarket Ocado and merged with Home Chef to evolve and grow its digital business. Last week, Kroger reported its first quarter digital sales grew by 66 percent and that its existing coverage area now reaches approximately 75 percent of its customers. This includes its network of ClickList locations, stores offering home delivery through Instacart and other partners, as well as ship to home capabilities. Kroger's goal is to reach 100 percent of its customers with the experience – and, over time, to reach across America. Last week, Kroger Technology was named to Computerworld's Top 100 Best Places to Work in IT.
In Cincinnati, Kroger Technology has partnered with the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber's "Cincy is IT" initiative to attract top tech talent to the region. The company also supports Cincinnati-based Cintrifuse – a public-private partnership established to drive the next phase of growth for the Midwest region through innovation enabled and delivered by startups – including sponsoring an executive-in-residence.
"All the changes we are making to transform our business will make it even easier for families to share meals together," added McMullen. "This business strategy enables us to live our Kroger purpose, because we know that families who share meals together have children who do better in all aspects of their lives."