Heart of England Co-operative has rolled out Cybake ISB software to optimise the freshness and availability of food made and baked in its retail stores.

Founded in 1832, the Coventry-based business operates 38 Co-operative Food outlets across the West Midlands, Warwickshire, South Leicestershire and Northamptonshire which feature in-store bakery and hot food counters.

It chose Cybake ISB after looking for a solution that could manage production in these sections, cut their waste and increase their sales. 

York-based Cybake is the UK’s leading provider of bakery management software and has a fast-growing user base across North America, Australia, and Asia. The company’s Cybake ISB in-store food production planning solution is used by supermarkets, C-stores, forecourt operators and retail bakery chains.

Using forecasting and real-time sales data, Cybake ISB plans the optimal production for each of Heart of England Co-operative store in multiple waves throughout each day.

It shows store colleagues what items to make or bake, when to make them, and gives them full preparation instructions on tablets. At the same time, the system shows head office exactly how multi-wave production is progressing across the stores, with key KPIs and clear, accurate reports.

Commenting on the rollout, Heart of England Co-operative’s Chief Operating Officer, Paul Strong, says: “Our hot food-to-go sales increased by 20% within weeks of deploying Cybake ISB. A big factor in this rise was compliance and buy-in from store colleagues, ensuring that they made what was needed at the right times.”

Ali Lyons, CEO of Cybake, says: “With the help of the team at Heart of England Co-operative, this was a fast implementation. I am happy to see that it’s already producing impressive results. Heart of England Co-operative has a clear food-to-go strategy, and using Cybake ISB will underpin this exciting plan perfectly.”

Other users of Cybake ISB in the UK include Marks & Spencer, Cooplands Bakery, Wenzel’s Bakery, and forecourts operator Park Garage Group for its Bakery 79 stores.

Visitors to this week’s Food & Drink Expo at the National Exhibition Centre can see Cybake ISB in action and meet Ali Lyons and the Cybake team at stand E150.

Image caption: A store colleague at Heart of England Co-operative’s store in Lower Heathcote, Coventry using Cybake ISB on a tablet.