Loql.com is our digital platform that connects buyers with local producers. Or to put it another way, Loql is a bit like a dating app for local producers and REWE stores. That’s because the app has a similarly simple design and focuses on networking. However, its purpose is also to drive the digitalisation of daily business processes.
The idea is based on three strengths of the REWE Group. Firstly, our retailers have extremely varied local and regional product ranges and close relationships with local farmers and producers, which often go back decades. Secondly, REWE has a strong regional position, and our category management teams also build and expand long-term local partnerships on the ground. They are always on hand to advise and support both the retailers and the producers. Last but not least, the REWE Group has been promoting digitalisation for years in Germany and Europe. One example is the REWE Pick&Go stores, where you can buy items without going through the classic checkout process. Loql has combined these three strengths since 2023.
Our goal is to strengthen the local product ranges and empower stakeholders while simplifying and digitalising the relevant processes for all concerned. Producers and in-store employees should be able to devote their full attention to production or the customers and should not have to waste time on order processes that have to be faxed, acquisitions, coordinating by telephone or paperwork that is missing signatures.
With the Loql app, orders can be confirmed directly in the field. It also enables spontaneous coordination and short-notice changes of plan. What’s more, Loql offers additional sales channels for regional farmers and manufacturers. Suppliers post their product portfolio in the app, which displays stores in the local area. The B2B app thus brings together REWE stores and regional producers.
Loql also brings more diversity to the local product shelves and provides the transparency that policymakers, too, are calling for over the origin of the foods. Our figures show the average distance between producers and REWE stores for orders via the platform to be 20.3 kilometres.
