Combining advanced technology and high-quality foods to address food deserts in underserved communities

The inspiration for a new business can come from anywhere. In the case of Nourish + Bloom Market’s Jilea and Jamie Hemmings, it came from the realization that providing a healthy diet for their two-year-old son, who’d been diagnosed with autism, was more important—and difficult—than they’d ever imagined.

“We started to help him eat well by taking a traditional kid’s meal and putting a healthy twist on it,” said Jilea Hemmings. “Right away, we knew that other families could benefit from that idea.” 

The couple built a niche business marketing a line of meatless all-natural frozen entrees for kids called Greenie Tots that went national, but scaling production, distribution, and marketing in the consumer-packaged goods industry were complex and costly hurdles they did not want to deal with. But the desire to bring healthy options to families persisted.

So leveraging their backgrounds in technology, food distribution, and entrepreneurship, the couple reimagined not only how to improve access to healthy foods but how to do it at scale, using the most advanced technologies available and in as many underserved areas as possible.

A new shopping experience

On January 21, 2022, the Hemmings opened the first Nourish + Bloom Market in Trilith, Georgia, a planned community 20 miles south of Atlanta—and a 15-minute drive from any grocery store. The 1,500-square-foot store is unlike any food market most shoppers have ever seen. With a pandemic as the backdrop throughout the store’s design and development phases, the Hemmings envisioned a cashless transaction system that would give patrons a completely touchless way to pay for their purchases. 

Now, as shoppers move through the store 24 hours a day, a connected network of cameras, scales, and sensors seamlessly tracks every item they pick from bins and shelves. When they’re done, customers can simply walk out of the store while an app on their smartphones executes their transactions. And if they’d like, their entire orders can be carried to their homes by delivery robots.

This ingenious system was designed by UST, a global digital transformation solutions company and Microsoft partner. Interoperability across multiple technology systems was essential to its success, making Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform, with its unparalleled security intelligence, a natural fit. Running on Azure, Nourish + Bloom’s technology includes a range of proprietary hardware and software, including the checkout system, a system to quickly upload new product SKUs into the Nourish + Bloom inventory system on Azure, and a connected system that monitors the temperature of refrigerated cases throughout the store. Together, these technologies create a revolutionary shopping experience.

“We really focused on making the entire experience seamless for shoppers,” said Jamie Hemmings. “From a customer perspective, all the technology moves to the background very quickly, and using it becomes second nature.”

Technology-centric, people-focused

The complete solution at Nourish + Bloom Market is run on the Azure platform using Microsoft’s software as a service model. The two backend systems deployed by UST and Nourish + Bloom—the core solution backend system and the PM inventory backend system—use Microsoft’s database as a service. With its built-in advanced threat protection, Azure helps secure data for Nourish + Bloom Market and its customers.

“But while the systems involved are incredibly advanced, we also wanted to create a warm and friendly neighborhood vibe,” said Jilea Hemmings. “We knew we’d be introducing something new to customers and didn’t want to alienate anyone who might be overwhelmed if we made the technology the star.”

That’s why Nourish + Bloom Market is staffed by members of the local community who are well-versed in technology but also in building human connections. While navigating new technology can be challenging, the friendly and tech-savvy Nourish + Bloom team is helping customers from kids to seniors embrace the simplicity of the Nourish + Bloom app and the convenience it provides at checkout time.

“You’d be surprised how quickly people warm to all the technology,” added Jamie Hemmings. “But we’re committed to preserving the human element for a more familiar experience as we grow.” 

And when the Hemmings say growth, they’re thinking big. Really big. 

“Just like here in Trilith, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of towns and cities across the country where people have extremely limited options for food shopping,” said Jilea Hemmings. “And sadly, if it’s easier to buy a bag of chips and frozen dinners, that’s what people end up eating. That includes families like ours, where nutritious foods are essential.”

Scaling the mission

The Hemmings plan on bringing their high-tech, high-quality Nourish + Bloom Market to communities across the United States in the coming years, with Atlanta, Brooklyn, and Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood high on the list. They’ve even developed a rapid-deployment version of their store that will be constructed from shipping containers.

“It’s the fastest way to address the issue of food deserts in underserved communities,” said Jamie Hemmings. “And we intend to roll out an owner-operated model for expansion so that community members get an opportunity to have a stake in their stores.”

Beyond providing better access to better food, the Hemmings drive positive change in communities through their Nourish + Bloom Foundation. With a mission to deliver STEM learning for kids, to offer job retraining for adults in AI and robotics in underserved communities, and to provide education on the benefits of healthy eating from chefs and nutritionists, the foundation mirrors Nourish + Bloom Market’s blend of high technology and high-quality food.

“We’re now able to scale the mission of our Nourish + Bloom Foundation because store revenue and demand for new stores is greater than we expected,” said Jamie Hemmings.

As Nourish + Bloom Market expands, UST and Microsoft will continue to help Jilea and Jamie Hemmings pursue their mission of bringing high-quality healthy foods within reach of all people.

To get an idea of all the ways Microsoft technologies can help you digitally transform your small business, visit the Small Business Resource Center, where you can schedule a consultation with a product expert to learn more about the right solutions for your business.

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