Apparel & General Merchandise Automation

Warehouse team packing orders into mailing bags at a worktable

Shoppers expect broad choice, accurate availability, fast delivery and simple returns across every channel. In apparel, that means finding the right style, size and color. In general merchandise, it may mean the right model, specification or configuration. Meeting those expectations requires retailers to manage broad assortments, fast product cycles, seasonal peaks and high return volumes without allowing inventory to become trapped in the wrong location. Ocado combines flexible mobile robotics with high-density storage and retrieval systems to improve picking, returns processing and access to inventory across ecommerce, stores and wholesale channels.

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Fast-changing ranges demand flexible fulfillment

Every new product line can multiply across sizes, colors, models, variants and locations. Promotions and seasonal launches create sharp volume peaks, while returns send sellable inventory back through inspection, sortation and putaway. When teams depend on manual travel and handoffs, products remain unavailable for longer, split shipments increase and temporary labor takes more time to become productive. Poor inventory placement can also create shortages in one channel while stock sits elsewhere. The operation needs flexible execution that responds to changing priorities, supported by dense, accessible storage that keeps the full assortment within reach.

Automation that keeps pace with products, channels and peaks

Chuck AMR carrying boxes and trays through a warehouse

Support multiple pick modes

Chuck AMR and Ocado IQ can run batch, discrete, cluster and zone workflows according to product density, aisle design and order profile.

Warehouse associate loading cardboard boxes onto a Chuck AMR

Handle varied formats

Chuck AMR configurations support different totes and cartons, up to six shelf levels, mobile printing and garment on hanger workflows.

Warehouse associate scanning a boxed product with a handheld device beside storage shelves

Accelerate returns

Directed inspection, putaway and movement help sellable products re-enter available inventory sooner.

Robotic picking arms and retrieval bots operating across an automated storage grid

Use space more effectively

High density vertical storage accommodates broad SKU ranges and positions fast moving stock for efficient retrieval.

Chuck AMRs equipped with touchscreens carrying boxes along a warehouse aisle

Scale through peak

Mobile robot capacity and dynamic zoning help the operation respond as promotions and seasonal volumes change.

Add flexible capacity and improve productivity at speed

Ocado’s Mobile Robot Solutions bring Chuck AMR and Porter AMR together through Ocado IQ, keeping people, robots, equipment, and tasks connected across the operation. Chuck AMR carries orders and guides associates through each pick, helping them work faster and more accurately. Porter AMR automates the movement of pallets, cages, and full cases, while the Ocado IQ App extends system-directed work to areas where robots are not used. Ocado IQ orchestrates the entire operation in real time to improve throughput, efficiency, and reliability.

Designed for rapid deployment in existing facilities, the solution adapts to different workflows and demand patterns without major infrastructure changes. Operators can add capacity as needed and create a practical path from targeted workflow automation to a more connected, end-to-end operation.

Build for density and sustained throughput

Ocado's Storage and Retrieval System (OSRS) combines ultra-high-density vertical cube storage, autonomous bots, robotic picking, and AI-powered warehouse software to keep inventory compact, accessible, and moving efficiently. OSRS increases capacity, throughput, speed, and accuracy while reducing space requirements and manual oversight.

Designed for both new and existing facilities, the system can accommodate a wide range of products and scale as demand grows. It can also work alongside mobile robotics, giving operators a practical path from targeted workflow automation to a more connected, end-to-end automated operation.

Proven solutions in fast-changing retail fulfillment

Ocado combines an operator's understanding of complex fulfillment with mobile robotics deployed at more than 120 sites worldwide and used to pick more than one billion units. Within those solutions, Ocado IQ uses live operational data to orchestrate people, robots and tasks, so productivity comes from smarter workflows rather than robot count alone. Ocado's storage and retrieval systems add high-density capacity and keep varied inventory accessible where space and sustained throughput matter most.

The portfolio is modular, allowing apparel and general merchandise operators to address the workflow creating the greatest pressure, from picking and returns to storage, then expand as ranges, channels and demand patterns evolve. Ocado works alongside each customer from operational discovery through deployment and ongoing optimization, shaping automation around the realities of the operation.

Where could better inventory flow unlock omnichannel growth?

We assess SKU profiles, returns, seasonal demand, channel requirements and space to identify the right combination of flexible and high density automation.

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