NetConV is Changing Grocery eCommerce

In this episode of Retail Leadership with Steve Worthy, I sit down with Lucas Piccinin, founder of NetConV, a platform designed to bring real-time expiration date transparency to grocery eCommerce.

We explore how grocers can turn a persistent operational headache into a competitive differentiator by:

• Integrating seamlessly with existing ERP systems
• Using algorithms to dynamically price products based on freshness
• Overcoming cultural and operational resistance to digital transformation

Lucas also shares his founder journey—from selling groceries online to spending three years perfecting the tech—and why U.S. grocers who adopt now will have a decisive edge in the market.

Whether you’re leading operations, innovation, or eCommerce strategy, this episode will challenge how you think about inventory, pricing, and customer trust.

Transcript

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SPEAKER_02 0:50

Well, I have my guest today, Lucas Pichinen. He is the founding principal for NetConvey. And what they've done is they created technology for grocery stores to help them manage and deal with all of those products that are on the shelf that are potentially and going to expire. So I'm super excited about this conversation. Also, uh Ned Conve is a sponsor of this podcast. And so super excited to have him on my show today. Also, if you're looking at this in a video format, um, stay tuned because at the end, we're actually going to be featuring a commercial that's done by Ned Conve. So super excited, super excited to have him on the show today. Let's get ready for retail leadership with Steve Worthy.

SPEAKER_00 1:34

Welcome to Retail Leadership with Steve Worthy, where we go well beyond the corporate playbook to unpack major opportunities, hidden challenges, and critical issues that senior retail leaders face every day. So let's get started right now.

SPEAKER_02 1:55

Well, I'm I'm excited to have you today on the on the podcast. For those who don't know you, could you do me a favor and introduce yourself and your and your company?

SPEAKER_01 2:06

Oh, nice, Steve. Thank you. Thank you for having me here, man. Yeah, sure. Uh I'm Lucas. I'm the founder of NetConf. And uh it was founded in 2015. And uh basically it's a software that uh provides transparency on expiration date in real time on e-commerce. Yeah, and uh that that that's what we've been doing for the last 10 years. And and yeah, that is it. Outstanding.

SPEAKER_02 2:35

Um, so for for for those who who are are are thinking about working with you, what are the what are the what's the problem that you specifically solve um for for the customers that that are gonna be working with you?

SPEAKER_01 2:49

Yeah, we we specifically solve the the problem of transparency on expiration date, on online operations, right? That's what we do. And after doing this, uh what we do, we use the expired products information on the algorithms to manage the stock, right? Okay, excellent.

SPEAKER_02 3:13

And then how do you how does your platform help identify you know that um expired product? And then what type of communication do you give to um the the stores that are gonna be working with you to learn more about that um about that expired product?

SPEAKER_01 3:32

Well what we do, we just provide a full platform that uh integrates on the ERP of the supermarket, and uh we use the CRM of products to generate the replenishment list, and and that is it. Uh we it we just don't mess up with the systems that it's already in use by the supermarket. Uh we we just uh plug in the software that allows the supermarket to to deal with the expiration dates on e-commerce and uh and use for their own benefits.

unknown 4:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:11

That's good. You know, you know, um I think one of our earlier conversations, you you talked about the two different types of retailers that you you've identified, like those who are sort of um ready to work with you or work online, and then those who are just a little bit skeptical. Could you talk a little bit about those two different types of retailers?

SPEAKER_01 4:35

We we note that talking with these retailers, these two two kinds of retailers, and uh the the ones that uh think on the counter operations, uh they they see they see the e-commerce as an extension of the counter operations, right? So they use the same stock and uh that's how they do, and that's how they think. So it on this case you would have a higher level of difficulty to talk to these retailers, right? Because there are two steps for getting this expiration date online, right? The first one is is to use uh dedicated stock only for the online operations, right? And and and why you do that because when you use the same stock for online encounter, you may see the expiration date online, but on counter, if you use the same stock, the customer may pick the the product and put it inside the car, right? So you don't you don't have this kind of control using on this way. You you have to have this dedicated stock. So and after you have this dedicated stock, what we did, we just changed the load in the expiration date basis, right? So by doing this, you have the exact exact control about the products that are expiring. So, and then when you have this kind of data, you you can use on the algorithms to manage your dark store. That's how it works. So perhaps if this kind of customers understand how it works, it gets easier for them to get convinced because the another kind of customer uh it are those that the new technologies and they just come after you and they just keep making questions about the software. And we are very open for these customers too. And sometimes they they show as they have too many uh situations inside their company that they have to handle. But uh what we offer is uh kind of solution that uh don't mess up with the the systems that uh the retailers is already using, right? We just connect to the ERP of the um, as I told uh before, of the retailer and by API and uh use the CRM of products. Uh so and that is it's uh it's a fast move.

SPEAKER_02 7:19

Yeah, no, that's you know, I think that's that's ingenious because you you guys take the guesswork out of you know the the implementation process, right? Because I want to ask you this question. What is is one of the sort of most misunderstood aspects of managing that expiration process, right? Because I think you know you're you're solving some solutions for them, but there's also some misunderstandings that a lot of retailers may have about that process.

SPEAKER_01 7:54

Very good question. Thank you. Yeah, I'll give you an example. On counter, if you drop the price, even with the electronic label, you may have more than one ex uh expiration date on the shelf. And uh the customer may pick the longest one. You never know. But on e-commerce, you you can duplicate the image and you can offer with different expiration dates different prices. So you actually can do the pricing of the freshness of the products, right? Uh you can you can use this kind of information in your favor, right? So by using algorithms that reduce the price when products are getting closer to expire and announcing it, uh, you can direct to specific customers that you you may want, and uh it's a completely different capabilities. Yeah, that's what happens.

SPEAKER_02 8:55

What can um stores do to help out the algorithm? Right? Because the algorithm would only do so much, but the stores actually have to do something on their own to help out that process. What would what would um one or two of those things be?

SPEAKER_01 9:12

The store basically would use the same the same workforce, right? They just would work differently, right? With different tools. This kind of tools that we are offering here, uh, it is made by three components, right? That there are two apps, one for service that uh people use for receiving orders and making replenishment lists, and also to notify the operator to remove products, uh expired products for friendly stock. And uh and this other app we use for hosting virtual stores, right? So the the retailer may choose the marketplace that they want to be in, also. If they want to be in Uber or Amazon, if they this marketplace accepts integration, we can do it. We can provide the expiration data inside the marketplaces too that the retailers want to be in, right? And basically, what they do on the app service is to is to scan the the product that is generated on replenishment list. And if there is all the attributes of the X of the products, includes including X expiration date, it just captures for the app, right? And uh if it is not the attribute, you have to adjust to push manually, right? It's a very interesting moment because they are changing the barcodes, right? They have this new generation of barcodes, and it will bring this kind of attributes of expiration dates. So it it will be easier for retailers to scan it and have it, but if it doesn't have it, we also the software also accepts the the nowadays barcodes that are being used. But uh except that you have to push uh manually the expiration date. That that's what happens.

SPEAKER_02 11:11

Okay. Nice, nice. So before we get into asking you about being a founder, you just recently came back from from Nashville from a conference. Could you could you talk a little bit about that experience? You know, how how how did you find that experience at that conference and your ability to connect with different people at that conference?

SPEAKER_01 11:32

Sure, man. That that that was an amazing conference. That was that was my third time that I've I've been exposing in just GS1 US. And there was a lot of good connections, great connections. We got to talk to a lot of retailers in there and some specialists too. And uh also was FGA present and uh and industries, and we talked to all to all of them, and um they all like it. They all like it. And we we think this environment uh and um compared to others that I've been participating, it's a place where the facts and evidence uh are stronger than the politics and the influence. I I think for for happening on this way, uh things here moves moves faster than other places where the politics and influence are stronger. So I was very pleased to participate on this on this event. Yeah, uh excellent, excellent.

SPEAKER_02 12:42

So um I I I want to move into just a a like a leadership question for you. As a founder, what's one thing that you've learned about yourself that you didn't know before you became a founder?

SPEAKER_01 12:57

I always had this desire of selling groceries online, so I I never fought in founding a startup. I I I always fought in in selling groceries. And then uh I I when I I had the chance for doing this, I just started doing it. But uh before I had the chance, I I used to work in a lot of stuff. I used to work in banks and um and a lot of different banks and companies. And uh when I started selling groceries online, I I also didn't know about this expiration date on e-commerce. And uh I just figured that out by doing by by selling. Uh when you were selling uh only online, you you get to know that when you get like frozen pizza hand hamburger, frozen hamburgers with five days and yogurt with seven days, you you you have very you find very very hard time uh uh to know what price can you do on those products because they are so close, but you can sell, but uh if you drop too much, the customer may may be angry. So I used to have this kind of problems. So I was like, geez, man, I don't know how these people do it. And um and uh I I figured that uh it just didn't do it because they don't don't know how to do it, because if they knew it, they would do it, uh because it's a nightmare. Uh if you don't sell yogurt today to tomorrow, it had one day less, and then you never know. And then that that's that's difficult, man. And the only way to to to sell versions online is is to inform the expiration date on the offering, you know. So when I figured that out, I was like, geez, man, this is uh this is important. Yeah, I think this is very important. And then I I changed my life basically by this event because I gave uh ultra focus on solving this. And then I was like three years for stock counting and for the code guys so they can so he could create the code for write the code for informing the excavation date. And after he he he done it, we didn't know yet what to do with that, and then we we thought that we could drop the price when they are getting closer and and things was uh getting was getting better and better, and then this is the software was awesome. And then we're like we're ready for for offering this for other people, and that that's what we are doing now. And uh it it it it's real nice. It's it's really nice. I I think they'll like it.

SPEAKER_02 16:06

Yeah, if you had one message that you wanted to give to the retailers in the United States, the grocers in the United States, what would that one message be?

SPEAKER_01 16:17

I would tell them that the transparency on expiration date on e-commerce, it's something that should be face it. If not now, some somewhere. And uh when earlier they adopt it, the higher the edge they will get on the market. And we're very pleased to to serve the the supermarkets in the United States. And uh yeah, you just contact me, man. It's we do it. Let's do it. Cool.

SPEAKER_02 16:53

Exciting, exciting. Well, um, I'll make sure every everybody's gonna have all your information where they can get in contact with you uh so that they can connect with you. So uh thanks so much, Lucas, for being here. And um, I'm excited for what you're doing.

SPEAKER_01 17:07

Nice, man. Thank you very much, Steve, for all the help you are giving us. Thank you. Thank you.