The Ag Retailer of the Future Won’t Just Sell Products

The role of the ag retailer is changing, and technology could play a major part in determining what that business looks like in the years ahead. The evolution of ag retail was among the topics discussed during a recent episode of Retail Week, where Asmus Farm Supply’s Amy Asmus and R.W. Griffin’s Griffin Evans shared their perspectives on how data, artificial intelligence, and changing market dynamics are reshaping the independent retailer.

For both retailers, the question isn’t simply how to use new technology. It’s how technology can help retailers spend more time creating value for customers and less time managing the administrative demands of the business.

Turning Data Into Decisions

Ag retailers have no shortage of data. The challenge has traditionally been making that information useful.

Evans said R.W. Griffin is using AI to examine parts of the business that previously required significant amounts of manual effort.

“We have a lot of data in ag retail, and it’s just hard to get it out into a place where you can analyze it,” Evans said.

That is changing as retailers gain access to tools capable of organizing and analyzing large amounts of information.

Evans said his team is using technology for tasks including inventory management, rebate tracking, stocking requirements, and forecasting. The technology can also help employees access product label information and provide agronomic assistance to the sales team.

For a retailer managing thousands of products, customers and transactions, those capabilities could translate into more informed decisions and significant time savings.

From Spreadsheets to Business Intelligence

One of the biggest opportunities may be using AI to turn complex business information into something managers can quickly understand.

Evans said he’s exploring ways to move beyond the traditional approach of spending hours working through spreadsheets.

“I won’t have to spend all my time sitting in front of the computer running spreadsheets,” he said. “I can have an AI build a dashboard that tells me all the things I need to know about my business.”

That could have implications well beyond convenience.

Better visibility into inventory, purchasing, rebates, and sales trends could help retailers identify problems sooner and respond to changing market conditions faster. In an industry where product values can shift quickly — as demonstrated by the growing post-patent crop protection market — that kind of visibility could become increasingly important.

Technology Doesn’t Replace Retail Expertise

While AI offers new capabilities, Asmus emphasized that retailers still need to verify the information they’re receiving.

“With technology moving forward, we’re going to have to ground-truth it, and we’re going to have to make sure it’s giving us the correct information,” she said.

That distinction is particularly important when technology is being used in agronomic decision-making. AI can help organize information and identify patterns, but retailers still need knowledgeable people who understand local conditions, products, growers and agronomic realities.

The technology becomes another tool in the retailer’s toolbox rather than a substitute for expertise.

Working on the Business, Not Just in It

Perhaps the biggest change could be organizational rather than technological.

Independent, family-owned retailers have traditionally relied on leaders who are deeply involved in virtually every aspect of the operation. But as businesses become more complex, that model becomes increasingly difficult to sustain.

“Retailers are not going to be able to just put their heads down and do the same old, same old like we used to do,” Asmus said.

She believes leadership will increasingly need to spend more time looking at the business strategically rather than becoming consumed by its day-to-day operations.

“The leadership is really going to have to work on our businesses more than in our businesses,” Asmus said.

That could mean using technology to automate repetitive tasks, analyze information, and provide better visibility into operations — freeing managers to focus on customers, employees, strategy and new sources of value.

Redefining the Retailer’s Role

The changes underway in crop protection, product pricing, and technology are forcing retailers to consider a larger question: What value does the ag retailer provide beyond selling inputs?

Asmus and Evans both see an industry entering a period of transition. Technology can help retailers operate more efficiently, but the bigger opportunity may be using that technology to strengthen the services and expertise that differentiate independent retailers.

The retailer of the future may still sell seed, crop protection products, and other inputs. But increasingly, the value proposition could also include better information, faster analysis, more precise recommendations, and a deeper understanding of the grower’s business.

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Want to hear more? Watch the full episode of Retail Week to hear Amy Asmus and Griffin Evans discuss how AI and other technologies are changing ag retail, along with the post-patent crop protection market, Farm Bill uncertainty, and other issues shaping the industry.