Former vending operator develops AI-driven micro market security technology that reduces theft in unattended retail for the convenience services industry

Between his family history, his own operator experience, his success as a tech pioneer and his newest tech venture, Mark Kronenberg, founder of ProWatch Solutions, is as connected to the convenience services industry as anyone could be. “That strong connection is what gives ProWatch Solutions a competitive advantage when it comes to serving the needs of operators,” said Kronenberg.

 “My family actually started in vending in the 1930s. I grew up in vending. My grandparents were both on the board of NAMA. My grandmother was the first woman on a NAMA board,” he said. “In the early 80s, I developed software for our own operation, which had vending, industrial food service, catering and OCS. My father and I started CompuVend Systems and owned that for 32 years before selling to Cantaloupe.”

Recognizing a need for micro market security

Kronenberg was acting as an industry consultant when he began to recognize that operators were struggling with micro market theft. it was challenging and time-consuming for them — if they even had the time to deal with theft.

Kronenberg began developing a technology-based solution called ARMS – Automated Retail Management System about three years ago. “We did it by getting a lot of input from both large and small market operators. We did a proof-of-concept, asked them for feedback on it and then moved into the pilot phase. We eventually launched several months ago into the marketplace,” he explained.

“In a nutshell, we are using surveillance video and applying AI and other analytics to identify theft and other lost sales opportunities while providing the operator an easy-to-use actionable format that they can access to promote a good conversation with their customers,” Kronenberg said. “Our goal is to have controls for theft as well as lost sales opportunities.”

The vision: Put the attendant in unattended

Kronenberg said the company’s basic vision is to put the attendant in unattended. “We are like a fly on the wall, looking and seeing what’s going on in a market, and identifying certain events or actions that will help improve performance. We use technology and artificial intelligence to identify issues and events that will help the market operator.”

“From the very onset, I wanted to use the experience I learned from CompuVend in this new company and endeavor to make sure that we had a product that was very simple to use, with a clear focus and understanding of our objectives,” he said. “Operators need a micro market theft solution. How can we easily provide those solutions? We made sure to set up ARMS to be a fantastic product with a support staff that becomes an extension of the operator’s own team.”

“Whether we are doing the investigations, or our customers are, it’s the same platform. All the features, capabilities and tools are available to everyone to use and see because we are looking at the same project on the same screens,” he added. “We are focused on providing helpful and ongoing communication with operators.”

Vending industry experience a key differentiator