Liverpool city region tech firm Breathe Technologies delivers AI-driven £2.5m warehouse automation project for leading UK retailer. Tony McDonough reports

Leading UK fragrance retailer, The Perfume Shop (TPS), will see customer orders processed much faster thanks to Liverpool city region tech firm Breathe Technologies.

In a £2.5m project, Breathe has installed, tested and launched a new AI-driven warehouse automation system at TPS’s warehouse in Dunstable, successfully processing hundreds of customer orders.

TPS, the UK’s largest fragrance retailer with annual sales of £289m, is set to see improved efficiencies with three times quicker processing of customer orders and a reduction in packaging of 40% thanks to the new system.

Breathe Technologies, based at Sci-Tech Daresbury, was chosen by TPS to design and deliver the project, comprising both conveyor and machinery together with Breathe’s Orquestr8 Software execution and control system.

Orquestr8 is Breathe’s proprietary AI-driven software platform that simplifies and harmonises the integration of physical automation and digital systems in the warehouse. It will also reduce reduce trailer fill and packaging by 40%.

And it will allow the packing machines to fold boxes to the size of the content included, reducing the overall cardboard and parcel size. Not only this, but the cardboard used is made in the UK and is 90% recyclable.

Overall, with these new innovations in place, it will mean a reduction in reduced carbon emissions for The Perfume Shop, as less delivery trucks will be required on the road. 

With a growth in online traffic and an expectation that its e-store will deliver around 28% of its sales this year with growth versus last year.

David Carroll, chief executive of Breathe Technologies, said: “The real impact of the system is derived from Orquestr8, with its ability to provide visibility and control across the packing function.

“Not only does it support their rapid online growth and high customer service standards now and in the future but also their commitment to a sustainable operation playing its part in reducing carbon emissions.”

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Gill Smith, managing director of TPS, added: “This scale of investment demonstrates The Perfume Shop’s commitment to our customers, our communities, and our colleagues.

“While we remain committed to delivering a brilliant customer shopping experience, we’re also seeing our e-commerce business move from strength-to-strength.

“Investment into warehouse automation will ensure we’re keeping up with the increasing demands of our online business.”