Calgary Co-op has debuted a new AI-powered charcuterie kiosk at its Oakridge store (150–2580 Southland Dr SW). The interactive kiosk — built in partnership with CGS Immersive and powered by its lifelike AI platform, Cicero — acts as a “charcuterie sommelier,” instantly curating personalized boards based on a shopper’s budget, party size, flavour preferences, and in-stock deli items.
With charcuterie still one of the highest-margin categories, shoppers are looking for guidance while deli teams are stretched thin. Early pilots of these types of programs show average deli tickets rising from ~$8 to $40+, with the potential for up to $70K in incremental annual revenue per kiosk footprint, said CGS.
Using natural dialogue, shoppers share their budget, guest count, and preferences. The kiosk then generates a personalized board with individually priced items, pulling from real-time store inventory. Shoppers can print the list or hand it to deli staff for assembly.
Doug Stephen, president of CGS Immersive, said the company identified two big gaps: shoppers are often intimidated by the deli counter and building a board from scratch, and associates don’t always have the time or deep product knowledge to act like a personal cheese monger for every guest.
“Cicero Charcuterie Sommelier lets anyone answer a few simple questions – guest count, theme, budget, meat/cheese/wine focus – and instantly get a beautifully visualized, store-specific board that can be self-assembled or prepared by the deli team. With Calgary Co-op, we co-designed the experience around their assortment, brand voice, their sommelier, and entertaining occasions so that Cicero feels like a natural extension of their deli experts, not a tech bolt-on,” he said.
Stephen said traditional recommendation engines say “people who bought this also bought that”; Cicero behaves more like a virtual cheese monger and sommelier, planning an entire occasion end-to-end.
“It blends a private large language model with each retailer’s product data, pairing rules, and brand standards to design complete boards – from cheeses and meats to crackers, fruits, and wine pairings – using only in-stock items from that specific store. Because the conversation starts with human questions (Who’s coming? What are you serving? What’s your budget?), the guidance feels like an expert talking with you rather than an algorithm pushing add-ons.
“Cicero Kiosks can plug into the retailer’s existing stack – inventory, and in the near future POS, CRM, and loyalty systems – so every recommendation is grounded in live store data and current promotions, not static planograms. The kiosk uses session-based interactions: it captures only what’s needed to build the board (guest count, budget, taste preferences) and runs all AI reasoning inside a private, encrypted environment where customer data is never shared externally or reused to train models for other clients. We also design the experience to show shoppers why something is being suggested (e.g., “pairs with your Pinot,” “in stock today,” “fits your budget”) so it’s clear, not a black box.”
Stephen said the company’s charcuterie pilots demonstrate that when you turn an $8 deli stop into a curated entertaining solution, tickets routinely jump into the $30 – $50+ range and can unlock up to $70,000 per square foot in incremental revenue in the deli footprint.
“For Calgary Co-op, we’ll be watching three things closely: sustained 4–5x growth in average charcuterie and deli ticket size, net-new board occasions from shoppers who weren’t previously buying charcuterie, and incremental lift across adjacent categories like bakery and wine. As long as the kiosk is consistently driving those behaviours, it pays for itself quickly and becomes a scalable lever for perimeter growth and labour efficiency,” he noted.
“Charcuterie is just the first chapter; the same Cicero “brain” can power custom cakes, prepared meals, seafood platters, wine curation, and even full-occasion planning across the store and the retailer’s app or e-commerce channels. Our roadmap is to make every perimeter department feel like it has its best specialist on duty 24/7, supporting not only guests at the kiosk or on their phones, but also associates with training, planograms, and step-by-step assembly guidance. Longer term, I see AI turning every touchpoint into a moment of service and education: shoppers discover new foods with confidence, teams work more efficiently, and retailers orchestrate a seamless blend of human and digital expertise across hundreds or thousands of locations.”
Why It Matters
- High-margin category: specialty cheese carries 40–60% margins and represents a multi-billion-dollar revenue opportunity — yet many shoppers feel intimidated or unsure what to buy
- Holiday timing: December is peak season for charcuterie boards, entertaining, and specialty food purchases
- Staffing pressure: 92% of shoppers want signage or staff guidance, but deli teams are stretched, especially during holidays
- Rising complexity: younger shoppers expect personalized, interactive experiences — even in traditional categories like deli
How It Works
- Pulls real-time deli inventory
- Curates meats, cheeses, fruits, crackers, and pairings tailored to budget and taste
- Includes wine/cracker pairing suggestions
- Provides printouts for self-assembly or deli pickup
- Offers step-by-step guides to support newer/seasonal deli staff
- Short video overview: https://vimeo.com/1091791352/1bfb698363?share=copy
What Grocers are Seeing
Financial impact
- Average deli tickets rising from ~$8 → $40+
- Up to $70K incremental annual revenue per kiosk footprint
- Cross-department lift (bakery, produce, wine)
Operational efficiency
- Consistent recommendations regardless of staff levels
- Reduces shopper confusion and speeds up decision-making
- Generates category insights to inform ordering and merchandising
Enhanced shopper experience
- Especially appealing to Millennials and Gen Z
- Helps shoppers feel confident building a board
- Reduces friction during high-traffic periods
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