The Kroger Co. has acquired certain assets of dunnhumby Ltd, a leading customer science company, to create substantial opportunities for innovation and growth. A new business called 84.51° will operate with those assets as its foundation. Financial terms of the new arrangements were not disclosed. The new businesses was set to commence operations April 27.

"Kroger and dunnhumby revolutionized retailing in the U.S. by focusing on the customer, and we intend to do it again with 84.51°," Rodney McMullen, Kroger's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a press release. "We are launching 84.51° with a powerful foundation, including a decade of experience and a team of incredibly talented associates from both dunnhumbyUSA and Kroger. The ability to combine what we already know with other partners is exciting and will speed up innovation. We expect these innovations to grow our business and deliver a world-class customer experience. We will continue to utilize data science for the benefit of the customer and to deliver a personalized experience, both in store and online. Doing so will continue to differentiate Kroger and create value for our shareholders."

Under the new arrangements, Kroger will retain dunnhumby Ltd's technology and the talent to continue developing Kroger's leading customer insights and loyalty programs for the benefit of its customers.

More than 500 of dunnhumbyUSA's employees will become associates of 84.51°, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Kroger Co.  84.51° will also have the benefit of a perpetual license to use dunnhumby Ltd's analytical tools to find customer insights in Kroger's data. dunnhumby Ltd will provide service and maintenance on those tools for a period of five years, but will no longer have access to Kroger's data. Stuart Aitken, who previously led dunnhumbyUSA, will become CEO of 84.51°.

dunnhumby Ltd will continue to operate in the United States as dunnhumby, expanding its client base and accelerating the growth of its business through the greater flexibility of the new arrangements with Kroger. dunnhumby will now have the ability to use its insight products and data expertise to capture the substantial, previously unavailable potential of the North American market through working with new retailers, consumer brands and media partners.

In addition, 84.51° will have the flexibility to accelerate future innovation by working with new partners and new tools, always toward the goal of engaging customers where, when and how it matters most to them. Where previously Kroger was restricted to working with dunnhumby only, the new non-exclusive arrangement now makes available to 84.51° the use of innovative tools from other companies to analyze its data. 

"We are excited to bring our insights and capabilities to more of the American market and to continue our relationship with Kroger over the next five years," Simon Hay, CEO of dunnhumby Ltd, said in a press release. "The wider U.S. market is a fantastic opportunity for dunnhumby to help more retailers and brands undertake a similar journey using data-informed insights to delight their customers and earn their loyalty."