This article is part of the results of The Biggest Fleet 2025. Click here for all results

Retail has emerged as the single most important driver of cleaning robot adoption worldwide. No other sector combines standardized layouts, high traffic, and measurable return on investment in quite the same way.

The Biggest Fleet 2025 ranking confirms this: Walmart, QuikTrip, Sam‘s Club, Denner, and ROSSMANN all sit among the top ten global operators of robotic cleaning fleets. Together, they represent not only scale but also regional diversity – from American hypermarkets to European discount and drugstore chains. Their trajectories, compared to the 2024 ranking, show how retail is shaping robotics adoption across every major market.

Regional Adaptation and Store Formats

The U.S. market favors scale. Walmart (#1) and Sam‘s Club (#4), a Walmart subsidiary, both powered by Tennant machines, operate massive fleets across their large-format stores. With QuikTrip (#3), another heavyweight steps onto the automation stage, deploying Pudu machines — from the Chinese manufacturer — in significant numbers across the North American continent. One reason for this shift is that, unlike Walmart locations, QuikTrip stores have far more limited space — too limited for Tennant’s large machines. In general, however, the consistent layouts of convenience-store formats provide ideal conditions for autonomous scrubber-dryers, which can seamlessly switch between ride-on and self-driving modes.

In Japan, FamilyMart (#20) shows the opposite extreme. Its compact outlets demand smaller robots designed for cluttered spaces. FamilyMart’s units, developed with BIB, not only clean but also carry merchandise baskets, doubling as moving product displays — an inventive use of limited square footage.

Europe presents yet another model. Denner (#7) in Switzerland and ROSSMANN (#9) in Germany deploy mid-sized units from Pudu and Gausium. These are well suited to European store sizes, but scaling them might be complicated for some retailers because of decentralized ownership structures. Many outlets are franchise or semi-independent, meaning adoption requires dozens of individual decisions rather than one centralized rollout.

Operational and Economic Challenges

Rolling out robots at retail scale introduces significant challenges. Cleaning schedules are one of the most sensitive issues. In the United States and Asia, many stores operate 24/7, meaning robots must navigate among customers during open hours. In Europe and in Japan, where closing hours are more common, robots can run at night — but this requires integration with alarm systems, access controls, and staff routines.

Deployment logistics are another hurdle. Robots must pass through automated staff or logistics doors, be stored in small backrooms, and connect to charging infrastructure that was never designed for them. Every practical obstacle multiplies when hundreds of stores are involved.

Maintenance and service at fleet level become critical. One broken machine in a single store may not matter, but widespread downtime can compromise entire chains. Service partners must provide rapid response, spare parts, and software support across regions. This raises questions about who can handle such scale, and at what cost.

The economics of robotics also vary. In the U.S., robots may replace outsourced cleaning staff, making cost savings straightforward to calculate. In Europe, where in-store staff often perform cleaning themselves, robots change internal
workflows rather than reduce headcount. Justifying investment then depends not only on cost but on consistency, safety, and freeing staff for customer-facing tasks.

Finally, the issue of fragmentation looms large. Chains not in the ranking like the German Edeka operate as semi-independent outlets. Unlike our Glorious Five, which can make a single corporate decision, European adoption for the others might require convincing hundreds of local managers. This creates a distribution and deployment challenge for both retailers and their service partners.