Pay-Per-Task: Inside the Retail Gig Model Serving Grocery Stores Across Europe

Interview with Paul Vezelis, CEO and Co-Founder of Traxlo

Food retailers rarely operate with excess staff. High turnover, absenteeism, seasonal spikes, and repetitive in-store tasks create constant pressure on store managers. The need is not abstract — it is immediate: reliable, on-demand labor that can step in quickly without long hiring cycles.

Traxlo positions itself as a structural response to that problem. The Europe-based startup operates a retail gig platform designed specifically for grocery environments. In this interview, CEO and co-founder Paul Vezelis explains how the model works in practice, who the workers are, and whether the system could one day extend beyond human labor. The company works regularly with supermarkets across Europe, including well-known brands such as Carrefour.

Q: Explain how the system actually works in practice

Vezelis: The process starts with registration on the platform. Every worker goes through online onboarding that includes safety training, behavioral guidelines, and a short assessment test. Only after passing that can they access available tasks.

Retailers post clearly defined assignments - for example, arranging 1,000 Coca-Cola bottles on shelves at a specific store in a specific city. The task is pre-priced. The worker accepts it, arrives at the store, performs the job within a designated area, takes photos as proof of completion, and receives payment through the platform.

Everything is structured around outcomes, not hours.

Q: What kind of tasks are typically posted?

Vezelis: These are structured, operational in-store tasks. Shelf replenishment. Product arrangement. Inventory-related work. Gap filling. The assignments are clearly scoped and measurable. That is important because the entire model depends on clarity. The worker knows exactly what needs to be done and how success is evaluated.

Q: Who are the typical workers on the platform?

Vezelis: Contrary to stereotypes about gig work, most of our workers are women between 30 and 50 years old. Many are looking for flexible, part-time income opportunities close to home. Often, the supermarket where they take assignments is the same one where they regularly shop. It is a familiar environment.

There is also a safety dimension. Supermarkets are perceived as safer workspaces compared to delivery jobs or driving roles. That matters, especially for women.

In terms of compensation, average hourly earnings are comparable to permanent grocery staff.

Paul Vezelis, CEO and Co-Founder of Traxlo

Q: Retail shrinkage is often cited at around 1% of turnover, with employee theft being a contributor. How does your model address that?

Vezelis: Our experience shows relatively low theft rates.

Permanent employees sometimes become familiar with security blind spots or procedural weaknesses. Gig workers are not embedded in the system long-term. They come in for a specific assignment in a defined area. That reduces familiarity with vulnerabilities.

In addition, tasks are monitored and documented through photo verification. The structure itself limits exposure.

Q: How do you position Traxlo — as a staffing company?

Vezelis: We do not see ourselves as a staffing agency. We are building pay-per-task infrastructure for physical retail work. Retailers pay for defined outcomes, not for time. The model is designed to help store managers handle peak periods, absences, and short-term gaps without expanding permanent headcount.

Q: What is Traxlo’s funding structure?

Vezelis: It’s a classic startup setup. Traxlo is a venture-backed company. My co-founder and I retain majority equity, which allows us to maintain strategic control while scaling the platform across European grocery chains.

Polish retail chain Żabka uses the Traxlo platform to address temporary staffing gaps through on-demand task assignments

Q: Hypothetically, could a humanoid robot register on the platform and take on these assignments?

Vezelis: It could be an interesting experiment. We would be open to collaborating on something like that. If the platform is truly outcome-based, then the core requirement is task completion and verification. In theory, the entity performing the job could evolve.

The implication is straightforward. If grocery labor is modular, measurable, and priced per task, the model does not inherently depend on employment status or even biological identity. It depends on execution.

For now, Traxlo’s workforce is human. But the structure it has built — defined tasks, verified completion, digital payment — may prove adaptable to whatever or whoever performs the work next.