Mimir
Real AI for Real Expertise
Sunkost is Norway’s leading retailer in health and wellness, known for its knowledgeable staff and expert guidance. But that same professional expertise wasn’t reflected online.
How Sunkost Brought In-Store Knowledge Online with Mimir
Sunkost is Norway’s leading retailer in health and wellness, known for its knowledgeable staff and expert guidance. But that same professional expertise wasn’t reflected online.
“We’re a knowledge-driven brand—our store employees are true experts. But that didn’t really come through in the online store, and we wanted to change that.”
— Karoline Gjerde, Ecommerce Director at Sunkost
Sunkost’s goal wasn’t simply to automate responses. They wanted to build a trustworthy, compliant, and professional digital assistant that could reflect their expertise, offer personal advice safely, and make them more accessible to customers online.
The Challenge
Before implementing Mimir, Sunkost faced several pain points:
No ticketing system: All inquiries were handled manually across email, phone, and social media.
Low support volume but low availability: A small team and limited time meant some customers didn’t get timely replies.
A regulated, sensitive product area: Answers about supplements, diet, or wellness had to be handled carefully. The team was worried AI might say something “unsafe.”
Digital gap: The “expert store” experience wasn’t mirrored in the online channel.
Privacy-sensitive questions: Many customer questions are personal, like sleep or digestion issues, that some might prefer asking an AI rather than a human.
“It can actually be an advantage that it’s not a person you’re chatting with. Some of the questions in our field are quite personal, like having an upset stomach, and customers might not want to talk about that face-to-face.”
— Karoline Gjerde
From Curiosity to Confidence
When Sunkost first reached out to Mimir, they were curious but cautious. They had looked into multiple AI solutions before, but most felt like simple FAQ bots, not something capable of handling the sensitive nature of wellness advice.
“We were curious but also a bit nervous about saying something wrong. It’s a regulated field. But after seeing how Mimir controls information and only answers based on verified content, we felt confident moving forward.”
— Karoline Gjerde
They also appreciated Mimir’s collaborative and forward-leaning approach.
“We’d looked at many other providers, but what mattered to us was that Mimir was quick to act, open to feedback, and genuinely wanted to improve. That gave us confidence.”
— Karoline Gjerde
Initially, Sunkost saw some risk in testing new technology. But the team quickly realized that risk was minimal.
“There’s always some risk when you try something new, but once we understood the setup, it wasn’t really risky at all. If it didn’t work, we could just switch it off for a period, before launching again.”
— Karoline Gjerde
Ultimately, they chose to move forward because they saw a shared mindset.
“We’re a forward-thinking company ourselves, so we need partners who are the same way. Mimir gave us the impression that they’re solutions-oriented and improving fast. That’s exactly what we wanted.”
— Karoline Gjerde
From Pilot to Performance
The efficiency gains were significant.
In a single month, Mimir handled 860 customer emails, delivering measurable results:
20% fully automated (“as-is”) → saved ~1,118 minutes*
30% required minor edits → saved ~1,290 minutes**
Total saved time: ~2,400 minutes = ~40 hours — a full workweek saved
*Assuming 6.5 minutes to close a ticket normally
**And 1.5 minutes when only editing
And that’s just from email. On Sunkost’s website, Mimir conducted over a thousand chat conversations, only escalating around 5% to a human. That meant customers got faster, more accurate answers, while the Sunkost team regained time for other priorities.
Impact and Outlook
Today, Sunkost’s AI assistant supports both customers and internal franchise stores.
Franchisees can use an internal version of Mimir to get quick answers instead of relying on the e-commerce team, saving valuable time across the organization.
“We’re super happy, both with the customer service results and that we now support our stores through the same system. We probably wouldn’t have achieved that without Mimir.”
— Karoline Gjerde
Mimir now ensures that every digital interaction reflects the same level of professionalism and trust customers experience in-store.
“We believe this will increase conversion rates, raise our online professionalism, and bring the same expertise customers know from our stores into the digital experience.”
— Karoline Gjerde
Looking ahead, Sunkost plans to expand Mimir’s role even further, focusing on product recommendations and tracking how AI can influence sales conversion.
“The next step is seeing how Mimir can not just help customers but also actively drive revenue. We’re confident it can.”
— Karoline Gjerde
