{"id":5404,"date":"2020-01-30T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hedgehoglab.com\/does-retail-need-to-be-more-receptive-to-innovation\/"},"modified":"2023-11-06T09:53:52","modified_gmt":"2023-11-06T08:53:52","slug":"does-retail-need-to-be-more-receptive-to-innovation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hedgehoglab.com\/does-retail-need-to-be-more-receptive-to-innovation\/","title":{"rendered":"Does retail need to be more receptive to innovation?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The use of technology in retail is nothing new. For some time\u201a the sector has been investigating automation<\/a> as a means of increasing efficiency\u201a reducing costs\u201a raising profits and providing better customer experience. Many outlets also use cameras to monitor customer movements\u201a identifying where they engage most with products and creating traffic heat maps<\/a> to optimise store layout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite many brands taking innovation seriously and even developing their own retail mobile strategies\u201a the industry is still notoriously slow to adopt new technologies<\/a>\u201a often holding back until their worth has been proven. Generally\u201a those who take this approach lose no competitive advantage\u201a since most of their market rivals will be doing exactly the same. But it does leave the door wide open for disruption\u201a with those who innovate first set to benefit most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In December 2016\u201a Amazon revealed Amazon Go<\/a>\u201a a concept the company bravely dubbed ‘the world’s most advanced shopping technology’. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The innovation\u201a which is being tested at a prototype store in Seattle\u201a combines machine learning\u201a computer vision and artificial intelligence to remove the frustration of having to wait in line to pay for goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead\u201a customers would download an app to their smartphones\u201a which they would scan upon entering the store. Then it would be a simple matter of picking up the products they want and leaving\u201a at which point their bank accounts would be charged and a digital receipt delivered automatically. Naturally\u201a some may worry about the accuracy of virtual shopping carts\u201a but Amazon has given assurances customers would not be charged for anything they had not left the store with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tesco has also been innovating to help its customers reduce time spent at the tills. In 2013\u201a the retail giant launched PayQwik\u201a distributing scanners so people could process their own purchases as they went along\u201a rather than having to unload and repack a trolley. Three years on\u201a it released the PayQwik mobile app\u201a replicating the system in the form of mobile payments. Most recently\u201a the company rebranded its swift mobile checkout option as Tesco Pay+<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Others now seem to be taking notice. Walmart\u201a which is investing heavily in technology\u201a for instance\u201a has launched a ‘Scan & Go’ app – a move which is already proving fruitful<\/a>. Elsewhere\u201a Sainsburys have began testing their own mobile-first checkoutless shopping experience<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nCheckoutless Shopping:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Mobile Checkout:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Immersive Training:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n