Unsurprisingly, AI was the buzzword at the EuroShop retail trade fair: solutions range from advanced fraud detection and connected store shelves to dynamic pricing and intelligent shopping carts. However, not all applications are equally relevant.
From data to insights
With 1,840 exhibitors and more than 81,000 visitors, last week’s triennial EuroShop Düsseldorf event was once again a trade fair of superlatives. After two difficult editions – one just before and one just after the Covid pandemic – the momentum this year was undeniable, partly driven by groundbreaking technological developments. Is the store really becoming intelligent? We almost have to believe it, although there are some caveats. An AI tool that does little more than print a receipt when you ask for one? Doubtful.
In terms of timing, the fair couldn’t have come at a better time for Vusion, which recently won a European contract to transform Carrefour stores into veritable “data hubs” and “micro fulfillment centers.” The new generation of electronic shelf labels do much more than communicate prices: they also monitor inventory management and make the picking process in stores more efficient, open up new opportunities for marketing retail media, and can also communicate with smartphones and smart shopping carts via Bluetooth. From data to insights, with an app as a task manager for store employees.
Hot topic: fraud at the self-scan
NCR, once the pioneer of the store checkout, is now NCR Voyix, which profiles itself as a “hardware-agnostic” platform for “unified commerce,” or for all touchpoints in the customer journey. Today’s retailers want to be able to switch quickly, perform A/B tests based on real-time data and insights, and use micro-services via apps. Agentic AI allows work processes to be optimized.
One concrete application that we saw at many providers was the self-scan checkout with AI, designed to simplify the checkout process for customers and, above all, to prevent fraud. The combination of smart cameras and analytical software not only quickly detects suspicious or incorrect scanning behavior, but also saves time, for example, through accurate age recognition when a shopper purchases alcohol (eliminating the need to call an employee to validate the purchase) and through the rapid recognition of loose fresh products such as fruits and vegetables.
Eliminating frustrations
“70% of shoppers avoid self-scanning when purchasing fresh produce because they know it’s a hassle,” we hear from Diebold Nixdorf. “We eliminate frustrations and detect 89% of anomalies.” Important: as a retailer, give shoppers the opportunity to correct their mistakes instead of immediately suspecting them of theft, because not every mistake is intentional. When a scan is missed, shoppers are shown an image of what went wrong. Experiences at Intermarché in France show that 80% correct themselves. The latest cameras also work in less structured environments, such as petrol stations where customers walk around each other.
A similar story at GK, a major software player in German-speaking countries with customers including Aldi and Lidl. Fraud detection, age recognition, and freshness recognition at the automatic checkout with low hardware costs: all you need is an AI box and a camera. We also see these self-checkout solutions at other stands. There is one that claims to stand out: the Belgian iRetail Check, from the company that also markets the well-known CaddyCheck. A standalone application that does not require a cumbersome integration process with the POS system. Two smart cameras positioned at an angle and an app, and you’re good to go.
Smart shopping carts
From the automatic checkout to the smart shopping cart: it’s not a big step, as both applications aim to make the checkout process more efficient, but the possibilities of the “smart cart” go much further. We have already presented the smart cart from the American company Instacart. Also worth mentioning is the Colruyt Group project: not present with an exhibition stand, but awarded the EHI Retail Institute award in the “Checkout & smart store” category.
The smart caddie application from the Canadian company Cust2Mate places a holder for a tablet and scanner and a scale on the retailer’s existing carts, so you don’t have to replace the entire fleet. It is more than a self-scan solution; it is an “engagement platform” that works like online shopping, but in the store. With personalized offers based on purchasing behavior or shopping route, opportunities for retail media campaigns and “gamification”… The company does not sell the application but leases it as “cart as a service.” The ROI? Less friction leads to more sales. Returning customers spend up to 50% more while spending less time in the store. And fewer checkout staff are needed. “This is about to break through,” the company believes.
Intelligent store shelves
Since the acquisition of HMY, ITAB has been combining store design with technology more than ever before. “Data is at the heart of our business,” say Jonas Borglin (VP Digital Transformation) and Eric Meynckens (sales manager Belgium). “We want to be a strategic partner for retailers, thinking along with them and looking for solutions. How can we make the checkout process seamless and more efficient? By linking the checkout system to queue management, for example. The entire store is now connected.”
Retailers are more likely to renovate separate departments than their entire store, we learn from Wanzl, which is also responding to the “smartification” of the store with connected furniture. Access gates or beverage cabinets equipped with smart cameras with age recognition, for example, for liquor stores. Or integrated retail media solutions. A Fastlaner shopping cart that recognizes products and can check them out thanks to built-in AI tools.
Human intelligence
Also eye-catchers: robots in various designs, agentic AI applications for automating repetitive tasks, smart pricing applications… And sustainability? That theme has not disappeared. Building blocks made from recycled textile fibers, wall panels made from recycled clothing, mannequins made from biodegradable recycled paper… these are interesting innovations.
“The material you don’t use is the most sustainable,” says Christiaan Rikkers of Studio JDV, which designed a sustainable “future store” for Edeka in Berlin, among other things, under the motto “less is more.” In the United Arab Emirates, the Dutch designer, with government input, developed a new supermarket concept for ADCoop, which aims to be a local counterpart in response to the dominance of France’s Carrefour and India’s Lulu. “We still like to contrast the AI hype with human intelligence,” says Rikkers.
