[In the picture] At Lefties, technology helps keep prices low

Lefties, the budget chain owned by the Spanish fashion group Inditex, has just opened its first store in the United Kingdom, marking a new step in the retailer’s international expansion. Several technological innovations are helping to boost productivity at this location.

European expansion

On Thursday, Lefties opened a 3,250 m² store in the Liverpool One shopping center, which welcomes 33 million visitors annually and where Inditex already operates stores for Zara, Bershka, Pull&Bear, and Stradivarius. More Lefties store openings in Newcastle and Essex will follow later this year.

The budget chain, which positions itself just below its sister chain Zara in terms of product range and prices to compete with discount retailers like Primark, is making strong inroads in Europe: earlier this year, its first store opened in France, while Germany and the Netherlands are also on the agenda. The brand already has a global presence in 20 markets with 225 stores.

Notable in the store is the use of technology already found at Zara. This includes robot-operated clothing hanger sorting machines and self-checkout registers with radio-frequency identification (RFID), eliminating the need to scan each item individually. Such tools make the staff’s work easier and increase in-store productivity, which helps reduce costs and keep retail prices low.