The new self-service trolley checkouts at Coles Local Camberwell
Throughout the last year, the appetite for self-checkout technologies has accelerated. The COVID-19 pandemic has meant that it has become less desirable for team members to handle shopping in the traditional sense and that there is a need for greater space when moving through the checkout area.
CLX Professionals, alongside Coles, originally designed the trolley self-service checkout to allow for the space customers needed when checking out. The typical self-service checkouts usually seen in stores were originally created to cater for customers with basket shops. However, the growth of customers using self-service checkouts means shoppers with trolleys are now utilising them.
The design of the self-service trolley checkout was an attempt to marry two experiences that customers were familiar with, manned lanes and existing self-checkouts. The self-checkout machine has remained the same, while the makeup of the rest of the checkout feels like a manned lane.
Customers use the conveyor belt in a similar way to the manned lanes before moving their trolley around to the back of the checkout and scanning their items at their own pace. They can scan directly into their trolley or they can utilise the spacious packing bench and bagging area. The addition of a fragile shelf also allows them to separate their soft or breakable goods from the rest of their shopping and pack them last.
The timing of the design has also allowed for the inclusion of hand sanitiser stations and sneeze guards, in order to uphold global health standards and keep customers safe. Not only are the checkouts appropriate for conditions in the current crisis but they really do provide a much more pleasant self-checkout experience for the customer.
The checkouts have also delivered operational efficiencies for the retailer. With one team member managing four trolley self-service conveyor belts, staff can flex the service they provide from light touch through to more traditional service, assisting with scanning and bagging if necessary. With the ability to do this it means the retailer can delay the opening of manned belted lanes until later in the morning and close them down earlier in the evening.
CLX Professionals, in collaboration with leadership teams in-store, have spent significant time developing and understanding the new operating model that best supports the inclusion of these checkouts and the ways it is best utilised for team members and customers. As a result, a new training programme has been developed and team members are being upskilled in the art of delivering flexible service levels.
The checkouts have proven to be a great success with up to 20% of customers checking out through them each week. Customers have provided overwhelmingly positive feedback, notably regarding the new-found space they have been provided. There are still many options for customers as they checkout of stores but the self-service trolley checkout is winning over more fans day-by-day.
Due to increasing global demand, CLX are now offering an even wider range of services to clients. We are your one-stop-shop covering the entire front-end from insights to strategy, design, and manufacture, to execution and training. Get in touch to find out the ways we can transform your business with current, innovative and impactful solutions.
For more information regarding this release and the work of CLX Professionals please contact:
Tony Chapman
Chief Executive Officer
+61 (0) 402 121 464
