Sainsbury’s is trialling new scan, pay and go technology that will enable customers in one of its busy London convenience stores to pay for products in-store using their smartphone.
Using the latest version of the SmartShop app, customers visiting the Clapham North Station Local can use their smartphones to scan their shopping as they go and then pay for it through the app, from anywhere in the store, using Apple Pay.
Customers can already use SmartShop in 68 Sainsbury’s supermarkets. The scan, pay & go trial in Clapham will take this technology to the next level. Instead of paying for your shopping at a designated till point, Clapham customers can pay for their basket even faster and from anywhere in the store. SmartShop is growing in popularity with Sainsbury’s customers – there are over 100,000 SmartShop transactions and between 3,000 and 4,000 new customer registrations every week.
With in-store contactless payments predicted to reach $2 trillion by 2020, counting for 1 in 3 in-store transactions , the trial will offer customers another way to pay conveniently in-store.
Sainsbury’s Group Chief Digital Officer, Clodagh Moriarty, said: “Technology and changing customer shopping habits have transformed the way people buy their groceries. Our teams are constantly working hard to bring new convenient shopping experiences to customers and we’re delighted to be the first grocery retailer in the UK to offer customers the ability to shop checkout-free. The latest version of SmartShop, with its new payment feature, will make it super quick for customers to get in and out of the store for those that want to scan, pay and go.”
In addition to paying in the SmartShop app, the store in Clapham will also have both self-serve checkouts and manned checkouts, for customers who might prefer to pay at a till. Sainsbury’s will use customer feedback from Clapham to develop and improve the experience before testing the technology in different store types and locations to learn more over the coming months.
The SmartShop scan, pay & go app was developed in-house by a team of experts whose mission is helping customers save time and shop conveniently. It follows extensive research, development and user testing, including a trial at Sainsbury’s convenience store in Euston train station which allowed customers to use the SmartShop app to scan and pay for the three items making up a lunchtime meal deal.
