Irish-based company Everseen is preparing to launch its new checkout-free retail-technology system, Øline.
The technology is being trialled at a convenience store in Co. Cork, located in the south of Ireland, in the first quarter of 2018.
The system, similar to the Amazon Go store concept, uses a combination of AI, computer vision, biometrics, and a network of interconnected smart devices to eliminate the need for queues and checkouts in stores.
Before using the service, customers must register with Øline and link their payment account to the store's app. Then, when shoppers enter the store, Øline verifies known customers’ identities.
The system keeps track of the products that customers take from or return to the shelves, allowing them to review their selected items on the app and approve payment online before leaving the store.
“This technology is about a lot more than removing registers and lines – those are just two aspects of overhauling the in-store experience," said Alan O'Herlihy, CEO of Everseen.
"Øline gives offline retailers intelligence about their customers. It allows them to respond to consumer behaviour and emotions, not just purchasing patterns,” O'Herlihy continued.
System Development
Everseen says that its tests to date have been successful, allowing the company to resolve issues that could arise from a number of retail scenarios or customer behaviours.
“Once we’ve succeeded in introducing initial data-driven operational efficiencies, our next steps will be to combine data from online stores and social networks to fuel the in-store customer journey, build out more intelligent retail processes, and help retailers manage the retail environment of the future,” added O'Herlihy.
The company has been developing its checkout-free technology since 2012, and it expects to be able to offer its shelf-checkout system to 'football-stadium-sized stores" within two years.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
