Self-checkout is becoming an increasingly popular strategy for fashion retailers, and it's not hard to see why. With rising costs of living and inflationary pressures, retailers are looking for ways to reduce costs while still providing a seamless and exceptional shopping experience. In this blog post, we'll explore how self-checkout is supporting retailers to navigate these challenges, while providing a better shopping experience for their customers.

Cost of Living Crisis and Inflationary Pressures

The cost of living crisis and inflationary pressures are affecting everyone, including fashion retailers. As consumers have less disposable income to spend on non-essential items, this can impact fashion retailers' sales. Additionally, inflationary pressures can increase the cost of goods, which can eat into retailers' margins.

To navigate these challenges, fashion retailers are looking for ways to reduce costs while still providing an excellent shopping experience. Self-checkout can help with this. By reducing the number of staff required to manage checkouts, retailers can save on labor costs. Additionally, self-checkout systems can be less expensive than traditional point of sale (POS) systems, which can save retailers money in the long run.

Enhancing Self-Checkout with Pre-Checkout Experiences

For retailers wishing to improve the last step in a customer's path-to-purchase, self-checkout plays a pivotal role. When supported by other pre-checkout self-service solutions, the customer's entire in-store path-to-purchase is enhanced.

By deploying discovery kiosks, digital fitting rooms, and progressive web apps, customers can experience the same self-service journey in-store as they do online - arguably, an even better one.

• Discovery kiosks allow customers to explore products and collections, get recommendations, and find inspiration, while digital fitting rooms enable customers to try on clothes and request products without leaving the fitting room.
• Progressive web apps provide a seamless and personalised shopping experience on a customer's smartphones that can help them find what they're looking for faster

A Quick, Efficient and Fun way to Checkout

Self-checkout is not only a cost-effective solution for fashion retailers, but it is also a quick, efficient, and fun way for customers to checkout on their terms. Mercaux customer, River Island, recently launched RFID Self-Checkout into their store, with was achieved in just a few months:

RFID Self-Checkout in River Island

Paul Cooper, Head of Technology Operations at River Island shares why he decided to deploying self-checkout, what they were hoping to achieve, and the early results of the project: 

Conclusion

Self-checkout and pre-checkout self-service solutions are becoming popular strategies for brick-and-mortar retailers looking to reduce costs, improve the customer experience, increase efficiency, manage inventory more effectively, and appeal to younger shoppers. By implementing these solutions, along with omnichannel strategies, retailers can navigate the challenges of the cost of living crisis and inflationary pressures while providing a better shopping experience for their customers, both online and in-store.

Get in touch with us if you would like to discuss your customer self-service aspirations.