NEW YORK — One of the benefits of packaged produce is the ease of correctly ringing it up, whether it’s the store cashier or the shopper doing it themselves with an app, a price gun, a smart cart or self-checkout station.
I took a trip to Manhattan’s West End store location of Morton Williams Supermarkets in early summer to experience a demonstration of A2Z’s Cust2Mate Smart Carts. The retailer bought 100 carts, which allow shoppers to log in, scan their items as they shop, price check before buying, see ads and suggestions and pay, all on the cart.
“We’re here to revolutionize the retail industry, mostly grocery,” said Guy Mordoch, CEO of Cus2Mate, based in Tel Aviv, Israel. The parent company, A2Z, is a publicly traded Vancouver, British Columbia, company that’s shifting from hardware to software, focusing more on data capabilities.
Not only will individuals be able to pay directly on the cart, but consumers will be offered discounts that are not available elsewhere.
However, I noticed that these smaller, NYC-sized smart carts and the store weren’t equipped (yet) to register by-weight bulk produce. True, this was the early launch where kinks were still being worked out, and the process to scan packaged produce was smooth. I tried it for a delicious packaged kale salad at the deli, plus other items on produce department shelves, and it worked well.
There are tentative plans to place scales in the produce department that shoppers can use, print the label, stick it on the loose produce and then scan it. I’ve tried this process at another store and found it awkward, so it takes getting used to. But a lot of things do, and then you’re in that routine and it’s no big deal.
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But that’s the beauty of packaged produce. For the shopper, it’s so easy. For the cashier, it’s so easy. There’s no misidentifying the produce. Inventory is managed better. Yes, there are cons. But wow, simplicity, at least at the far, far end of the supply chain, is appreciated.
Amy’s pros and cons about packaged produce:
Pros
- Less shrink.
- More real estate for marketing messages.
- Some level of food safety.
- Younger consumers want it.
- Meets demand for convenience.
- Better for e-commerce, tech advances.
- Easier for inventory management.
Cons
- Creates more waste.
- Extra production cost means higher retail price.
- Can create new food safety issues.
- Requires more company resources, more carbon footprint.
- Consumers say they don’t want it.
- Less merchandising flexibility, natural beauty.