Carrefour taps AiFi tech for new Flash 10/10 convenience store
Carrefour is gearing up to open a Flash 10/10 concept store in Paris on 24th November.
The convenience store – developed in collaboration with US startup AiFi – is pitched as the first of its kind in France, and is located at 11 avenue Parmentier, in the capital’s eleventh arrondissement.
Flash 10/10 ("10 seconds to shop and 10 seconds to pay”) features a shopping journey that does not involve having to scan any products and quick payment.
Customers don't need to take items out of their bags. They can enter and exit the store without having to pass through a gateway. There is no need to download an app or register beforehand. And they can view their total spend in real-time.
Four employees will be on hand to open the store and oversee its operation. They will also manage its new e-commerce services (including Pedestrian Click and Collect).
The experience will be made possible by 60 HD cameras, nearly 2,000 sensors built into connected shelves, an algorithm for interpreting data and a proprietary tablet payment system.
Customers are tracked anonymously as a virtual avatar, allocated to them as soon as they enter the store. The products that they pick up are automatically detected and then added to their virtual basket.
Once they have finished shopping, customers get their baskets validated at a kiosk and then pay contactlessly. They can get an electronic receipt sent to them immediately by scanning a QR code. An automatic checkout kiosk is also available for those wishing to pay with cash
Carrefour Flash was tested at Carrefour's head office in Massy over a period of a year or so, during which the innovation team was able to refine the technology and adapt the concept based on feedback from employees using it on a daily basis.
In March 2021, Carrefour Brazil launched Flash Scan & Go, where customers can use their smartphones to shop and pay for the products they want to take home. Six such stores are currently in operation in Brazil, and the subsidiary is planning on opening another eight or so before the end of the year.
And in September, Carrefour launched its Carrefour City+ concept in Dubai alongside Emirati partner Majid Al Futtaim.
“The Flash concept checks our customers’ expectations. They want to be able enter the store easily, know what they are buying, pay quickly and then leave. Compared with other existing concepts, with Carrefour Flash, customers get speed and accessibility in a unique way,” says Elodie Perthuisot, Carrefour Group's Executive Director of E-Commerce, Data and Digital Transformation.
“We are proud to partner with Carrefour to build this delightful shopping experience for shoppers. Following our initial testing in Massy, we are excited to be launching this store in Paris,” says Ying Zheng, Co-founder and President, AiFi.
