Currys upgrades stores including switch to ESELs and digital queuing system alongside back of house improvements
Omnichannel technology retailer, Currys, has announced a range of upgrades to its UK&I stores.
It is switching from paper product pricing to digital labelling, known as ‘electronic shelf edge labelling’ (ESEL). This will arrive in 100 UK&I stores by the end of this financial year, with 60 going digital ‘pre-peak’.
With clear labelling and easy to scan QR codes for further information, it seeks to make the in-store customer journey a lot smoother. ESEL will be managed by a centralised system which is also set to improve pricing accuracy and ultimately availability in stores for customers.
The initiative has been driven by employee feedback that manual paper printing and labelling could become a real pain point for teams during busy trading periods. Teams will now be freed up to spend more time helping customers.
Currys has also introduced a digital queuing system across all its 298 UK&I stores. This new process will be fronted by dedicated ‘Sales Floor Leaders’ who will be on-hand to give customers a ‘warm welcome’ and be identifiable to customers with ‘Here to Help’ hi-vis.
Integrated into colleagues’ ‘store-mode’ tablets that are used to process customer orders, shoppers can now join a digital line to speak to a tech expert.
Back of house improvements have also been made to how stock is delivered and managed when it comes to Currys’ Order & Collect service. Cancelled orders and the amount of time uncollected products are held in stores has been reduced from 28-days to a 10-day window. This means stock will be redirected more efficiently and customer refunds processed quicker.
A more efficient store delivery model will see daily stock arrivals take place in one go, rather than spread over several drops throughout the day as currently is the case. This hopes to free colleagues up to spend yet more time on the shopfloor with customers, as well as giving customers a clearer indication on stock and availability.
Director of Stores, Matthew Speight says: “We’re ready to help all our customers enjoy amazing tech during what we know is our busiest trading period of the year. Our teams are excited by the new tools and improvements they’ve got to help them, help our customers.”
“I’m looking forward seeing the benefits that digital queuing will bring in terms of improving the customer experience in-store, especially at our busiest periods. Also, we know Order & Collect is a really important proposition to customers over Christmas, so we’re excited to see the improvements come to life here.”
“So many colleagues I speak to are very happy about the roll out of digital ticketing and the huge benefits that will bring to them and customers. In fact, everything in this plan is going to create an easier shopping experience for customers – and that’s really exciting too!”
50 superstores and 42 megastores have been revamped in 2024, and 23 are set to be completed by the end of the financial year.
2024 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS
Physical stores are a key focus area for the sixth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards, which are now closed for entries.
The awards, sponsored by Vista Technology Support, Scala, CADS, 3D Cloud, Brightpearl by Sage’s Lightning 50, Business France, and Retail Technology Show 2025, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
Key 2024 dates
Friday, 25th October: Award entry deadline
Tuesday, 29th October: 2024 shortlist revealed
30th October-6th November: Judging days
Thursday, 21st November: Winners announced at the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards ceremony, to be held at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London.
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