Overview
Since its start in 1989, the Italian retailer Coop Estense has expanded to now include 54 supermarkets spread across Italy. These stores are equipped with all the latest innovations because Coop Estense believes in investing in advanced technology to provide better service to its customers. It was the first retailer in Italy to adopt a self-scanning solution, named “Salvatempo,” in 1998, and the first to give customers the opportunity of self-shopping with smartphones.
The Challenge
Coop Estense was looking for a middleware that could manage its self-shopping system with Joya™ devices, as well as with other mobile devices and smartphones. Coop Estense decided to turn to Datalogic due to the very positive experience it had with the company during the installation of the “Salvatempo” service.
The Solution
Datalogic proposed its Shopevolution™ 6.0 middleware, designed to support any device (Joya, other types of mobile devices and smartphones) the retailer decides to use at the point of sale. It includes Java architecture, supports Windows and other operating systems, such as Linux and is completely database independent (open source MySOL, Oracle and SQL Server). The Shopevolution middleware also handles several languages and can be easily integrated into any front-office and loyalty system.
Coop Estense decided to deploy the Shopevolution 6.0 middleware at its store, “Il Borgogioioso,” in Carpi, where it could be used either with one of the Joya devices available or with smartphones. The Shopevolution 6.0 middleware was easy to operate with either device. To use the Joya devices, the customer simply swipes the fidelity card under the scanner, picks up the Joya device and starts shopping. To use a personal smartphone for self-shopping, the customer downloads the appropriate application from the internet and configures the device. Then, the customer registers at the enabled point of sale by reading the bar code on the fidelity card or the personal healthcare card with the camera of the smartphone. After the customer finishes shopping, the smartphone returns to normal operating mode.
The Results
The Shopevolution 6.0 middleware’s capability of integrating into all the systems of the point of sale provide Coop Estense with more possibilities to serve its customers. The customer can choose between the Joya device and a smartphone for self-shopping and can switch from one device to the other at any time without losing any data. Once the device of choice is in hand, the customer can scan the items to be purchased, put them in the cart and go directly to checkout without having to wait in long lines because there is no need to place the items on the checkout belt, saving a lot of time.
“Datalogic’s solution with the Shopevolution middleware received a very positive response from Coop Estense’s customer base and reinforced our relationship with Datalogic,” commented Katia Lucchesi, IT Coordinator for Coop Estense. “The trust we put in Datalogic, an Italian company that understands future market trends and drives innovation, allowed us to take advantage of a self-shopping solution that has guaranteed our customers a faster, more autonomous and higher quality shopping experience.”
Luigi Frison, Senior Group Manager for the Datalogic Mobile Computing Store Automation Unit commented, “We are happy to consolidate our collaboration with one of the most important retailers in Italy, Coop Estense, which has allowed us to create the largest self-shopping installation in Carpi at the “Il Borgogioioso” supermarket with approximately 600 Joya devices managed by the Shopevolution middleware. All the devices are already pre-set for other applications that will improve service at the point of sale even more in the future, such as the possibility of receiving multimedia information on special offers and personalized promotions.”
Customer: Coop Estense
Industy/sub-industry: Retail / Grocery/Supermarkets
Application: Self-shopping
Country: Italy
Datalogic product: Shopevolution 6.0 middleware
