WEST CHESTER, Pa. — According to a recent study by IHL Consulting Group, self-checkout and other self-service systems generated almost $128 billion in sales last year, up about 80 percent over the year before.
Projections are that these sales figures will continue to grow exponentially — up by 73 percent this year and then a projected 88 percent next year, according to a news release.
This significant growth pattern clearly reflects the growing interest in retail self-service technology, and is particularly telling for the European market, where such services are becoming more common.
"Europe's self-service industry is expected to grow by 35 percent in 2005, and self-checkout systems are expected to account for a key portion of that," said Andrew Osborne, global marketing manager for MEI's retail division. MEI provides bill and coin acceptors to the self-service market. "According to our findings, the ability of a self-checkout system to accept customers' payment of choice the first time, every time, is a key factor to the technology's widespread acceptance. MEI payment technologies are currently in trials with some of Europe's biggest retail chains, and the results are very encouraging."
In its report, "Self-Checkout Systems: Defining Retailers as Leaders of the Pack," research firm IDC found that nearly 80 percent of consumers in five different countries claim they are likely to use self-checkout technology for scanning, bagging and paying for their own groceries. Even shoppers who have never used self-checkout services said the option would make a difference in deciding where they shop.
One key to self-checkout success, according to Osborne, is designing a system that meets consumers' various needs. "Self-checkout systems are all about convenience and choice," he said. "If they don't offer the conveniences that a customer demands, along with the choices the customer expects — from the time it takes to use them to the methods of payment they accept — they'll fail, and the retailer will not see the return on investment they set out to achieve."
