Morrisons to deploy ‘Shop to light’ feature in supermarkets
Morrisons will build on the roll-out of electronic shelf labels (ESLs) across its supermarket estate with the development of flashing light technology to aid product location for shoppers. As reported by Retail Week, the retailer will integrate the technology with the Product Finder feature of its app. This will enable shoppers to trigger a flashing light on a product’s ESL. Morrisons has installed ESLs in more than 200 of its 495 supermarkets, with installation set to be completed by early summer next year. The ‘shop to light’ feature is expected to be in stores by the end of November.
Senior Insight Analyst, Alex Rowberry’s view: Morrisons is increasingly looking beyond the operational benefits of ESLs to how the technology can improve the customer experience. ‘Shop to light’ should make stores easier to navigate and products quicker to locate, demonstrating how relatively simple digital enhancements can remove friction from the in-store shopping journey. By launching the feature now, Morrisons can capitalise on being the first UK retailer to deploy ‘shop to light.’ However, as competitors continue their own ESL rollouts, this advantage is unlikely to last for long.