A majority of large European retailers (68.1 per cent) say the availability of Scan and Go shopping will give shoppers the confidence to return to physical stores post-COVID lockdowns, according to research.

Scanning technology firm Scandit commissioned research among 116 firms employing an average of 27,000 staff across the Benelux, Nordics, CEE and DACH regions and in Italy, Spain and the UK - and found that 59 per cent either already offer or are working on deploying self-scanning options to consumers in-store (38 per cent and 21 per cent respectively).

More than half (57 per cent) of firms said customers preferred app-based smartphone solutions for self-scanning shopping, rather than legacy dedicated handheld scanners.

In addition, 60 per cent cited increased demand from customers wanting to use the technology to access product information to help them make more conscious purchasing decisions.

Developments in augmented reality (AR), for example, enable customers to quickly find the specific product they are looking for on the shelf.

At the same time, retailers can show discounts on top of products within the app display.

More than a third (36 per cent) of Scan and Go retailers also reported increases in the basket sizes of self-scanning customers, while 27 per cent experienced increases in usage since the start of the pandemic.

Those offering self-scanning cite the ability to reduce contact with staff and other shoppers due to reduced touchpoints as the main reason for self-scanning becoming more mainstream, as well as engaging customers in the broader shopping experience and saving time queuing at checkouts.

Samuel Mueller, chief executive of Scandit, said: “Contactless retail was already becoming a trend before the pandemic - now it’s the new reality. Since COVID, some of our grocery customers have seen the number of mobile app-based Scan and Go transactions in their stores double or more.

He added: “Shoppers prefer not to have to queue at the checkout and the ability to quickly grab what they need and get on with the rest of their day is appealing.

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