Asda is trialling a new self-service system aimed at enhancing customer convenience through faster refunds and tobacco dispensing.
- The initiative includes a returns ‘drop box’ where shoppers can easily return unwanted or faulty items without waiting for staff assistance.
- Automated tobacco and vape product dispensers are also being tested to reduce queues at kiosks, improving the shopping experience.
- Customers can scan receipts and barcodes for returns, or utilise dispensers for tobacco purchases, highlighting Asda’s innovative approach.
- This trial is part of a broader trend in retail automation, with other retailers also enhancing their self-checkout options.
Asda is piloting a self-service returns system designed to streamline the process for customers. This new ‘drop box’ feature allows shoppers to deposit items they wish to return, whether due to being unwanted or faulty. By merely scanning a receipt and the product’s barcode at the self-service machine, customers can receive an automatic refund, thus eliminating the need for direct staff involvement. In cases where the receipt is unavailable, assistance from Asda staff is still accessible to ensure a seamless return process.
Additionally, Asda is exploring a system to expedite the purchase of tobacco and vape products. Currently underway at the Ashton-under-Lyne store in Greater Manchester, this trial seeks to mitigate the queuing bottleneck at conventional kiosks. Initially, the process involves staff dispensing these products, but the second phase features customers selecting items at self-checkout tills where age verification takes place. The selected products can then be retrieved from an automated vending machine, further enhancing efficiency.
The motivation behind these trials, as stated by Alexander Lacy, Asda’s senior manager for retail front-end service, is to address noted frustrations at kiosks and service desks, where queue times can be extended when shoppers have multiple tasks to complete in a confined space. Lacy emphasises the importance of improving the customer experience by minimising wait times.
This move is in alignment with broader retail industry trends focusing on automation to boost operational efficiency. Similar strategies are being implemented by other major retailers, such as Sainsbury’s and M&S, which have introduced larger self-checkout tills and self-service options in changing rooms, respectively, to enhance service speed.
Asda’s trial of self-service innovations reflects a growing trend in retail towards greater automation and customer convenience.
