Iperal Streamlines the Shopping Experience with Scan As You Shop System
Iperal is an Italian chain of super- and hypermarkets with 53 stores across eight Lombardy provinces. Known for its innovative stores and quality products, Iperal wanted to give customers the ability to self-scan during their shopping experience.
Zebra Success Story: Iperal
Overview: Retail Challenge
Iperal wanted to improve customer experiences and optimize store operations. The company sought a technology solution that could help manage the rush during peak hours and enhance overall customer satisfaction. Iperal's initial choice of a technology collaborator did not align with its needs, leading to a search for a more suitable solution. It turned to Zebra’s Scan As You Shop system which allowed customers to self-scan and pay, reducing stress for employees and improving the shopping experience.
Benefits / Outcomes
- Improved customer experience
- Increased customer loyalty
- Associates are freed from routine tasks so they can focus on high-value customer services
About Iperal
Iperal Makes Shopping a Breeze for Italian Customers Thanks to Zebra’s Scan As You Shop System
Iperal Supermercati S.p.a (Iperal) is a chain of Italian super- and hypermarkets. Founded in Valtellina, a valley in the Lombardy region of Italy, Iperal’s main activities take place in the large-scale retail sector. Its first hypermarket was opened in Castione in 1986 and today, Iperal has 53 stores – among super- and hypermarkets - in eight Lombardy provinces, managed and run by around 4,100 employees. Iperal owes its rapid and continuous growth to the strong entrepreneurial spirit that underpins everything the company does. This mindset has allowed it to cement a leading position in local markets thanks to its innovative stores, quality products and good prices. Iperal endeavours to offer products that respect the environment and promote sustainability. It also produces and sells own-brand products that meet the same criteria.
The Challenge
Iperal has a clear mission – to continue to create value by developing relationships with local suppliers. Part of that involves changing to better meet customer needs, in doing so guaranteeing quality shopping at a price that is always convenient and creating better value for the customers, as well as employees and the territory in which it operates. Iperal thrives on its customers who visit the stores, purchasing a variety of products, both name-brand and own-brand. Above all, the customer experience is prioritized.
“It became clear to us that more and more of our customers wanted the ability to self-scan during their shopping expereince,” explains Claudio Vettore, Systems, Processes and Digital Marketing Director at Iperal. “We’re not the first to implement such capabilities, but we wanted to be the benchmark for a superlative, customer-centric self-scanning service.”
Zebra and Iperal have been working together for several years. “The project itself began many years ago,” confirms Vettore. “The design phase is behind us. What lies ahead is applying the solution Zebra developed for us to all shops where scan as you shop capabilities will yield the results we’re after, but also where customers will benefit most, whereas new shops will already be fitted with Zebra’s solution.”
“Iperal chose Zebra for several reasons. That the devices are software-agnostic influenced the decision heavily. But we also knew the devices we would receive were reliable and wouldn’t present us with problems. Expertise was also a big factor; Zebra’s decades of expertise with this technology showed from day one.”
The Solution
Leading the Scan As You Shop Charge in Italy
When the project first started, Iperal turned to Zebra for a solution that could enable its scan as you shop goals. It means to offer its customers the possibility to autonomously scan product barcodes through a selfscanning device and then pay at traditional checkouts or self-checkout kiosks.
“Thanks to our IT partner BarWare, who pointed us in the direction of Zebra, we were able to begin exploring scan as you shop options that worked for us,” says Vettore. BarWare, a Zebra Premier Solution Partner, is an Italian company specialising in the field of handheld barcode reading terminals and related application software. Its solutions are available to companies, with a strong focus on the world of large-scale retail.
For Iperal, the choice of supplier was based on two factors – hardware and software. “While not a dealbreaker, ideally we wanted a solution where we could pick hardware and software ourselves,” Vettore explains. “Because Zebra devices can be purchased softwareagnostic, we didn’t have to compromise on that desire.” Iperal opted for operating systems and software provided by a third party.
Iperal installed Zebra PS20 Personal Shoppers and Zebra’s Customer Concierge CC6000 interactive kiosks in 21 of its 53 stores. Last but not least, the devices are remotely monitored and managed with Zebra’s VisibilityIQ™ Foresight and RAM solution for a constant control of the device fleet. Vettore explains what the resulting shopper experience looks like: “When customers first use Iperal’s PS20, they are asked to register on the interactive kiosk and scan their Iperal card on the CC6000 to unlock the personal shopper device, which they then use to scan items that they place straight into their bags as they shop. It’s a truly effortless experience for our loyal customers.”
The Zebra Difference: Outcome and Benefits
Putting Loyal Customers First
Iperal has no plans to slow down the rollout of its self-scanning capabilities. “Almost 40% of our shops offer scan as you shop options,” continues Vettore. “And we have more on the way – we’re looking to add five more locations to our roster.”
Each shop fitted with scan as you shop stations has 96 terminals and the result is quickly noticeable. Since rolling out the solution, convenience, cost optimisation and customer satisfaction have all improved drastically.
“Everyone has benefitted from our scan as you shop service, customers and employees alike,” explains Vettore. “Our shoppers can get their shopping done faster, but also, our workers, who are sometimes inundated with shoppers during busy periods, now have a lighter workload. Aside from giving our customers a better experience, we wanted to make life easier for our employees so they could focus on delivering the customer service we’re known for. Ultimately, we’re now able to deliver excellent service with a lower resource requirement, while looking after our shop floor workers too. We’re thrilled with the outcome of this rollout and look forward to seeing what future expansion brings.”
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