The end of lost lists and wandering the aisles?

The end of lost lists and wandering the aisles?

09 November 2014

Sainsbury’s is about to trial a new shopping app that will build customer baskets via smartphone and cut time spent in store and at the till.

The app will

  • Allow customers to build a virtual basket of favourite products from anywhere, before they shop
  • Navigate customers around the shop to find their predicted items faster
  • Scan items at the shelf and pay through a mobile – no till queues required 

Overall, the app is proven to cut the time taken to do a shop – reducing checkout time to seconds in testing.

It is being trialled with Sainsbury's teams in stores in the next few weeks and will be first available to Nectar cardholders later next year.

It’s just one of the developments made by Sainsbury’s strengthened Digital Team – a hub to which the retailer is currently attracting the best digital minds.

Jon Rudoe, Digital and Technology Director at Sainsbury’s, said:"We know that customers’ weekly shop doesn’t start at our front door – they know what they like and they also like that search for a bargain.

"They still want to come into store - but with limited time, they want to be able to get their shop done quickly.

"That’s why we’re putting digital firmly at the forefront of our agenda, and putting technology in the hands of our customers."

Other upgrades include

  • More flexible delivery slots, with bookings on the half hour as well as the hour
  • Greener delivery options, allowing shoppers to book slots in one vehicle if it's delivering to neighbours