Retail, Grocery, And Hospitality IT News For VARs —December 8, 2014
By Phillip Britt, contributing writer
In the news, data shows Black Friday was quieter than usual for in-store sales. Also, MasterCard has concluded testing of fingerprint scanning for ID, and a writer points out low-tech reasons that smart shopping carts are a bad idea.
Report Concludes Less In-Store Shoppers On Black Friday
Euclid Analytics released its report of in-store retail analytics for November. Data shows shopping activity increased from October, but was 20 percent lower compared to November 2013. It also shows Black Friday sales were lower than last year, citing reasons of sales being distributed across more time and more channels.
MasterCard Tests Fingerprint Scanning
According to Find Biometrics, MasterCard has finished testing its fingerprint-scanning credit cards in Norway and found it successful. These cards will debut in Britain next year as they’re entering more fully into biometric scanning. The scan of the fingerprint ups the ante of security at point of sale and will replace Britain’s PIN system already in place.
Are Smart Grocery Carts A Bad Idea?
In a column from “GrocerX” in the Colorado Springs Independent, gives some reasons the idea of point of sale grocery carts — that scan items placed in the cart and that allow a shopper to pay via smartphone — might be folly. The low-tech challenges that would have to be overcome for the idea to work include shoppers abusing grocery carts and flawed store inventories and labeling. He also points out shoppers are still battling with the concept of self-checkout.
Retail, Grocery, And Hospitality IT Talking Points
With the help of a $1.2 million grant from Invest Northern Ireland, Revel Systems will open a new office in Belfast in order to expand their POS technology throughout Europe according to TechCrunch.
Tricia Duryee of GeekWire interviewed Adam Brotman, digital chief at Starbucks, to discuss the company’s new mobile ordering system. He said that the system is the largest tech move since their adoption of the ability to pay with one’s mobile device. The mobile ordering launched this week at 152 stores in Portland and Starbucks plans to have it nationwide by the end of next year.
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