The rise of Scan and Go technology and how it works

'Scan & Go' has been around for years. It failed to set retail on fire because it let shoppers easily carry out pilferage by simply not scanning an item before dropping it into their shopping cart. To solve that problem, a store anyway had to have its security guard physically verify that all items in the basket were scanned and paid for. Keen on knowing if Scan & Go has solved that problem. In any case, doesn't Scan & Go sound a little dated in the age of Amazon Go? 

There is always a risk of theft in any retail environment and any potential up lift in theft can be off set through increased product display, customer throughput, sales and loyalty. Merchants can implement a number of measures to mitigate against it which could include a robust signup verification process, initial spend limits, entry and exit scans / gates, random security checks and checks across x number of users and auto billing post exit. It is down to each retailer to decide what is the best approach while balancing this with the frictionless shopping goals but one thing for sure is that we are now seeing increased interest and deployment across a number of large retailers including Walmart and Sainsbury's.

Amazon Go is indeed highly innovative and helping raise awareness of frictionless shopping technology. While it is in its infancy the solution requires more hardware infrastructure so mobile phone based Scan and Go is far easier to implement and allows retailers to introduce new payment / checkout technology in the most cost effective way. 

The solution is very simple.

It is only putting an RFID label on each item.

Each un-scanned label is kept 'alive' and will be detected on the exit Antenna, activating security.

Well, if you put an RFID label on each item, you don't need Scan & Go. Actually, Metro Germany and a couple of other big box retailers conducted pilots using RFID labels in circa 2002, which was well before smartphones came into existence. The shopping cart had an RFID scanner. As items embedded with RFID labels were dropped into the cart, they were automatically scanned and the bill was printed out at the end. (Alternatively, there were a few central RFID scanner gantries at checkout, you could simply wheel out your cart through them, all items would be (theoretically) scanned at one shot, so there was no queue). This solution was also pilfer-proof. However, it failed to gain traction because of the high cost of the labeling solution in terms of material cost of the RFID tag and labor cost of affixing them on each and every item in the store. Memory serves, Scan & Go type of solutions were developed as a more cost-effective alternative for RFID based solutions. AFAIK, the RFID solution is still too costly for mainstream adoption even today. So RFID add-on to Scan & Go is a non-starter.

The  'high cost of the labeling solution' is diminished if the manufacturers already incorporate the labels into the items.
Of course, if employees have to tag each item, the cost is increased.

The data carried by the RFID tag (e.g. price) is known only to the retailer. Ergo manufacturer can't "incorporate the labels into the items".

@Ketharaman,

You can read, write, change the data in the memory of a RFID label - just as 'scanned or un-scanned' status.

Also you can write on which shelf the item is located, to control your RTLS.

So, it really can be a solution within the 'Scan & Go', as the cost of RFID labels dropped to some fraction of cents.

And, yes, you can simply wheel out your cart through an exit RFID scan portal antenna and all items would be scanned at one shot.

Hypothetically, if RFID solution has become affordable now, Scan & Go is redundant.

Scan and go is alive and kicking in some UK supermarkets using purpose built scanners. The cost of the scanners plus extra security is offset presumably by the saving in checkout staff. The friction seems high and presumably this appeals to people anxious to know how much they are spending as they shop?

A phone app using RFID seems like a good idea, maybe someone will invent an app that tells the shopper they can get that item cheaper down the road?

@JamesPiggot:

'Self scan and check out as you move around the store' has been around for nearly 15 years based on dedicated scanners, which, AFAIK, are RFID readers I mentioned in my previous comment.

The way I understand "Scan & Go" in the context of this article, it's similar to what they call "Mobile Self Checkout". By definition, MSC works on customer's smartphones, not dedicated scanners owned by stores.

By "app that tells the shopper they can get that item cheaper down the road", you probably mean "showrooming". If so, such apps have been around for 5-7 years e.g. RedLaser, Amazon PriceCheck, Scandid. A few years ago, showrooming was expected to go mainstream but that hasn't apparently happened so far. More in my blog post on my company blog How Can Organized Retailers Respond To Showrooming? (hyperlink removed to comply with Finextra Community Rules but this post should appear on top of Google Search results when searched by its title).

TIL: Weight-check or human verification are two ways to prevent shoplifting in "Scan & Go" store checkout solutions (no RFID required). http://lnr.li/09WkV/

@Ketharaman Swaminathan,

How the camera fixed recognizes and records the items paid for?

How much resources are spent to update/delete the 'source' of items?

Due to my experience on RFID technology, I still personally believe that an inexpensive RFID label is more practical, secure, swift, auditable, scalable and flexible. Isn't?

@JoãoBohner:

I really don't know how the anti-shoplifting system works or how resource-intensive it is or how much friction it poses - apart from knowing that it does prevent shoplifting and is therefore a complement to Scan & Go, which is the subject of this blog post and of my original question about how Scan & Go addresses the age-old issue of pilferage. 

RFID-based solution may be practical. But, as I mentioned earlier, it'd make Scan & Go redundant.