COLUMBUS, Ohio – In the next few years, there will be sweeping changes in the way in which unpacked goods are weighed in the food retail trade. METTLER TOLEDO offers future-proof self-service technologies helping retailers create an enhanced shopping experience while at the same time opening up the prospect of more economical fresh food management.
With new labeling standards and the increasing prevalence of self-checkout solutions, weighing at the checkout will become less prominent in the medium and long-term. Self-service weighing in the fruit and vegetable department will experience a renaissance. Therefore, it is exciting to consider how self-service scales can be included in advertising and marketing activities, what they can contribute to heightening brand profiles, and how they can be used as tools for securing shopper loyalty.
Expert guidance and relaxed atmosphere
Self-service solutions put customer requirements center stage and focus on an enjoyable shopping experience that increases shopper loyalty. The customer is completely free to choose both produce and the required quantity. Unlike when weighing at the checkout, the customer can check prices when making the decision to buy.
Self-service solutions should appeal to the customer on both an emotional and a practical level. In practice, this means introducing expert guidance at the scales, as well as creating a relaxed, positive shopping atmosphere, which offers fertile ground for creating additional impulses to buy. Touch-screen scales with a large operating screen prove particularly flexible and efficient, and serve as a digital signage platform. The screen also acts as an interface for using the self-service scales as an interactive information terminal, offering information about nutritional values and ingredients as well as preparation tips that can be printed out. Guidance, combined with an enhanced shopping experience, encourages the customer to spend longer in the fresh department. Anyone who lingers for longer and feels good will both discover and buy more.
Better processes, better results
Reducing shrink is the most powerful tool for achieving greater profitability in the fruit and vegetable department. Next-generation labeling standards represent a shift from simple PLU product classification to unique itemization in the fresh produce range, namely goods tracking at article level. Tracking at the article levels of¬fers greater insight across all points in the supply chain, process, and in in¬ventory management. It offers new opportunities for re¬tailers to make supply chains more efficient and precise.
Sustainable and future-proof
For retailers, the fresh department is the perfect place to put the company's sustainability strategy into practice effectively. METTLER TOLEDO self-service solutions provide all the necessary tools – whether using energy-efficient weighing technology, eco-friendly labels or increasing the quality of food safety thanks to optimized risk management in goods tracking and tracing. Supporting and maintenance programs ensure long lifecycles and meet high demands on the availability and reliability of scales. METTLER TOLEDO’s InTouch™ Enabled Remote Services help to minimize downtimes and maintenance and to reduce service costs.
With METTLER TOLEDO, retailers invest in solutions that are carefully tailored to specific current requirements while still offering the required flexibility to seize new trends and developments and translate them into market-leading solutions.
For additional information on these new technologies, please visit METTLER TOLEDO’s booth #1983 at the NRF Annual Convention and Expo or www.mt.com/retail.
About METTLER TOLEDO
METTLER TOLEDO is a leading global supplier of precision instruments and services. The Company’s food retail solutions are customized to help retailers grow sales and improve operational efficiencies in their fresh departments. The Company is the world's largest manufacturer and marketer of weighing instruments for use in laboratory, industrial and food retailing applications.
Additional information about METTLER TOLEDO can be found at www.mt.com.
Source: Mettler Toledo
