June 14, 2022, 2:37 pm | Read time: 3 minutes
Items into the shopping cart, onto the conveyor belt at the checkout, and then directly back into the cart or shopping bag. This process is standard in many supermarkets but is annoying and time-consuming. Kaufland is putting an end to this with a new payment method.
The solution is called K-Scan and is now available in 50 Kaufland stores across Germany after a test phase. But what is behind K-Scan, and how is it supposed to make shopping in the supermarket easier? TECHBOOK has the answers.
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How K-Scan Works at Kaufland
The new way of shopping is reminiscent of the system that Ikea recently introduced in all German stores. The advantage of K-Scan at Kaufland, however, is that the system is also available to people without smartphones. Here’s how the new payment method works:
With the help of a smartphone or alternatively a handheld scanner available in the stores, Kaufland customers can directly scan their selected products as they take them from the shelf and place them in the shopping cart. Once shopping is complete, the smartphone or handheld scanner generates a QR code with the final bill. Kaufland customers only need to present this K-Scan receipt at the self-checkout and pay. Unpacking and repacking the shopping cart is no longer necessary.
To use K-Scan, registration with the Kaufland Card is required. The necessary handheld scanners are available at the entrance of the stores for customers and can be attached directly to the shopping cart using a special holder, keeping hands free during the supermarket tour. Alternatively, products can also be scanned with a smartphone. However, customers will need the Kaufland app for this.
Read also: New payment function at Ikea saves time and nerves
Prices and Total Bill Always in View
Since the repeated unpacking and repacking of the shopping cart is eliminated, the time spent in the supermarket and at the checkout is minimized. Another advantage of the new system is that customers can always see the total bill for the products currently in the shopping cart. K-Scan from Kaufland calculates the prices live.
“Offering our customers the most pleasant and simple shopping experience possible is our top priority. With K-Scan, we have further simplified shopping in our stores: Thanks to the mobile handheld scanner, they save a lot of time because at the self-checkout, the purchases only need to be paid for without being unpacked and repacked,” says Anika Maier, Head of Sales Organization Cash Registers.
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Self-scanning of goods is not new. Many supermarkets, including Kaufland, already have self-checkouts that allow exactly that. However, even K-Scan is not as innovative as some solutions used in the U.S. Some supermarkets overseas automatically scan products–for example, through weight sensors that register removal from the shelf–and automatically charge the purchase to the credit card without any checkout. In Germany, we are not there yet, as shopping here is still more traditional.