The next generation of Smart QR codes promise to provide consumers instant access to extensive online information about products and will also ‘go beep at the till’
Barcodes are expected to disappear from UK shop items within the next five years, a report by GS1 UK has revealed.
Retail expert Kate Hardcastle suggests that new technologies, which provide data directly to consumers, are key in restoring consumer trust and marking the end of traditional barcodes.
The upcoming generation of Smart QR codes is set to give consumers immediate access to extensive online information about products and will also ‘go beep at the till’. A survey reveals that 41 per cent of top UK retail bosses are confident that smart QR codes will replace linear barcodes within five years.
Trials for QR code-equipped products are currently taking place across 48 countries, with a broad implementation planned by 2027. Big names such as PepsiCo, Walmart, Proctor and Gamble, L’Oreal, and Amazon have already committed to this innovative approach.
Morrisons is exploring the potential benefits of these new mechanisms, with solutions architect Sagar Mehendale stating that smart QR codes are set to become the “‘de facto standard for identifying your product at SKU level and also augmenting information about the product.”
With QR codes, customers will be able to instantly obtain highly relevant details. This could include the origin of the product, its carbon footprint or alert them to any potential contamination with food allergens, reports the Daily Record.
Shoppers with a green conscience could soon be tracing the carbon footprint of their purchases down to the last detail, as new data from the supply chain reveals where product components are made or sourced, and the emissions produced during their creation and transport. Similarly, those concerned about ethical standards can delve into the labour practices behind each item they buy.
A significant 35 per cent of business leaders reckon that by 2030, customer access to such product insights will revolutionise retail. Nearly half of the firms in a recent study say they’re already implementing QR tech, with over half planning to join in within two years.
Retail guru Kate added: “Consumers’ increasing demand for more information and a better experience will create a survival-of-the-fittest dynamic in retail, even among the sector’s biggest brands. Those which provide greater transparency by giving consumers honest and easily accessed information will have an undeniable competitive advantage.”
Anne Godfrey, CEO of GS1 UK, which collaborated with FT Longitude on the report, underscored the significance of barcoding technology: “The invention of the barcode is one of the great, untold stories in the history of our modern world it is more frequently used than Google.
“The next generation of barcodes, QR codes powered by GS1, will underpin the next retail revolution to give greater power to the consumer. They will connect physical products to the digital world to give businesses the power to provide the detailed product information consumers are increasingly demanding.”
