The supermarket chain said the change would “improve customer experience, enhance transparency, and reduce paper waste in its stores
The Co-op supermarket will be replacing all of its paper pricing tags with electronic ones across all of its 2,400 stores by next year.
Currently, around 340 Co-op stores have the upgraded system, and under the plans, around 40 stores a week will have them installed going forward. By the end of the year 1,500 stores will have electronic shelf labels, and all 2,400 will have them by the end of 2026.
The upgrade to stores comes through a partnership with French retail tech firm VusionGroup, which also works with Morrisons.
The supermarket chain said the change would “improve customer experience, enhance transparency, and reduce paper waste in its stores. Alongside price changes, the electronic labels can also display allergens, nutritional information, country of origin, and whether an item is produced locally.
In the future, the labels will also help store staff find or restock items by “flashing” to indicate where an item should be stocked. Co-op said the system could also help Co-op staff fulfil on demand orders.
Co-op head of operations Steven Logue said: “With convenience at the heart of everything we do, Co-op is committed to continually exploring innovative technology that can improve how we operate.
“The electronic labels have the potential to enhance product information and transparency, avoid paper waste, and make everyday tasks like picking online orders easier.”
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Electronic shelf-edge labels have been around for the last 30 years and are widespread in supermarkets across Europe. The UK has started to follow, with retailers and supermarkets including Asda, Lidl, Tesco and Waitrose as well as retailers such as Currys trialling them in stores. Co-op is the only retailer which has announced a full rollout.
The electronic labels allow retailers to make pricing and promotion changes centrally before sending them across their whole network. This also cuts the need to update and replace printed labels.
However, the tech has sparked consumer suspicion that it will be used for “surge” – or Dynamic – pricing, whereby prices are increased when demand is high. Uber is famous for this, but Amazon also uses it on its website. The site tweaks prices – up and down – on some items dozens of times a day based on demand and costs at competitors.
Alongside this, Co-op and M&S have both faced major cyber attacks on their stores, which left supermarket shelves empty. This brings concerns around electronic shelf labels and how cyberattacks could take advantage of them. It is understood that the Co-ops system was not affected by the hack.
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