Russian supermarket tests NFC for personalised shopping and loyalty

Synqera Loyalty Generator and Simplate POS
SYNQERA: A Loyalty Generator (left) stands near the shop entrance, while Simplate contactless POS devices (right) are placed at the till

Russian premium supermarket chain Land is piloting personalised NFC shopping using technology developed by Synqera, which combines ‘Loyalty Generator’ coupon dispensers at the front of the store and NFC-enabled Simplate payment devices at the checkout.

The system is currently running in three of Land’s ten stores. Synqera is also piloting its solution at Ulybka Radugi, one of Russia’s largest cosmetics and household goods retail chains, where it is operating at five of its 280 locations.

Synqera Loyalty Generators send loyalty coupons and recommendations over-the-air to an opted-in customer’s NFC smartphone. Shoppers without an NFC phone can also take part, by tapping their Land loyalty card against the devices and printing out loyalty coupons and recommendations.

The devices feature an interactive touchscreen and can produce on-demand shopping lists based on predictive analytics — customer profile analysis, individual shopping history, time and day. The lists can be themed and include real-time information on products in-store. They can also deliver category- and theme-based recipes which include retailers’ recommended brands and ingredients.

Customers pay at the checkout using the Simplate POS device. This accepts payment either via their mobile wallet, which is linked to a MasterCard PayPass or Visa PayWave card, or their plastic contactless card. Simplate also provides targeted content relevant to each customer, including loyalty coupons that can be redeemed at their next visit and adverts based on their shopping history.

“It’s all about personal dialogue with your customer,” Synqera COO Filipp Shubin told NFC World. “With our analytics platform, we are able to understand customers, predict what they would like to try or where we should add additional discounts or recommendations to drive their purchases.”

“Understanding how our customers think and like products helps us to make shopping at Land a better experience,” says the retailer’s general director, Ilya Shtrom. “Synqera’s analytics and customer personalisation technology enhances the shopping experience at critical points throughout the sales process.”

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