From price updates to key in-store solutions for smart retail

Pricer electronic shelf labels, ESLs, have proven their worth as a key ally for stakeholders in the retail sector who are looking to see their in-store teams boost operational efficiency to concentrate on the most important factor of their work: welcoming and advising customers. As a guest on the BFM Business platform as part of the “Objectif Croissance” [Objective: Growth] program, Gilles Gagnier, Deputy Managing Director in France for Pricer, gives us his perspective on the role and evolution of electronic labeling in retailers’ commercial strategies.

Watch the interview with Gilles Gagnier in French.

Could you tell us about your business?

Gagnier: Pricer is a Swedish company and a pioneer in the electronic shelf label market. This year, we’re celebrating the 30th anniversary of our collaboration with leading retailers both in France and overseas, covering fields from grocery to DIY and pharmacy. It all began in the early 1990s, to facilitate retailers’ commercial strategies. Electronic shelf labels enabled them to be much more reactive to frequently changing prices. Since then, the electronic shelf label has evolved a lot, in line with technologies and regulations.

For Pricer, it’s no longer simply a question of displaying prices, but also of offering a comprehensive digital platform in stores that optimizes operational tasks with predictive tools and customized information.

How do these labels meet your clients’ requirements and expectations?

Gagnier: In the past few years, the electronic shelf label market has seen enormous growth, which has only gained momentum with the pandemic. Click and Collect, Drive, and more—these are new requirements for retailers who are looking for agile and high-performance solutions that will make their teams continuously more versatile and efficient in their stores. Saving even seconds has become crucial for them in order to take on the rising challenge of e-commerce.

To do this, we support our clients in the digitalization of their stores using optical communication, which is a tried-and-tested, ultra-reliable technology. You can find it in the medical and aeronautics domains. We’re the only business to have taken it and applied it in the retail sector. Optical communication means that Pricer labels have the longest service life on the market. Retailers, therefore, have real-time access to information, so that they can make quick decisions.

ESLs can also boost the retailers’ productivity - how so?

Gagnier: This mainly lies in the flash that we’ve integrated into our electronic shelf labels to make it easier to locate products in the aisles. Our optical communication platform enables us to make the label flash instantly. It’s really practical for picking and packing orders. On average, teams save up to 10 minutes per order.

This also facilitates the process of getting products onto shelves and displaying best-sellers and out-of-stock items. An in-store employee saves between 30 minutes to an hour per day. Retailers, therefore, increase their productivity. Above all, they can get back to focusing on sales, advising and welcoming customers, while making their lives easier.

So, what does the future look like for Pricer?

Gagnier: What is certain is that we’re going to be working more and more closely with the retailers, particularly with their innovation departments, to integrate the development of our products further upstream.

So, just to give you an example, for some of our clients who are highly committed to their CSR projects, we have created an integrated solution for waste reduction, which allows them to reduce food waste in stores by 20 to 40%. The key to achieving this, in my mind, is to preserve the Pricer mentality—that is, to maintain the dynamic spirit which is unique to an SME: our teams in the field are composed of specialists who are committed and passionate professionals with great attention to detail.

Our customers and partners love working with us. They trust us. Of course, we intend to continue putting our technology and expertise at the service of this commitment. In the end, I’d say the key to Pricer’s future lies in this commitment and this proximity to our clients.

Published on October 29, 2021