The shop on the campus of Lancaster University is claiming a customer service success after becoming the first UK Spar store to install cashless self-checkouts.

Developed in partnership with technology supplier CBE and Spar distributor James Hall & Co, the NCR cashless self-checkout solution integrates with the CBE POS solution already in operation at the site. A survey identified the suitability of self-checkouts at the site, where the operators wanted to reduce customer queuing time without increasing labour costs.

James Hall IT director Sheridan Hindle said: “We needed to radically rethink how we wanted the stores to operate. Our customer requirements have changed as they are more technology-savvy than ever before - customers now welcome new innovations and people really dislike queuing. As such, the option of installing the NCR Cashless Self-Checkouts based on CBE’s research filled us with both excitement and apprehension!

“The owners of Spar Lancaster University were very enthusiastic about the project. Thankfully it’s been extremely successful with almost 30% of customers using it on a daily basis. It has also more than doubled the credit card usage to 38% of store purchases, which we are delighted with. We certainly plan to install more self-checkouts in our stores in the coming months and it will undoubtedly become an integral part of our customer offering.”

Dominic Feeney, CBE’s systems director, added: “We recently partnered with NCR, the global leader in retail self-checkout, to offer self-checkout to the independent retail sectors in Ireland and the UK. It was at this time that James Hall & Co. approached us about ways to reduce their queues and increase speed of service. Our research, both global and national pointed towards cashless self-checkout as being an ideal solution.”