80% of thing stolen from stores are 10% of the items in the store. New bullet-proof vending machines will be coming to secure those items.
Retailers say they’re struggling with a dramatic increase in theft in many parts of the USA. Not all shoplifting is reported.
Statistics indicate a near doubling of theft from 2017 to 2022.
Since retail thefts are still happening lots, lots of stores now lock up lots of merchandise. Many stores (like drugstores) lock many shelves and require a store worker to unlock the shelf. This is inconvenient and time consuming.
David Ashforf, Digital Media Vending International, is adapting vending machines to replace the locked store shelf.
Merchandise is stocked safely behind glass– to stop thieves. At the same time, honest shoppers get self-service access that’s faster than waiting for a manager. You pay in advance online or at an in-store kiosk with an app or at the machine with cash or credit card.
Ashford estimates just ten percent of items make up 80 percent of what crooks steal. That ten percent will be stocked on robotic shelves, the rest stays on traditional aisles. Large stores have about 50 aisles. Maybe between one and five of those will be automated.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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Jeez, just go straight back to automats if that’s the endgame.
Use apple, google pay… to enter the entire store, no one gets in without knowing your name and having a credit card number or make shoplifting a crime again.
I work in CRE. They’re not going to use vending machines. Most retailers are going to a membership “club” model with access control. If you are caught stealing you’ll lose your membership.
Its come to this.