Introducing an electronic point-of-sales (EPOS) system to your forecourt may seem daunting, but with the right support, the installation of this technology could be transformational, says one retail group General Manager.
Family business Creightons of Finaghy, Balmoral and Black’s Road has been operating in the heart of South Belfast since 1936. And since installing EDGEPoS Electronic Shelf Edge Labels (ESELs) into all three of their convenience forecourt sites in 2021, they have not looked back.
ESELs are just one of many innovative technology products that have been introduced at the state-of-the-art EUROSPAR store and forecourt in Balmoral. General Manager, Andrew Porter, is one of the people responsible for the well-known and successful convenience and forecourt retail group. He explains why they decided to switch from paper Shelf Edge Labels (SELs) to ESELs.
“We no longer wanted to use paper Shelf Edge Labels (SELs) as it was a time consuming, laborious and cumbersome process to print labels and apply them to shelves, especially when there are new products, price changes and promotion changeovers to manage,” says Porter. “We were also keen to see the margin benefit, instant price switches, from ESELs would bring to the stores.”
Finding the right electronic shelf edge label provider
Porter explains that they had previously looked at other ESELs providers but as the cost was too prohibitive, it just didn’t add up for them. However, once they discovered Henderson Technology offers a seven-year rental agreement it became a viable option and they implemented EDGEPoS ESELs across all three stores last year with ease.
“The results have been amazing so far and with immediate benefits,” says Porter. “The ESELs look professional, are easy to read and add to the modern feel of our store. Our staff and customers love them as the pricing is 100% accurate at all times giving them great confidence.”
Why invest in electronic shelf edge labels?
One significant benefit Porter says they have experienced is how the ESELs have freed staff up now price changes and promotion switches are instant. “We have also noticed an improvement in the replenishment and merchandising on the shop floor as the team have more time to concentrate on these tasks.
“Prior to having the ESELs onsite, we had to commence our promotion changeover a few days before the start date. We no longer have to do this now. All in all I would say we have saved at least 15 personnel hours per week – which is an incredible saving.”
One of the biggest changes Porter cites, is the fact that the team can action price changes remotely; they no longer have to be onsite to implement price changes and hand out reams of paper labels on the shop floor.
“With 4,200 labels at this site alone, the ESEL implementation means we have been able to keep up on accurate pricing across the whole forecourt here at Balmoral.
With everything considered, we have reaped the benefit of a 0.6% growth, on average, on our margin – that taken into account with employee hours saved, we believe that the ESELs are a great investment.
Installing electronic shelf edge labels
Porter says the installation was of the ESELs with Henderson Technology has been very smooth, and critically, there were no interruptions to trade. ”The support they have given us during the installation and afterwards has been first class. In all my years in retail, the EDGEPoS ESELs are easily the best technology product that we have installed in store. Shoppers love them too – they are always commenting on how clear and professional they look,” adds Porter.
Business development opportunities
Darren Nickels, Retail Technology Operations Director at Henderson Technology, told us why Porter and and his onsite team were such valued customers. ”When they needed a reliable fuel EPOS system to cope with their extremely busy forecourts, the group embraced EDGEPoS.
“They wanted an EPOS system that could manage their stores onsite and help them grow their award winning business. Creightons were one of the first retail groups to adopt EDGEPoS Head Office and their feedback was invaluable in developing the Head Office system we see today.
“We have a partnership with Solu-M, and we now offer a fully integrated ESEL package with EDGEPoS, that takes out any upfront cost to the retailer.
”This has eliminated one of the biggest barriers to retailers, allowing them to benefit from installation, training and instant improvements across the store through a seven year rental agreement. All support and maintenance is included in the package so it is a one stop shop for a retailer’s technology system.
“We have just completed our 50th ESEL install and have a further 35 in the pipeline going into Q2. The rollout has been a huge success and we are looking forward to working with more forecourt retailers across the UK installing ESELs in their sites.”
Ongoing partnerships
Porter concluded: “We couldn’t be happier with our partnership with Henderson Technology. Our next plan is to introduce EDGEPoS Self-Checkouts in all three stores with the recent development of the BP integration with Self-Checkout.
”One thing that sets EDGEPoS apart is the reliability of the system; this makes it unique.”
To learn more about how you can grow your forecourt business with Henderson Technology, visit https://www.henderson.technology/edgepos-products/
