Tesco will expand a major security upgrade at some of its stores to crack down on shoplifting. The supermarket giant will now introduce keypad-operated cabinets in the alcohol aisles at 50 stores.
These in-aisle units are secured by locks which customers can open using a keypad, triggering an alarm if the chiller door remains ajar for over seven seconds. The high-security cabinets, supplied by company Wanzl, were initially trialled in a few stores in 2023 before being expanded to more locations in summer, last year.
These cabinets are installed in 22 Tesco stores. This includes a pair of smaller Express supermarkets.
The earlier models deployed last year required customers to navigate a digital touchscreen system involving a “four-step process” for access. Initially, users would tap an arrow on the display to reach the products, followed by a screen indicating that it is “processing the request”.
Once this step is concluded, the cabinet door opens, allowing shoppers to select their items. The updated cabinets seek to streamline the experience by “reducing” customer friction, reports the Mirror.
According to Wanzl, their latest customer interface is “really friendly” ensuring it “doesn’t stand in the way of someone getting what they want to get”. Discussing the balance between securing and selling goods, Lee Gilks, Wanzl UK’s head of retail shop solutions, told The Grocer Magazine : “High value alcohol in stores has always been a challenge.
“You have to strike the balance between selling things and locking things away. To fix shrinkage, you could just put a massive lock on it, but that becomes a bit of a sales turn-off.”
Wanzl plans to add new features to its security cabinets, such as digital header screens, weighted shelves, and potentially cameras to gather data on shopper demographics and their product choices. They claim this system has “significantly reduced theft incidents”.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) released figures indicating that thefts cost retailers about £1.8 billion in 2022-23, a dramatic increase from £953 million the previous year, marking the first time losses have crossed the £1 billion threshold. Amidst heated discussions online, Tesco defended claims that the cabinets employed facial recognition or photographed customers.
Wanzl UK’s grocery key account manager Nicola Valentino commented on the strategy behind securing valuable goods, saying: “The products that are locked up are high value, they’re nice products. We wanted it to look like a fancy chiller so people are drawn to it.
“We wanted to get that balance of let’s draw the paying consumer in, don’t make it an irritant, but also create that bit of paranoia for would-be thieves.” When The Grocer reached out for a comment on the new expansions, Tesco chose not to respond.