Retail is a sector undergoing significant transformation. Digitalization, the rise of e-commerce, and new consumer expectations are pushing sector players to rethink their business models. The sector is therefore experiencing significant changes, driven by the rapidly evolving consumer habits, technological advancements, and environmental imperatives. Three key sub-sectors, fast food restaurants, gas stations, and shopping malls, are at the heart of this transformation.

The challenges facing retail players

One of the major challenges is the need to rapidly adapt to changes in consumer behaviors. With the rise of online commerce, customer expectations are evolving rapidly, forcing retail players to rethink their strategies to remain relevant.

Another crucial challenge lies in efficient management of operations and inventory. Fluctuations in demand, logistical constraints, and economic pressures require retail players to find innovative solutions to optimize their supply chains, minimize losses, and ensure product availability.

Security, both from the perspective of customers and employees, remains a constant concern. Retail players must face challenges such as managing gatherings, discomfort, fires, and more.

Finally, personalization of the customer experience is emerging as a strategic challenge. Consumers are seeking tailored experiences and services adapted to their individual preferences, and retail players must invest in technological solutions to meet these growing demands.

Facing these challenges, retail players are called upon to embrace technological innovation and adopt intelligent solutions to ensure their competitiveness in an ever-evolving commercial environment.

Retail players are facing several obstacles in addressing these challenges:

• Managing customer flows: counting the number of customers in a store, optimizing queues, tracking their movements, and identifying congested areas.

• Inventory management: efficient inventory management is crucial to ensure product availability, minimize losses, and respond to demand fluctuations, thus ensuring customer satisfaction and the profitability of retail players.

• Security, for both customers and staff, is of paramount importance, ensuring a secure shopping or dining environment, reinforcing consumer confidence, and preserving the reputation of retail players.

Computer vision, a powerful tool to address retail challenges

The advent of computer vision has brought about a transformative revolution for retail players, defining how they approach flow and inventory management, as well as customer and staff safety. In terms of flow management, this technology offers unprecedented visibility into customer movements in spaces. Through precise analysis, it anticipates peak times, enabling efficient resource allocation for a smooth and optimized customer experience. In the fast food restaurant sector, for example, computer vision plays a vital role in queue management, anticipating peak periods for efficient order distribution and reduced waiting times.

Regarding inventory management, computer vision offers an innovative solution to optimize storage levels and minimize losses. It allows real-time inventory tracking, automatically alerting in case of stockouts. This ability to anticipate and react quickly to demand variations contributes to better management, avoiding shortages and surpluses, and thus optimizing operational efficiency.

As for customer and staff safety, computer vision represents a major asset. It detects gatherings, discomfort, proper wearing of personal protective equipment, etc. In shopping malls, computer vision technology monitors high-risk areas, identifying intrusions and triggering immediate alerts for rapid interventions. In the gas station sector, it enhances safety by detecting real-time fire outbreaks, minimizing risks, and preserving the safety of customers and staff.

Measurable metrics available via the dashboard

Directly linked to a dashboard, computer vision solutions like CORE offer retail players a multitude of key KPIs to measure the impact of computer vision, such as:

• Number of customers

• Customer movements

• Congested areas

• Incivilities

• …

Focus on computer vision serving gas stations

In an ever-changing environment, the gas station industry is facing profound changes that are transforming their traditional role in fuel supply. Gas stations are now positioning themselves as versatile transport hubs, adapting their offerings to address new consumer habits and challenges related to energy changes.

Personalized services have become essential for building customer loyalty in the gas station industry. CORE offers precise attendance analysis, enabling gas station owners to understand customer habits and paths. With this information, gas stations can offer personalized services.

Safety remains a major concern for gas station operators. Investment in advanced detection technologies is essential to ensure the safety of customers, employees, and facilities. CORE integrates advanced security features, such as real-time fire outbreak detection, enabling rapid intervention to minimize risks.

Focus on computer vision serving fast food restaurant players

CORE transforms queue management by providing real-time analysis of customer flow, anticipating peak times for a smooth customer experience. In drive-throughs, the solution developed with its partner ACRELEC assigns the right order to the right car, thus optimizing the delivery process.

CORE extends its influence to parking management by optimizing space usage and minimizing frustrations due to lack of space. Employee safety is also a priority with the rapid detection of potentially hazardous situations.

CORE analyzes customer flows and provides recommendations for optimal layout, thus maximizing operational efficiency. Cleanliness monitoring is ensured with the identification of areas requiring special attention.

Focus on computer vision serving shopping mall players

Computer vision enables detection of intrusions and suspicious activities in restricted areas. Real-time crowd counting helps regulate entry based on the authorized maximum capacity.

CORE analyzes customer behaviors, identifying areas of interest and preferences. Real-time crowd management enables shorter queues and improved customer satisfaction.

In conclusion, CORE stands as an essential ally for these retail sub-sectors, offering tailored solutions to address the specific challenges of each domain. Whether for service personalization, security reinforcement, operations optimization, or improved customer experience, CORE is shaping the future of retail in an innovative and effective manner. Join us in this technological revolution, where each sector finds its customized solution with CORE.