Connected Retail: Reduce Energy Consumption, Make Customized Offers

by Zumtobel Group

Connected buildings and smart applications create added value for retail companies. Whether it’s a large supermarket or an exclusive brand store: customer loyalty apps or indoor navigation turn shopping into an experience and enable customised offers for consumers. In addition, demand-based lighting management in particular is an important lever in stationary retail – with its large areas and long opening hours – in order to operate in an economically and ecologically sustainable manner. Zumtobel creates the technical prerequisites for smart building operation in retail – with future-proof lighting infrastructure that embeds sensors at the point of sale (PoS).

Retail companies want to provide targeted incentives to attract people to the space. Customer centricity is one of the most important buzzwords of recent years in this context. From the experience of e-commerce, consumers are used to suppliers making them individual offers based on their shopping behaviour. This is a principle that can also be transferred to stationary retail with the help of shopping apps or digital route guidance in the store.

Personalised customer approach thanks to location-based services

Capture environmental data, analyse needs, use resources effectively: With the analysed behaviour and the resulting detailed knowledge of the target groups, personalised measures can be derived that make shopping an experience and positively influence consumer spending. The basis of such applications is a constantly learning Internet of Things (IoT).

For this purpose, so-called beacons are integrated into the lighting infrastructure of the building, a Bluetooth technology that can transmit location and movement data. Consumers need a smartphone with a corresponding app from the brand manufacturer or retailer in order to be addressed in a targeted manner. Based on this, digital offers are conceivable, such as an indoor navigation system that guides consumers to the desired product in the store. Or a customer loyalty app that makes offers tailored to shopping behaviour.

Improve routing and processes in the store

Retail companies also benefit from the advantages of location-based data: for example, they can find out which aisles are most frequently frequented on the way through the shop or bricks and mortar shop – and improve their routing accordingly. In addition, information on queues at the checkout is helpful to optimise the procedures and processes at the location and to continuously learn.

Maximum comfort, low energy consumption

In addition, connectivity offers numerous possibilities to optimise and decarbonise the energy balance of a retail property: This starts with energy-efficient luminaires and extends to sophisticated lighting management systems. For this purpose, motion, presence or daylight sensors are integrated directly into the lighting infrastructure.

They permanently record ambient data, evaluate it – and pass the findings on to the lighting control system: by dimming the lighting depending on presence or switching it off completely, the energy consumption of retail properties can be reduced by 20 to 40 percent. This can be useful, for example, in side rooms that are only lit when people are working there. Or in low-traffic aisles where a low lighting level and dimmed light are sufficient.

Environmental management increases the quality of stay

In addition to presence data, characteristics of the environment and room quality can also be recorded – from air temperature to CO2 content: linked to heating or air-conditioning systems, the quality of stay in the retail space can be constantly improved. Optimised maintenance via a lighting management system also contributes to this: As soon as there is a malfunction or a luminaire fails, this is indicated and can be remedied promptly. The result: customers feel comfortable and prefer to stay in the respective shop. Trust in the environment and the brand increases.

One lighting infrastructure, numerous applications

An enormous advantage in this context is the complete integration of digital services into the lighting infrastructure: even security-relevant applications – such as surveillance cameras or loudspeakers – can be switched on at any time, for example with the TECTON continuous-row lighting system. New applications become scalable and easy to integrate. They can be implemented without additional installation effort, extremely cost-efficiently and promptly. Whether video, acoustics or presence: by installing several systems together, installation costs are significantly reduced.

Maximum safety and security, improved quality of stay, an individual shopping experience as well as sustainable savings in energy costs and CO2 emissions: with a future-proof lighting infrastructure by Zumtobel, retailers gain several decisive advantages on their way to the future of retailing.