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Tops Adds Technology to Shopping Trips

Posted on: Thursday, 1 June 2006, 21:00 CDT

By Matt Glynn, The Buffalo News, N.Y.

May 31--Toting a hand-held electronic device, customers at Tops Markets' store on Maple Road in Amherst can scan products' bar codes while shopping, stuff the groceries in bags inside a cart, check out in a self-service lane, and leave.

The program, called EasyShop, is one of three "do-it-yourself" technologies Tops is introducing in some of its area stores. Tops' store on Maple Road at North Bailey Avenue is a laboratory of sorts, the first in Buffalo Niagara to offer its full package of electronic shopping tools.

Shoppers can still buy their groceries the old-fashioned way, sending items down a conveyor belt for a cashier to ring them up. The new technology provides an alternative to customers who want a different way to shop, rather than replacing cashiers or customer service, said Tracy Pawelski, a Tops spokeswoman.

"It's always an additional option, a convenience," she said.

Along with EasyShop, the Amherst store has installed kiosks, called Shopping Solutions, with touch screens that allow customers to place deli orders, print recipes, and find items in the store, among other tasks.

Also new are its EasyWeigh scales, which enable customers to calculate how much items such as fruit and vegetables will cost, and print a bar code label.

Four Tops stores are scheduled to receive all three types of technology. The Amherst store already is using them, and the other three -- in Depew, East Aurora and East Amherst -- are expected to receive the technologies by late summer or early fall.

Pawelski declined to say how much Tops is spending on the new technologies. As for whether Tops will expand their use to additional stores, she said: "We'll continue to look at the marketplace and say, 'Where does it make sense?'-- "

A total of 17 Tops stores in the region are receiving some kind of technology upgrade, Pawelski said. In some cases, stores might install self-service checkout stations, or simply add more of those stations.

Customers who want to use EasyShop must be enrolled in the chain's Bonus Card program, and then sign up for EasyShop.

The Amherst store stocks 48 of the hand-held devices. A tiny screen on the device provides a running tally of the bill, including discounts. Unwanted items can be deleted by pushing a button.

Three checkout stations are dedicated to EasyShop users. The customer plugs the device into the checkout machine, which displays the cost of the order on a screen. If the stations get too crowded, the customers can check out in another self-checkout aisle. Customers who sign up for the program are randomly selected for short audits at the checkout to ensure items in the bags were properly scanned, said Dave Daddario, manager of the Amherst store.

Tops employees involved in the program said customers like it for a few reasons. They have to handle items only once, instead of emptying the cart at the checkout. They can arrange everything in bags the way they like, to make the items convenient to unpack at home. And they can track their bill as they walk the aisles.

"They like the technology, they like the ease," said customer service manager Debbie Brown.

Sign-ups for the new program, which started about a week ago, have been going strong, Daddario said. "It certainly seems like it's really well accepted."

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Buffalo News, N.Y.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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AHO, AHLN,

Source: The Buffalo News

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