Dan Murphy’s has finalised its roll out of electronic shelf labels (ESL), which will see all 273 branded stores fitted with the technology by the end of this month.
ESLs are digital displays beneath products that are operated from a central system enabling Dan Murphy’s “market-famous” price beats to roll out on shelves within minutes. They are seen as an important way to elevate the customer experience while driving large-scale efficiencies across the network.
“We have price beats happening every day in real-time to support our lowest liquor price guarantee, meaning our team can spend more time face-to-face with customers and less time changing over ticketed prices manually,” says Dan Murphy’s Managing Director Agi Pfeiffer Smith.
“Price beats happen with the press of a button now in every one of our stores, and we are confident based on our trials of ESLs to date that the technology mix we have in place is delivering for customers.
“ESLs are also resulting in some positive sustainability outcomes while generating considerable cost savings right across the business.
“This is a great example of how technology can solve tangible business problems.”
By removing the need for staff to manually update shelf price labels, Dan Murphy’s says ESLs will drive team efficiency with each store being able to recoup an average of 12 hours’ worth of staff hours a week per store.
The retailer’s ESLs are fitted with near field communication, too, a type of short-range technology that allows a connection between two devices. It means customers can hold their smartphone to the ESL and their Dan Murphy’s app or browser will direct them to the product listing to display tasting notes and reviews.
The technology is also compatible with handheld radio frequency devices used by team members for stock control and retrieval. When team members pack online orders, they can search for a product on their device and a light from the ESL will flash, reducing the time taken to pick a product from the expansive Dan Murphy’s shelves, as well as improving the accuracy of order fulfilment.
The implementation of ESLs is expected to save around 37,000 pieces of paper per store, amounting to a saving of around 10 million sheets annually across the business. As ESLs replace the need for manual printing, around half a million dollars will be saved in printing costs.