With e-commerce growing at an exceptional rate all around the globe, brick and mortar stores have to work twice as hard to keep the shopping experience seamless and gratifying. No wonder online shopping keeps the desire for convenience alive. Regardless of how convenient it has become to shop online these days, sometimes you just want to visit an actual store. Reason being, the in-store experience matters! Thanks to technology, it is improving constantly. Once you enter a store, you may see that the digital technology may be grinding in ways most of the shoppers might not even understand. More so with the help of devices that tell retailers when your preferred items are running short and with apps that help you navigate the floor plan.

In fact, there has been a significant shift in what consumers expect from their in-store experiences. They want a frictionless, seamless experience, which is not alienating them from the online shopping world. From self-checkouts to delivery robots to virtual trail rooms, technology is enabling the future of in-store shopping. Retailers are working harder than ever to deliver a seamless shopping journey for their customers to cater to this change and come out as a winner in a competitive landscape.

Augmented reality and 3D printing::AR is not a future technology for retail anymore. It’s already here!
Many global retail giants have already set the path and shown us how AR has been effectively used to deliver multiple in-store benefits. There are AR-based apps that allow customers to virtually try products, rather than waiting for their turn in front of crowded trail rooms.

Robotics and automation: Global retail brands have been using robots in their stores for shelf-scanning for more than two years now. This technology, which has been widely used in warehouses, is now finding its way to the stores with various new applications across markets. Robots can be effectively used for real-time inventory replenishment, picking and monitoring misplaced items.

ntegrating IoT capabilities: IoT promises to revolutionize the way we shop. According to a new research report by Global Market Insights, IoT in the retail market is predicted to reach over $30 billion by 2024. ‘Smart shelves’,

Facial recognition: Facial recognition is touted to be one of the most influential technologies for retail this year, specifically in creating smarter stores. So far, preventing in-store theft and crime was one of the prominent applications of this technology.

Conversational interfaces: Chatbots will increasingly find their way to the future-ready retail stores. Chatbots can help customers in finding the right products, answering queries and recommending new products. It creates that frictionless and less administrative experience, especially for millennial buyers.

The RetailTech ecosystem is growing and rapidly becoming one of the hottest hubs for commerce technologies, with over 250 startups operating across the board from logistics to in-store. These companies are leveraging Israeli´s expertise in deep-tech like the use of computer vision for self-checkout or the application of artificial intelligence for visual search.

Relevant companies, interested to learn more on Israel innovative technology /solutions are invited to contact the Trade and Economic Department at the Israeli Consulate General in Bengaluru.

For further queries:
contact: Kavitha Saravanan, Trade Officer, Trade and Economic Mission
Tel: +91-80-49406515. kavithas@israeltrade.gov.il