The Evolution of Convenience Stores... CU Expands Self-Checkout Counters and Commercializes Facial Payment

Operation of 1,000 Self-Checkout Counters Using Next-Generation POS System
Self-Payment Share Reaches 30%, Increasing by 15.2% Since COVID-19
CU Logo Transforms to ‘C SELF U’

Self-checkout counter at CU Ewha Womans University Seoul Hospital branch. (Photo by CU)

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] #On the afternoon of the 17th, at the convenience store CU located within Hanyang University Seoul Campus, product barcodes are quickly scanned. However, the person holding the scanner is not a clerk but a customer. When a message appears on the point-of-sale (POS) device saying "Please position your face in front," the customer briefly shows their face to the camera and then leaves the store with the products.

The convenience store evolves once again. Instead of credit cards, payment is made with the face, and customers check out by themselves. CU announced on the 20th that it will operate self-checkout counters using next-generation POS systems at over 1,000 stores nationwide. This is to enhance customer convenience and improve store operation efficiency through self-checkout counters.

CU has been operating self-checkout counters in some stores since 2018, with an average self-payment rate of about 30% in these stores. After the recent COVID-19 pandemic, usage increased by an additional 15.2 percentage points. The reuse rate of self-checkout users reached 94%. Franchise owners operating self-checkout counters also report high satisfaction.

A CU Hanyang University branch official said, "Most customers are in their 20s, so they adapt quickly to the self-checkout counters, with about 70% using them," adding, "It’s convenient to use when stepping out briefly to the restroom or when organizing products."

A view of the CU self-checkout counter located on Hanyang University Seoul Campus. Payment is possible using only the face through the facial recognition payment service, 'Shinhan Face Pay.'

Recently, due to COVID-19 concerns, CU attached CU+ antibacterial film to the customer screens of self-checkout counters and fully equipped hand sanitizers and stand scanners. The operation of self-checkout counters will gradually increase through voluntary participation of franchise stores nationwide until the COVID-19 situation stabilizes. Motion images changing the CU logo to 'C SELF U' will be displayed inside and outside stores to continuously promote social distancing campaigns.

CU expects that once self-checkout counters become active, employees will be relieved of counter duties and can focus more on store cleanliness and hygiene, product display, and other service management. Additionally, earlier this month, CU commercialized Korea’s first facial recognition payment service, Shinhan Face Pay, at two CU stores on Hanyang University Seoul Campus in collaboration with Shinhan Card as part of building future payment infrastructure. Face Pay allows users to register their card and facial information once at a bank that supports facial registration, then make payments at Face Pay affiliated stores using only facial recognition.

This transformation at CU was made possible by continuous investment in research and development (R&D). According to BGF Retail’s business report, CU invested 384 million KRW (0.04% of sales) in R&D in 2017, 1.624 billion KRW (0.03%) in 2018, and expanded to 9.997 billion KRW (0.17%) last year. The near 10 billion KRW R&D expenditure last year was largely influenced by the introduction of the next-generation POS system.

Song Jitaek, head of BGF Retail’s Innovation Division, said, "The next-generation POS is an example where proactive investment for CU’s business innovation helped address social issues like COVID-19," adding, "As a life platform, we will realize a more convenient and beneficial convenience store beyond just a store, aligned with customers, franchise owners, and social changes."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.