Asda has announced that it is trialling the GoodMaps smartphone app in its Stevenage store, which will help blind and partially sighted customers to navigate easily through the store.
The UK retailer added that the store was the first supermarket in the UK to be integrated into the app, specifically built for the blind and partially sighted.
Although the app has an obvious benefit for disabled shoppers, its usability is not limited to those who are blind or partially sighted, Asda noted.
The app can pinpoint a user’s location accurately up to within a metre, and then communicate directions to an object or area via audio, enlarged visual, and touch commands.
Shoppers using the app will be able to search for key landmarks within the store, such as the pharmacy, bathrooms, and tills, as well as specific goods on the shelves. It aims to guide customers as close as possible to the items they are looking for.
Kane Stephenson, inclusion manager at Asda said, "We strive to be an inclusive business and that includes making it easier for all of our customers to carry out a shop in one of our stores. We hope that by working with GoodMaps we can understand how we can make the in-store experience better for our blind and partially sighted customers.
"Our Stevenage store is the ideal testing ground for this tool with it already being home to a number of tech trials including electronic shelf labels and holograms, and this trial will teach us how we can make shopping in Asda easier for customers with additional needs."
GoodMaps
GoodMaps is a US based company which aims to make a leap in the quality and scale of navigation by improving accessibility, safety, and inclusivity in indoor spaces.
It is achieved by creating and maintaining accurate digital maps, providing indoor positioning technology, and delivering a simple and intuitive way finding experience to all users.
Neil Barnfather, VP Europe at GoodMaps said, "It has been a real delight to work with Asda on this project. Recognising not only the commercial value in providing an enhanced retail experience to shoppers, but, equally the ethical stance taken by Asda in this regard has been both humbling and demonstrative of a corporate culture determined to make their offering not only inclusive but truly outstanding for all."
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine. Article by Conor Farrelly. For more Retail news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.sp
