UK retail group John Lewis has announced a £4 million investment in a new shopfloor app, which will strengthen its omni-channel customer service in 20 of its outlets.
Employees (known as 'partners') will receive an iPhone with a pre-loaded 'Partner App' which will help them speedily retrieve any information requested by a customer about a certain product, check stock, and place orders.
This will diminish the time spent waiting by the customer.
The app was designed and created by John Lewis' in-house online team, and was initially tested in a Cambridge store for five months. During the most successful week of the trial, 50% of online purchases made in-store were completed using the app.
After receiving a training programme this summer, 8,000 shopfloor staff will receive the new devices.
John Lewis's customer director, Craig Inglis, said of the initiative, "As online and physical worlds increasingly come together, this initiative, which forms the foundation of our digital strategy for shops, will support our partners in offering great customer service in a digital world.
"During the trial in our Cambridge store, customer feedback was overwhelmingly positive. It consistently speeded up response times to customer queries as partners didn't need to leave the customer to find answers, or complete a purchase.
"This is just the beginning. We will keep adding to the Partner App in the future with new, innovative ways to help our customers."
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
