Retail & Change
Navigating the Challenges of Retail: Insights from ELO's Rick Smith
In this episode of Retail & Change, host Joseph Lohmann, Director Marketing Communications at Crane Payment Innovations, sits down with - Rick Smith, Director of Business Development at ELO. He offers his perspective on the key challenges facing today’s retail industry and how ELO is addressing them.
With over five years at ELO, Smith has observed significant shifts, especially in areas like labor shortages, customer experience demands, and the rapid integration of AI and self-service technology.
Click below to watch the full interview with Rick Smith
Smith shared that one of the primary challenges retailers face is balancing convenience and security in self-checkout experiences. Many retailers fear that self-checkouts contribute to increased shrinkage, a concern Smith understands well. “We found that shrink wasn’t a result of self-checkout; shrink’s going to happen,” he explained. To address these concerns, ELO leverages AI-powered “smart cameras” capable of identifying items that aren’t scanned correctly, helping mitigate losses without sacrificing convenience.
Another pressing issue Smith highlighted is the need for retailers to adapt to diverse customer preferences. As he put it, “The only way you can solve [these challenges] is to give customers all the options.” For ELO, this means designing systems that provide a seamless and versatile shopping experience. Smith pointed out that stores offering self-service options tend to see higher customer satisfaction, as they empower customers to shop and checkout at their own pace.
ELO’s commitment to modular, adaptable systems helps alleviate the burden of managing evolving technology costs by allowing retailers to upgrade and expand systems without having to replace entire setups. Their modular POS Pack, for example, is designed to integrate new software or hardware add-ons, giving retailers flexibility to adapt to new demands without heavy reinvestment.
Labor shortages have added to retailers’ operational difficulties, often pulling staff away from customer engagement and into time-consuming manual processes. ELO’s mobile POS solutions, such as the M60 handheld and the N100 tablet, relieve some of this pressure, offering flexibility that can reduce reliance on fixed checkout points and empower both customers and employees with mobile, efficient options.
Looking to the future, Smith acknowledged AI’s growing role in retail but also stressed the importance of responsible integration. He sees AI as most impactful in areas like vision and audio for enhanced security and streamlined transactions. By collaborating with trusted partners like Google and Intel, ELO ensures that its solutions are compatible with the latest AI capabilities, positioning retailers to benefit from future advancements in an adaptable and secure way.
Ultimately, Rick Smith’s insights underscore the importance of flexibility and customer-centered design in navigating retail’s challenges. Through modularity, intelligent partnerships, and a focus on customer satisfaction, ELO aims to help retailers thrive in a complex landscape while keeping pace with technological innovation.
For more insights and to join the conversation on retail innovation, follow Rick Smith on LinkedIn and follow Retail & Change on your favorite podcast platform, including Spotify and Apple Podcast.
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