News

Retailers face either/or: kiosks vs. smart phones

September 28, 2010

Large retailers in the U.S. are torn between installing kiosks and implementing smart phone shopping technology, according to the Financial Times. (Free registration required to see the story and sidebar).

Kohl’s has gone the in-store touch screen kiosk route, allowing customers to browse its Web site and order online items that are not available in the store. And JCPenney expects to install this month a “Buy More” self-service kiosk linked to its website in about 150 of its smaller stores with limited stock.

But JCPenney is also looking to offer smart-phone shopping capabilities in about 300 of its smaller shops. Tom Nealon, CIO, says shoppers with smart phones don’t need the kiosks.

“We are not looking to deploy a lot of hardware at great expense, when we have such conviction that the mobile devices our consumers are carrying in are going to be wired to that capability,” Nealon told the Financial Times.