Reference photos

Early prototype outside of building

I decided to start modeling the outside of Morrisons. Seeing as they want to incorporate this project into their current stores i thought it would make sense to actually base this project around a store currently open so I am using the one from my hometown in Bristol. I am going to leave this as it is for the moment while I collect some more reference photos.

M Kitchen blog

Noticed Morrison s have a Kitchen blog where they post a whole load of recipes and tips/techniques for cooking. I barely noticed it in a link at the bottom of the website and it holds some very good information i think can be used and should be seen by a wider audience.

http://www.mkitchenblog.com/

Current problems worth considering

Key problems
• Pricing: Morrisons' value credentials are under fire. The chain's prices have closely tracked those of rival Tesco, but lost ground compared with Asda, according to analysts at Bernstein who estimate that Morrisons is now 5%-6% more expensive than Asda, the cheapest of the big four. Morrisons has so far not produced its promotional equivalent of Sainsbury's Brand Match or Asda's Price Guarantee, which are designed to reassure shoppers on price. Meanwhile discounters such as Aldi and Lidl have increased the quality of their groceries compared to mainstream supermarkets.
• Brand communications: The cheery but expensive presence of celebrities Ant & Dec in Morrisons' ads does nothing for the supermarket's value for money credentials. Even Sainsbury's has ditched celebrities in favour of bloggers like Jack Monroe. Recent campaigns have placed more emphasis on pricing deals but the retailer needs to focus on the combination of fresh, British food and low prices that once made Morrisons a powerhouse.
• Convenience: Shoppers now prefer to buy little and often, close to home. Morrisons' small M Local chain is growing fast, but some industry insiders say the haste to add new outlets has meant it has snapped up some expensive outlets in the wrong places. Getting the right stores will be crucial in building a viable chain.
• Online: Morrisons had little choice but to accept that its shoppers were moving online, but its expensive partnership with Ocado has cost the business millions that could have gone into improving prices. The service needs to win new customers and additional profits if Morrisons is going to justify its investment. After all, Aldi and Lidl are growing rapidly without online stores.
• Stores: Activist shareholders want Morrisons to put its property assets - with an estimated value of as much as £10bn - into a separate entity as the potential valueis not fully recognised in the retailer's current stock market capitalisation. Most industry experts believe such a radical move is unlikely and unwise but selling and leasing back some stores, 90% of which are freeholds, would give Morrisons some cash to invest in its business.

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/feb/12/morrisons-private-equity-buyout-talk-sir-ken-morrison

Trolley screen

Trolley

Downloaded a trolley off of turbo squid. Was going to make one but to save time i got this one for free and its easy to customize. If I need to reinvent the trolley at all I will probably make one from scratch. This was just for preparation in gathering some objects.

Interesting research : Biometrics

Source: http://www.possoftwareguide.com/articles/future-pos-software.html

Biometrics
This technology is already being used in a few select retailers for logging into POS software and for customer's using self checkouts. Biometrics refers to a method of identification by measuring unique human characteristics as a way to confirm identity.
In retail, biometrics is used when a cashier presses his or her finger on the finger print scanner, which automatically logs them into the POS system based on their fingerprint. This future POS technology reduces theft as others are not able to use a particular cash register until they've scanned their fingerprint. Errors are also tracked to the specific cashier so that training needs can be identified.

At first I seemed a bit cautious over this as it seems just like out the sci fi films scanning finger prints or retina information but the fact you can not use a self service till without it registering you as a user would definitely prevent theft on that front. If they link this  up with a reward system/loyalty card so when it reads your fingerprint it temporarily logs you in until you leave. 

Some research I done shows how some shops are letting you pay by phone which is definitely the way retail may be heading because of the increasing technology of smart phones but I myself am always weary of paying on my phone.  Another website had some useful information regarding studies on Biometrics and paying by phone.

The customers certainly seemed to like it. Around 900 people took part in the trial and 94pc said they would be willing to use fingerprint payment for all their in-store purchases.
Mr Delaforge said the technology could also be developed to add loyalty points and discounts automatically when a customer scans their fingerprint, helping consumers save both time and money.
It could be the influence of Minority Report, but there seems to be an interest in biometric payments on this side of the Channel as well.
A recent study of more than 2,000 shoppers by payment processing group WorldPay found 49pc would use biometric payments, such as fingerprint or iris scanners – far outweighing the popularity of smartphone payments, which won 30pc of the vote.

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/consumertips/10172480/How-technology-will-transform-your-visit-to-the-supermarket.html 

Brief states how although they want innovative ideas it may well be just adjustments to a current service. When i went to Morrison's recently their self service machines are by far the worst out of all supermarkets so maybe this is definitely something they can trial or look into.