With the new initiatives being pursued by Tesco and Cencosud, consumers no longer need to enter a supermarket! On their way home from work, subway riders in Chile and South Korea can scan QR codes below product images in virtual supermarkets (below). Selected products are added to a virtual cart and once the list is finalized, payments are made right on the shopper’s phone. After payment is processed, same day delivery to certain areas of the city is guaranteed, if the order is received before 7pm.
Jumbo Mobile's Virtual Shelves in Santiago, Chile
While virtual shelves began with Tesco’s Korean subsidiary Home plus, Chilean subway riders are now being offered a similar opportunity inspired by the Home plus system. The Chilean initiative, branded Jumbo Mobile, is currently being trialed in two subway stations in Santiago.
The idea is to target the location where busy people have the most downtime. So,while waiting for their train to arrive, smartphone owners can browse photos of over 100 products that they would usually need to purchase in-store. When they see an item they like, they scan the QR code and add it to their basket. When satisfied with their selection, they simply pay and go via their smartphone.
Jumbo Customers Scan QR Codes Which Take them to the Mobile Friendly Website
How Does Jumbo Mobile Work (4 Steps)
- Either download a QR scanner, and scan the QR code on the virtual shelf which will take you to the mobile site – OR – go directly to Jumbo Mobile’s mobile friendly website – www.jumbomobile.cl
- Once on the site, add more products to your cart by entering the 4 digit numeric code below your desired product on the board – OR – browse and choose from the categories displayed on the mobile friendly website.
- Enter your information (name/address/credit card) and send the order.
- Wait for a confirmation call from Jumbo Mobile which you should expect within 30 minutes of placing your order. (Call hours between 8am and 10pm)
Jumbo’s delivery charges are $1,990 CLP (Approximately $3.90 USD, or £2.85 today) per order, unless the order sums to over $20,000 CLP (Approximately $39 USD, or £28.65 today) in which case consumer is provided free delivery.
Video: South Korea’s Tesco Homeplus Initiative
What are the Biggest Differences Between the Two Initiatives?
While the two retailers’ have employed very similar concepts, there are some key differences. (1) Unlike the Jumbo system, where customers enter a 4 digit numeric code to identify the desired items, the Home plus system requires users scan unique QR codes below each product. (2) The Jumbo system offers free delivery with orders over $20,000 CLP, whereas the Homeplus system’s delivery charges range from 1,000 won to 4,000 won depending on the time of the day.
Drawbacks & Benefits: Retailer
- Drawback: Retailers will take a big hit in terms of sales associated with impulse purchases
- Drawback: Inventory management, and on-time delivery become difficult with scale
- Benefit: Increased sales through availability, and ease-of-purchase
- Benefit: Increase in brand awareness due to location of virtual shelves
What are your thoughts about these initiatives? Is there anything else you would like to know? Please let us know by leaving you comment below.
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Walking in the presence of giants here. Cool thikinng all around!
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last post on QR Codes and Mobile Phones Part 1: rsceareh, statistics and business opportunities, showed the significant increase in the number of people that have online access via their
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While this has been in place for a while in subway stations in Chile, and South Korea, it seems others are beginning to follow suit. P&G has now rolled out this concept in subway stations in Prague! http://adage.com/article/global-news/p-g-takes-subways-sell-goods/230711/
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Hi! here in Argentina we have just launched Virtual Store (in the same way as Tesco) with Staples. It is the first case in Argentina using QR codes for commerce and the first country where Staples is doing it.
For that we have developed an application for smartphones http://www.staples.com.ar/app that is already available on Blackberry app world.
The main difference against what Jumbo launched in Chile is that in our development, when you scan the QR code with your smartphone you don’t go to the website. In our case, as in Korea, you do all the purchase operation directly on the application, from the begining up to the purchase confirmation, with a very fast performance.
After the customer confirm the order, we deliver it in 24hs for free (minimum purchase: 10 USdollars).
It would be great if you can spread our case also.
You can see more info at: http://programaemprendedor.com.ar/staples-revoluciona-la-forma-de-comprar/ where you can find a press release in english and a promotional video of the development
Best regards!
Carlos Nielsen | Staples Argentina | Director
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