The Future Is Now

Ann-Marie Vazzano

Italy’s Coop Italia—the country’s largest grocery chain—recently opened its first “Supermarket of the Future.” The new store features interactive tables that allow shoppers, with the wave of a hand, to see product information, such as origins, nutrition facts, allergen warnings and promotions, on a monitor. Vertical shelving with an associated touch application allows customers to navigate through product categories and filter products to find the best match. The stores also include large screens displaying information on promotions, daily offerings, cooking suggestions and posts from Coop’s Facebook page. GP