Looking more like something from a sci-fi novel than a retail store, the opening of the brand new 10-000 square-foot Safaricom store in Nairobi hit the headlines recently.

With its unique video tunnel entrance and state-of-the-art transaction booths, the four-month digitalization of the flagship store represents an important business move for the mobile company. It’s also a taste of what to expect as Kenya, and many other African nations, take a step to a more digitalized way of shopping.

Here’s a look at the key features of such a store, and how they represent what we can expect in the future

Jitambulishe booth – voice enrolment/recognition (Voice AI)

Among the new store’s features is a collection of Jitambulishe booths designed to serve clients. Jitambulishe is Safaricom’s voice recognition service that skips passwords and verification questions by using the customer’s voice to identify them instead. Once registered, they can perform sensitive tasks such as getting a PUK code or replacing a SIM card.

Voice recognition technology, or voice AI, is a major boost to mobile and internet security which, along with its twin biometric technologies, face and fingerprint recognition, allows us to identify ourselves with our unique identities.

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It has a big future in physical stores, too. Once your voice is registered with a digitized shop, you can use it to pay for a product or ask questions about products and receive an instant response. An example might be a customer asking for an out-of-stock item to be delivered to their home the next day, or where in the store they can find a similar product to the one on display.

Passwords and PINs are open to fraud, but they could become things of the past once biometric technology is commonplace.

M-Pesa transaction booths (AI)

An automated checkout is nothing new, but in Safaricom’s M-Pesa booths customers can scan their items to display specifications on the screen, as well as purchase the product.

Such scanning technology has made its way into our living rooms, with examples employed by companies as diverse as lottery agents enabling customers to scan lotto tickets for winnings, to restaurants using QR codes to display takeaway menus. So, it’s no surprise that more and more stores have it as a common feature.

However, this technology promises to go a step further in the future. Amazon Go stores have wireless checkouts where customers don’t even have to scan their products. They just pick up what they need, and the company’s AI charges their account automatically when they leave the store. What’s more, it stores the customer’s buying history and can make recommendations for when they next visit.

The technology isn’t that expensive to implement, either. Whereas a few years ago, companies would have spent a huge amount to install it across a few stores, it’s now becoming more commonplace, so expect to see it in a store near you soon.

In-store gaming and tech zone In Safaricom

Playing around with things, testing them out for ourselves, see if we like them or not…it’s an important part of the human experience from a young age. The digitized shop will be no different.

Safaricom has built a state-of-the-art tech zone in their new store, designed for customers to have an interactive experience. This area will provide live product demonstrations, a kind of ‘try-before-you-buy’ system that helps customers understand what they’re buying with a view to increasing sales.

In other parts of the world, companies have gone much further with their product testing and offer a glimpse into what African consumers might expect in the future. In Germany, Audi customers can go to one of 1,000 VR showrooms around the country and take a 360-degree holoride virtual experience inside any car that they choose, with actions including opening doors and listening to engine sounds. The technology has also reached the fashion industry, where shops scan customers’ body measurements to see if a piece of clothing or jewelry fits them.

Apart from the obvious customer benefits, using VR and AR technology will give businesses a double boost. It will improve customer confidence, making them more likely to buy products after trying them, and reduce costs caused by returns: a shopper who knows that the product is right for them when buying is less likely to be unhappy with it when they get home.

Staff training

Critics of digitized stores have pointed out staff reductions as a negative consequence of using automated technology. This is a valid concern and something that large businesses should address — however there are certain plus points.

Employees at the Nairobi Safaricom store will receive specialist training to operate the new technology, and they’ll be able to provide a quicker service as a result. In the wider retail world, in-store employee tools will empower workers to become better at their jobs. They’ll become more proficient in finding the perfect product for the client, solving tech problems, and making the customer experience more enjoyable.

The digital future

Harnessing the power of the latest technology is crucial to business success in Kenya, and around the world. Making the most of its benefits while minimizing its pitfalls will be a key part of retail business plans in the future.

Yet even more importantly, customers also need to feel welcome when they enter a store, not intimidated by the glow of electronic machines. The retailers who can make improve the buying experience, as well as increase their sales margins, will be the ones who have the most success.