Carrefour’s Digital-First Expansion Brings Cashierless Tech to French Shoppers

French retail giant Carrefour announced this month in a press release the launch of the first artificial intelligence (AI)-powered store in Paris, dubbed Flash 10/10 (10 seconds to shop and 10 seconds to pay).

The concept of the technology store was first tested at the company’s head office in France for more than a year. According to the company, it has been designed to ensure a fast and accessible shopping experience for customers who can enter and exit the store without having to pass through a gateway.

Powered by U.S.-based retail technology company AiFi, the store is equipped with 2,000 integrated AiFi sensors built into the shelves and 60 AI-powered cameras placed in the ceiling to help track customers anonymously to protect consumer privacy.

The products picked up are automatically added to a virtual shopping cart, and once customers are ready to leave the store, their virtual baskets are validated at a checkout terminal where they can make a contactless payment without having to scan items or install an application.

Commenting on the launch, Carrefour Group Executive Director of eCommerce, Data and Digital Transformation Elodie Perthuisot said in the release that the Flash concept meets the expectations of customers who “want to be able enter the store easily, know what they are buying, pay quickly and then leave.”

Creating a Digital Retail Leader

The launch of Carrefour Flash comes on the heels of the company’s first-ever Digital Day held this month, during which the French retailer announced plans to increase its digital investments by about 50% between 2022 and 2026, the equivalent of 3 billion euros (about $3.4 billion).

The retail behemoth said it expects that the digital boost will generate an additional 600 million euros (about $677 million) in return on investment (ROI) in 2026 compared to 2021.

In a statement, Chairman and CEO Alexandre Bompard said the goal is “to transform Carrefour, a traditional retailer with e-commerce capabilities, into a digital retail company, which places digital and data at the heart of all its operations and its value creation model.” And by doing so, it “will unleash the full potential of omnichannel, which is today the DNA of Carrefour and a unique asset in the industry.”

The key drivers of this 2026 digital strategy, which will be based on a “data-centric, digital first” approach, include the ramp-up of data and retail media activities, as well as the digitization of financial services and traditional retail operations, according to the statement.

It also includes the acceleration of eCommerce, an area where the company is looking to establish its leadership across its key markets through partnerships in express delivery (less than three hours) and the ultra-fast grocery delivery space.

In September, the European retail giant injected $40 million for a minority stake in French grocery startup Cajoo which operates a 15-minute bicycle delivery service in 10 major cities across France.

See more: Cajoo’s Henri Capoul Says Carrefour Partnership Will Help Tackle Complex Instant Grocery Business

Prior to that, Carrefour extended its partnership with British online food delivery company Deliveroo, taking its 30-minute, on-demand grocery delivery service in Belgium, Italy and Spain to its French home market.

Read more: Carrefour, Deliveroo Bring 30-Minute Grocery Delivery to France

From 30-minute deliveries, the company’s partnership with Uber Eats in France is now helping to make deliveries to people’s homes in about “10 to 20 minutes” across 100-plus cities in France, the retailer said in May.

See more: French Retailer Carrefour Pursues Quick eCommerce Ambitions in Europe With Uneven Q3 Growth Performance

Per company records, Carrefour’s mobile app has been downloaded 33 million times, and with 800 million annual visits on its digital platforms, the firm’s goal to make digital expansion a pillar of its future strategy plan may well be within reach.