Guest Feature: Billa advances in-store experience with it’s self-checkout ecosystem
In a time of increasing price sensitivity and economic uncertainty, transparency during the shopping journey is becoming just as important as speed at checkout. Customers expect transparency and control over their spending, while retailers aim to provide relevant promotions, coupons, and loyalty benefits at the right moment in the decision process.
At the same time, the checkout zone remains a critical pressure point, where labour shortages, fluctuating customer numbers, and rising expectations converge. Billa Austria addresses these challenges with an integrated ecosystem, extending the checkout process into the shopping journey itself.
Together with self-checkout software partner Shopreme and shopfitting expert Umdasch The Store Makers, Billa has integrated a self-checkout ecosystem with a dedicated Billa Scan & Go app with Jö loyalty integration, complemented by the supervisor employee app and Vector exit terminals.
Strategically restructuring checkout
A key characteristic: Billa’s approach is structuring the shopping journey around the app as the central interface: customers scan items as they shop, see their basket total in real-time, and can directly access and redeem loyalty benefits, promotions, and coupons within the same flow. To ensure accessibility, the app can also be used as a guest without registration.
At Billa, self-checkout is treated as part of the overall shopping journey rather than a standalone touchpoint. Instead of committing to a single format, self-checkout becomes a configurable system. Based on store requirements, Billa combines traditional cash desks, SCO fast lanes for small baskets, and the Scan & Go journey that starts in the app and can end at a dedicated exit terminal.
How self-checkout works at Billa
Smaller purchases are often completed at the SCO, while larger baskets are scanned throughout the store via the app, eliminating the need to unload and rescan items at the end, reducing pressure in checkout zones. Additional features, such as integrated shopping lists, support this flow, allowing customers to plan ahead and automatically track progress as they scan products.
At the same time, the setup is built for scalability. Alongside Billa Scan & Go, the employee app, and Vector exit solution, Billa is preparing the rollout of handheld scanners together with Shopreme and Umdasch The Store Makers. Because all components are part of Shopreme’s ecosystem, no additional integrations are required. Hardware, operations, analytics, and loss prevention can be managed centrally within one platform.
The video illustrates how customers use Billa Scan & Go from check-in, product scanning to payment (Video: Shopreme)
By owning a single platform, self-checkout becomes a configurable toolkit rather than a fixed concept, enabling suitable combinations for each store location and adjusting them as needed over time.
Flexibility across store formats and customer needs
Billa’s solution is designed to accommodate different store environments and customer preferences. Customers can either complete their purchase directly in the app or finalise it at a Vector exit terminal. The terminal serves as a defined endpoint where a QR code from the app is scanned, allowing payment to be completed. Some include an integrated exit gate. In other formats, a fully mobile flow allows customers to pay in-app and leave the store without additional steps.
With that, Billa aims to adjust the level of structure and control based on the store layout, traffic volume, and operational needs. Despite these variations, the core process remains consistent: items are scanned during shopping, the basket is visible in real time, loyalty benefits are applied directly, and checkout queues are avoided entirely.
Maintaining control without disrupting the flow
A key requirement in Billa’s setup is reliability under real store conditions. The system supports offline scanning, allowing customers to continue shopping even in areas with limited connectivity. Access is intentionally kept simple: the app can be used with or without registration. Guest users can complete the full shopping process without friction, while loyalty users additionally benefit from integrated offers.
In formats like the Billa Eco Store Pilotengasse in Vienna, the digital-first approach also reduces dependency on paper and additional hardware. At the same time, store operations become less tied to fixed checkout infrastructure, enabling more flexible staff deployment.
Centralised management and store-level control
All Scan & Go interactions are managed across stores through a central Management Console. This allows Billa to monitor performance, analyse baskets, and adjust operations based on usage patterns.
Employees are supported by the dedicated Shopreme supervisor app, enabling them to handle exceptions, conduct spot checks, and manage age-restricted purchases without disrupting customer flow. After the first age check, customers can enable biometric age verification via Face ID and won’t get interrupted again.
What retailers can take away
Billa’s Scan & Go implementation illustrates how the role of checkout is shifting from a fixed endpoint to an integrated part of the overall shopping journey. Retailers can create a more flexible, scalable system that adapts to different store formats and customer needs.
The key lays in the underlying setup:
- One platform connecting multiple self-checkout touchpoints, loyalty, and loss prevention
- A consistent process across store formats
- Centralised management and analytics
- One employee app that reduces pressure on staff & interrupt flow only when needed
The ecosystem approach of Shopreme won this year’s European Reta Award ‘Top Supplier Retail’, and Regal Re|Tech Award for Checkout & Smartstores. Additional rollouts of handheld scanners across Billa and Billa Plus stores are already in progress.
