Kaufland is rolling out self-checkouts from Itab throughout Germany. Outside of Germany, the retailer is also working with 4POS in addition to Itab as supplier of these devices. All German locations of Schwarz Group’s full range discounter are to be equipped with self-service terminals by the beginning of 2029. This year alone, 220 more stores will be added. Once the rollout is complete, more than 8,000 self-checkouts will be in use at Kaufland stores across Germany.
The design of the self-checkouts was developed by Kaufland while Itab is producing them. Kaufland currently has around 2,000 self-service terminals from Itab in use in around 300 stores in Germany. In future, each of the retailer’s locations in Germany will be equipped with up to twelve self-checkouts, in parallel with traditional checkouts.
Most of the self-checkouts only allow customers to make cashless payments. However, Kaufland is equipping each store with a number of self-checkouts equipped with Glory cash handling modules. For the very first time in the market, Kaufland deploys one Glory unit for two self-checkouts – a setting that the Retail Optimiser team so far only saw in the French market.
Kaufland sticks to checkweighers against shrinkage
One Glory module bundles the cash handling for two self-checkouts, with each shopper keeping an eye on their cash transaction on their own screen. Kaufland wants its customers to be able to choose in the self-checkout zone whether they want to pay with cash, card, app or Kaufland Pay. The retailer has equipped its self-checkouts with large, portrait-format displays to make it easier for shoppers to use.
Kaufland protects self-checkout zones with exit gates that only open after the receipt has been scanned. Different as other retail groups such as Aldi Süd or Rewe Group which do not use weighing scales against theft in their large scale self-checkout roll-outs, as they cause too many interruptions in the process, Kaufland equips all terminals with checkweighers that compare each scanned item with the specified target weight.
Kaufland relies on 4POS in Poland and Slovakia
In Germany, the retail company only uses self-checkouts with Itab in its stores. In contrast, Kaufland uses self-checkouts from Swiss hardware specialist 4POS, which belongs to Pan Oston Holding, at its locations in Poland and Slovakia.
In Germany, Kaufland is driving forward its Scan&Go solution K-Scan based on the self-checkout infrastructure. The system is currently available in around 150 stores. Customers scan their products directly while shopping using the Kaufland app with their own smartphone or a handheld scanner. This allows them to see their current purchase value at any time and make changes to their virtual shopping basket immediately. To pay, the scanned purchase is transferred to the self-checkout via a QR code.
K-Scan also brings large shopping baskets to the self-checkout
Kaufland uses an AI-based model developed in-house to check shopping baskets that are recorded via K-Scan. This continuously analyses transactions and identifies conspicuous item combinations or deviations in scanning behaviour in order to trigger targeted spot checks by store employees. The approach follows a clear logic: checks are prioritised based on risk, while inconspicuous purchases largely pass without intervention.
Kaufland states that its customers have accepted K-Scan well since its introduction in 2021. In some stores, up to 15 per cent of shoppers already use this solution for their weekly shopping.
