Sainsbury's trialling electronic shelf-edge labels in stores

Rhyl Journal

09-06-2025

The change is set to signal the end of a classic element found when doing the weekly shop, and could be rolled out in stores sooner than you think.
Sainsbury's is trialling electronic labels (ESLs) in some of its bigger stores, across items such as wine, beer, spirits and health products.
The new cutting-edge technology will also allow prices for products to be changed remotely via a computer.
The move will lead to the removal of traditional paper price labels that are changed each time a price goes up or down.
The Grocer reports that the supermarket installed the tech at three of its larger-format stores late last year.
'We are trialling electronic shelf-edge labels in a small number of our stores,' a Sainsbury's spokesperson confirmed to Newsquest.
Witney, in Oxfordshire, is understood to be one of the locations where the tech is being trialled as part of its 'Future Stores' initiative.
Electronic shelf labels, also known as digital price tags, digitally display product prices.
Their digital wireless display is attached to the front edge of retail shelving and it is then connected to the store's point of sale (POS) system.
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It is said to improve pricing accuracy, enable dynamic pricing and reduce labour costs.
ESLs are not new in the UK, as they have been around for more than 30 years.
They were introduced in the UK initially but are more widely seen across Europe in countries such as France and Scandinavia.
Sainsbury's isn't the only retailer opting to give ESLs a go, as several other supermarkets have also recently trialled them, including Asda and Co-op.