Report finds self-checkout moves into mainstream; shipments to grow 20% in 2012

New York City -- The global market for self-checkout has continued to thrive despite a difficult retail environment, according to a new report by London-based strategic research and consulting firm RBR.



The report, Global EPOS and Self-Checkout 2011, reveals that NCR is still the world’s largest supplier of self-checkout machines, accounting for two-thirds of units shipped in 2010. Germany’s Wincor Nixdorf is the second largest supplier, closely followed by IBM. Japan’s Fujitsu is the largest Asian supplier, but interestingly still ships fewer self-checkout units than NCR even in its home market of Japan.



Western Europe received the greatest number of self-checkout shipments, accounting for nearly half of global shipments in 2010, according to the study.



North America is the second largest region for self-checkout shipments, but due to its head start in deploying such terminals still has the largest installed base. North America and Western Europe together account for over 90% of the world’s self-checkout installations.



RBR forecasts that global self-checkout shipments will grow by 16% in 2011 and 20% in 2012, as new markets and new retailers join the trend towards increased self-service at POS. Moreover, the more established markets, such as the United States and United Kingdom, will see increased refresh activity as old terminals need replacing and as economies slowly improve.



RBR forecasts that by 2016 the installed base of self-checkout terminals will be 325,000, and annual shipments will exceed 60,000. Terminals will comprise a mix of self-service automation including not only full-scan, weigh and bag units but also self-pay terminals and mobile self-scanning systems.