Denver-based Impulsify has created a completely contactless grab-and-go kiosk for lobby retail transactions.

The ShopPoP kiosk provides a QR code to give users the option of going touchless when purchasing items at the self-service pay stations used by the hospitality and multifamily industries.

ShopPoP is a standalone countertop pay station that allows users to scan and pay for food and beverage items without assistance from a front desk associate or cashier. It grew in popularity throughout Covid when lobby markets became the sole source of food and beverage for many hotels.

Deployments further skyrocketed as the labour crisis began.

“Hotel front desk teams are at a breaking point trying to play cashier and desk associate simultaneously,” said Janine Williams, CEO of Impulsify. “With the removal of breakfast and the demand for more packaged food, came the dramatic increase in retail transaction volume that placed an even greater burden on teams already stretched thin.”

ShopPoP offered immediate relief, but cross-contamination concerns of touching a screen used by others in a public space grew as Covid cases grew. Impulsify’s development team, in partnership with Pennsylvania-based Kioware, added a scannable QR code to the touchscreen kiosk that converts the guest’s phone screen into a track pad eliminating the need to physically touch the kiosk to scroll and tap. There is no app download necessary, so it is immediately available to those who prefer it.

Ingenico’s PCI-certified unattended credit-card terminal ShopPoP already allowed for a contactless experience in the credit-card portion of the transaction when tap payment options are enabled.

“Self-service is expected in nearly every aspect of our lives at this point,” said Williams. “But it really became the definition of essential in this chapter. We want to ensure that the brands who use our technology are able to offer the safest possible F&B retail experience to their guests. We want to be above and beyond for both our customers and theirs.”

When asked what the upgraded feature functionality would cost users, Williams replied: “Zero dollars. It’s the right thing to do; it’s the responsible thing to do.”

The feature was launched at this week’s HFTP’s Hitec 2021 in Dallas. This is said to be the world’s largest hospitality technology show. Impulsify originally launched ShopPoP at Hitec 2017.

Impulsify provides self-service retail technology, design services and business intelligence to increase incremental revenue opportunities in commercial real estate common areas such as hotel lobbies, co-working spaces and multifamily residential complexes. The technology completely automates retail deployment and management to increase profitability and reduce operational impact of unattended retail stores for non-retail businesses.