Retail solutions - Budgens tests headsets for shopfloor staff

Convenience store chain Budgens is piloting digital headsets from Quail Digital for shopfloor staff at its Belsize Park store in London.

Checkouts are fitted with keypads, which can send out requests - such as price checks or shoplifter alerts - to floor staff. This means staff can react to queries without making an extra journey to the till. A similar initiative was introduced at Ikea's Brent Park store in December.

Budgens senior development controller Paul Wilks said: 'The system has brought immediate benefits to the operation at Belsize Park and we are looking to roll it out at selected stores.'