Retail tech startup Azwemake (CEO Sooyoung Son) announced on the 15th that it has signed a collaboration agreement with electronic shelf label (ESL) company Solum (CEO Seongho Jeon) and has started a project to integrate store price automation and advertising monetization (Retail Media Network, RMN).
The two companies successfully implemented ESL and dynamic pricing systems at Wang Mart's Hongseong branch in Hongseong County, South Chungcheong Province, successfully automating price changes and POP replacement processes. According to the companies, the average manual process time, which took approximately 90 minutes, was reduced to approximately 6 minutes, representing a time savings of over 93%.
Through this demonstration, Azwemake improved its in-store pricing information delivery method by displaying regional price competitiveness messages and guiding consumers' purchasing decisions. For example, phrases like "10% cheaper than the market price in South Chungcheong Province" intuitively convey price competitiveness.
The dynamic pricing feature calculates recommended prices by considering various factors, including local market prices, sales volume, inventory levels, and expiration dates, and fine-tunes these prices based on time of day, day of the week, and event schedules. Actual store prices and sales results are immediately reflected in subsequent price recommendations, continuously improving on-site relevance.
The company said that for major items, the current price forecast error is maintained in the single digits, and for the remaining items, it is stably managed in the low double digit range.
Based on this system, Azwemake is simultaneously pursuing sales optimization and loss minimization, while also expanding its RMN advertising business. Currently, 18 digital signage units are installed at the Hongseong branch, with plans to expand to 225 units by the end of the year. Advertising revenue is reinvested in the cost of in-store digital transformation, including the introduction of ESL.
CouponQ, a subsidiary of Azwemake, operates the paper coupon brand "One Coupon," which has approximately 4,800 affiliated stores nationwide. Through this project, CouponQ plans to introduce a revenue-sharing model for ESL-based signage advertising. This will help even small stores reduce their initial investment burden and establish a foundation for digital transformation.
This collaboration combines Azwemake's field operations and data analysis capabilities with Solum's ESL and signage technology and open innovation experience. The two companies plan to nationwide expand digital transformation tailored to each store's situation.
A Solum official stated, “We will simultaneously improve store operational efficiency and customer experience by combining field-oriented data operations with ESL technology,” while Azwemake’s Oh Seung-hyun, head of headquarters, said, “We will pursue nationwide expansion through a virtuous cycle of time savings and monetization.”
CouponQ CEO Kim Seong-han stated, “The ESL transition represents a structural change in the offline distribution environment,” and added, “We will expand the digital retail ecosystem through the strategic transformation of approximately 4,800 franchisees.”
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