Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., one of the largest convenience store retailers retailers across the globe, reported it would deploy more than 10,000 Mashgin Touchless Checkout Systems branded as “Smart Checkout,” to more than 7,000 of its Circle K and Couche-Tard stores over the next three years. The AI-powered self-checkout system developed by Mashgin will improve customer checkout times as much as 400%, driving customer experience forward while allowing store staff to focus their time on helping customers.
View a short video of the Circle K Smart Checkout experience here.
The agreement with Mashgin launches the global deployment of the pioneering system, and represents one of the largest scale expansions of computer vision-powered checkout technology to date. It builds upon the successful deployment of Mashgin across nearly 500 Circle K locations in the U.S. and Sweden since 2020, as well as at Couche-Tard’s retail innovation lab store on the campus of McGill University in Montreal.
Referred to as “Smart Checkout” in Circle K and Couche-Tard stores, the Mashgin Touchless Checkout System is a compact countertop device that fits easily into the existing store layout. It uses computer vision to recognize items presented from virtually any angle and instantly ring them up in a single transaction. Customers place their items on the Mashgin Touchless Checkout System, which uses cameras to ring up everything in under a second. There is no need to download an app or find and scan barcodes; shoppers simply put items down, pay as they normally would, and are on their way in as little as 10 seconds – eight times faster than traditional self-checkout.
“We’re committed to investing in and scaling technology that sets a new standard for convenience with our customers and advances our mission to make our customers’ lives a little easier every day,” said Magnus Tägtström, vice president of global innovation at Couche-Tard. “The Smart Checkout system powered by Mashgin’s game-changing technology shortens lines, improves the customer experience and frees up our teams to focus on helping our customers. We look forward to introducing this new platform to stores across our network.”
Surveys of first-time Mashgin users at deployed Circle K locations show that 80% of those customers prefer Mashgin to traditional forms of checkout and self-checkout. Recent updates to the system to allow cash use, fuel purchase and key loyalty programs like Sip & Save have driven customer adoption. At some Circle K stores, Smart Checkout has already become customers’ favorite way to transact.
“We’ve been hearing great feedback from our customers in the stores where Smart Checkout has been introduced, and it’s easy to see why. Mashgin’s platform is incredibly simple to use and highly intuitive for customers,” said Alex Miller, executive vice president of operations, North America, and global commercial optimization for Couche-Tard. “Through this agreement, I am convinced that we will scale a great tool that makes it easy for our customers and team members, saving time and putting our customers and people first in our global operations.”
Mashgin has processed over 40 million transactions to date and can be found in over 1000 locations, including Circle K and other convenience store chains, airports, Fortune 500 companies, and over 30 iconic U.S. sports stadiums and entertainment venues.
Couche-Tard is a global leader in convenience and fuel retail, operating in 26 countries and territories, with more than 14,100 stores, of which approximately 10,800 offer fuel. With its well-known Couche-Tard and Circle K banners, it is one of the largest independent convenience store operators in the U.S. and it is a leader in the convenience store industry in Canada, Scandinavia, the Baltics, as well as in Ireland. It also has an important presence in Poland and Hong Kong SAR. Approximately 124,000 people are employed throughout its network.
