Chinese digital store specialist Hanshow worked with Shopreme and Lucky Cart to develop a smart cart that brings together AI-powered shopping assistance, precise in-store navigation, self-checkout, multi-layer loss prevention and integrated retail media capabilities.

Designed to bring convenience, personalisation and measurable engagement into the physical store, it transforms the cart from a carrier into an intelligent in-store touchpoint, supporting shoppers from product discovery through self-checkout. It also connects the shopping journey with digital store infrastructure, enabling a more coordinated engagement for shoppers, retailers and brands.

“Physical retail is entering a new era where shopper engagement, store operations and retail media are becoming increasingly connected,” said Philippe Brochard from Hanshow. “Smart cart is emerging as an intelligent touchpoint that brings these capabilities together in a single in-store experience. With embedded retail media capabilities, retailers can deliver more relevant and personalised journeys while preserving the strengths that make physical stores unique.”

Beyond improving convenience at checkout, the smart cart creates value across the broader retail ecosystem by bringing shopper engagement, retail activation and store intelligence into a unified touchpoint.

For shoppers, the smart cart provides a more intuitive way to move through the store. Product search, synchronised shopping lists, personalised recommendations, proximity-based promotions and precise indoor navigation help customers find and choose products with more confidence and ease. Self-scanning, flexible payment options and digital receipts streamline the experience, reducing friction from discovery through checkout.

For retailers, it combines customer service, security, transaction and operational capabilities. Targeted, multi-layer loss prevention capabilities combine software and AI camera vision to support secure self-checkout while maintaining a seamless customer experience, instead of relying on random checks. Shopper-path and basket insights can help retailers improve store operations and better understand the customer journey. By embedding shopping and checkout functions throughout the store, it can help reduce friction, improve operational efficiency and relieve pressure on traditional checkout zones. Retailers also retain control over the shopping experience, activation rules and commercial strategy.

To support different store formats and digitalisation strategies, it is available in two configurations: a fully integrated smart cart with scale-based loss prevention and a retrofit configuration with AI camera vision that upgrades compatible cart fleets with intelligent capabilities. Both run on the same Shopreme software and integration and require an equal investment, giving retailers the flexibility to choose the setup that best fits their requirements and even test both in parallel without creating separate technology stacks.

For brands, the smart cart introduces opportunities to bring online-level precision of promotion and measurement into the physical store. Integrated retail media capabilities support contextual engagement closer to the point of purchase, while connecting exposure, consideration, engagement and basket outcomes through closed-loop measurement. The result is a more accountable and actionable retail media environment that helps bridge the gap between ecommerce intelligence and in-store activation.

Hanshow (www.hanshow.com) provides the smart cart technology foundation and intelligent store infrastructure that enables large-scale deployment across diverse retail environments. Austria-based Shopreme (shopreme.com) brings its unified self-checkout ecosystem and expertise. And French firm Lucky Cart (www.luckycart.com) brings expertise in retail media, shopper activation and performance measurement, powered by AI and data science.