Effective communication is key to any retail store’s success. When Iceland sought to enhance their operational efficiency and colleague safety, they turned to VoCoVo to form a dream in-store tech partnership. Here’s how the collaboration between VoCoVo and Iceland resulted in the successful deployment of the Series 5 Pro Headset, connecting teams and operations across nearly 1,000 stores.
Founded in Shropshire in 1970, Iceland swiftly became a household name with its emphasis on affordable frozen food. By 1978, the supermarket chain had grown to 28 stores. Today, boasting over 970 stores across the UK, including 150 Food Warehouse megastores, Iceland continues to impress shoppers with its wide selection of high-quality, delicious frozen foods sourced from around the globe, all at unbeatable prices.
In 2022, Iceland was recognised as the UK’s best online supermarket in a survey by Which?. It was also the only supermarket to be named in The Sunday Times’ Best Places to Work in 2024, showcasing its commitment to excellence both in customer service and workplace culture.
Facing the challenges head-on
Crucial to Iceland’s current and future growth plans, the supermarket recognised the need to enhance the productivity, collaboration and safety of its store colleagues. It identified three distinct challenges, all of which were putting colleagues under strain and impacting customer experience:
● Communication in stores was challenging, which led to a lot of unnecessary walking between the shop floor, the stock room and outdoor delivery zones. This often left customers waiting while colleagues went searching for information.
● Busy periods were making it difficult for colleagues to keep up with their workloads which was directly impacting customer service, leading to longer wait times at checkout and reduced assistance availability in aisles.
● With rising levels of crime leaving many colleagues worried, ensuring they felt safer when coming into work was a number one priority.
Iceland had previously deployed walkie-talkies across some stores, however, they weren’t widely used and lacked popularity among colleagues. More importantly, they wouldn’t provide the longevity the supermarket needed or the foundation for its fully connected store programme in the future.
In response to the need for a durable, scalable, easy-to-use solution that would enhance colleague safety, boost efficiency within smaller teams and facilitate seamless communication across departments, Iceland, following a trial of several options, turned to VoCoVo.
Rolling out VoCoVo’s Series 5 Pro Headsets
Crafted in direct response to feedback from retailers, VoCoVo’s Series 5 Pro Headset delivered the exact functionalities and benefits Iceland had asked for.
Iceland’s Group Retail Director, Kristian Barrett, said: “The investment in VoCoVo headsets is a real step forward in improving the efficiency, communication and safety of our store colleagues, which are all paramount to our current and future plans.”
The trial of the Series 5 Pro Headsets in select stores was a resounding success. So much so that it paved the way for a comprehensive and timely rollout across all Iceland stores, facilitated by the longstanding partnership between Iceland and Barron McCann for hardware maintenance and installation services. With a targeted approach aimed at enhancing efficiency before the Christmas change freeze, immediate priority was given to high stock-loss stores, resulting in the completion of nearly 100 stores by mid-December.
Following this initial phase, a concerted effort culminated in the deployment of the Series 5 Pro Headsets across the entire estate by the end of March, marking a significant milestone in Iceland’s journey towards enhanced operational excellence and colleague communication.
Improved efficiency and peace of mind
Since the deployment of VoCoVo headsets, Iceland has witnessed a remarkable transformation in its store dynamics. Staff feedback echoed sentiments of increased safety, enhanced service delivery and streamlined operations. The headsets facilitated prompt assistance among colleagues, reducing response times and elevating customer service standards. Here are more benefits experienced by Iceland since the implementation:
● Being connected at all times makes colleagues feel safer at work.
● Acting as a powerful deterrent, the headsets are supporting Iceland’s drive to reduce theft and stock loss.
● They save time as colleagues can quickly get help or information wherever they are rather than having to walk across the store to find someone. This leads to quicker resolution of customer queries and assistance at checkouts and deliveries.
● They elevate customer experience through reduced waiting times and seamless service at checkouts and in aisles.
● They facilitate in-the-moment training opportunities, fostering continuous improvement among colleagues.
“VoCoVo’s headsets act as a deterrent to crime and save time. They speed up customer service as colleagues can quickly ask somebody in the back area if we’ve got a product available. Our colleagues absolutely love them and our heads of stores say they aid coaching as well,” said Emma Tysoe, Head of IT Development, Iceland.
A collaborative partnership
For Iceland, the partnership with VoCoVo is the foundation for its connected store programme and the introduction of the Series 5 Pro Headset is just the start of the journey for the UK’s beloved supermarket.
● Leveraging VoCoVo’s technology, Iceland has now integrated specific APIs that seamlessly connect with its in-store devices and notification systems. The API has successfully been rolled out across all stores, enabling the supermarket to quickly update store colleagues on business activities and enhance overall operational efficiency and customer service.
● The first integration supports Iceland’s Delivery Partner business, through which it picks orders made online through its partner programme. It provides store colleagues with a near real-time notification when an order is made, allowing them to pick and pack the order ready for collection within the shortest possible time. Orders can be processed quickly and efficiently, improving the overall customer experience and streamlining store operations.
● Using VoCoVo’s Message Cast functionality, Iceland can make important service announcements to colleagues when needed, which has been well received by colleagues. It has been used for both operational updates, like a critical IT service alert and positive internal initiatives, such as announcing the winner of Iceland’s new colleague lottery – Frozen Fortunes. This functionality could also be used for messages from the CEO to address colleagues directly on the shop floor, helping to foster a sense of connection and transparency within the business and boost engagement.
Looking to the future
As the two companies continue to collaborate closely, Iceland is considering further enhancing its operational capabilities through the integration of new APIs to form the foundation of its connected store.
Emma Tysoe at Iceland took the time to talk to us about the partnership:
What were the main challenges Iceland was facing that led you to consider VoCoVo in the first place?
Colleague wellbeing and safety are at the heart of everything we do. With retail crime and shoplifting on the rise, we needed to find a solution that made our colleagues feel more protected and which also empowered them to collaborate more effectively – at all times and no matter where they were located within the store.
Our colleagues were becoming increasingly worried due to the rising levels of crime in-store and across our sector. A big priority was ensuring they felt safer when coming into work. Prior to engaging with VoCoVo, we did use walkie-talkies in some locations. But they weren’t popular with our team and didn’t match our ambition for fully connected stores. We turned to VoCoVo because the solution being offered was durable, scalable and easy-to-use, with the promise of enhancing efficiency within smaller teams, enabling communication across different departments and helping our people feel safer.
Operational efficiency was another area we were focused on improving. We discovered that where colleagues were unable to communicate in real-time, it led to delays in serving customers. Specifically, we knew that colleagues were unnecessarily travelling between the outdoor delivery zones, the stock room and the shop floor itself. If a customer requested help from a colleague, that colleague often had to leave them waiting as they went looking for information. Busy periods often added further pressure to our teams. This resulted in longer checkout waiting times and fewer colleagues on the aisles to support customers.
Originally this was meant for a few flagship stores, what convinced you to expand it nationwide so quickly?
We originally trialled VoCoVo’s Series 5 Pro Headsets in a few select stores, alongside another headset provider and walkie-talkies. Each of these solutions were tested in five different stores, including smaller and larger locations. The VoCoVo headsets stood out because they were reliable and robust in comparison to the other options, and the scalability of the technology also meant that we could expand into other supporting solutions as we grew. This includes using APIs that integrate with our in-store technology and notification systems, allowing colleagues to receive real-time updates on key business activities.
We prioritised delivering headsets to colleagues in the high stock-loss stores, enabling 100 locations to benefit from the technology by mid-December 2023. After that first phase was complete, we worked closely with the VoCoVo team to bring in the headsets across every Iceland by close of March 2024. This encompasses over 900 stores.
Can you share specific examples of how VoCoVo has improved colleague wellbeing in stores?
Really importantly, our colleagues feel safer. The headsets serve as a deterrent against criminals, and if an incident does take place, colleagues know that they can contact another member of staff quickly to get help. And with the technology helping in the effort to reduce theft and stock loss, it’s peace of mind for colleagues in their day-to-day roles.
With colleagues connected, no one feels alone on the shop floor. At the touch of the button, they can communicate with any other colleague(s), serving as a boost to morale and wellbeing. They also feel more empowered in their roles to deliver excellent customer experiences.
Additionally, colleagues are benefiting from on-the-job training opportunities and guidance from senior people. Say that store managers are on an aisle and there is a problem, they can immediately advise their colleagues on the best course of action, rather than waiting to talk to them later. This helps build experience and confidence in new recruits quickly, encouraging their personal development in retail.
Beyond safety, what operational efficiencies have you seen since deploying VoCoVo?
We’ve primarily managed to save time, achieve greater efficiencies and improve productivity among colleagues. Customers want a smooth and convenient process when they enter a shop. The headsets have completely changed our store dynamics because queries can be answered instantaneously at the checkouts. Rather than walking across the store to find someone to help, colleagues can use their headsets to communicate quickly with others at the touch of a button. Customers can therefore find out stock availability or other information more quickly, without having to wait while a colleague goes to check the stockroom.
VoCoVo’s technology is allowing us to integrate specific APIs that then connect easily with our in-store devices and notification systems. One such example is our Delivery Partner business, which is where orders are picked following purchases made through the partner programme. Real-time notifications allow our colleagues to pick items as soon as possible after the orders are made, boosting store efficiency.
We also use the system’s Message Cast functionality to make service announcements to colleagues, such as the winner of our new colleague lottery, and critical operational updates such as IT service alerts.
How does this investment link to Iceland’s overall performance and customer experience goals?
Enhancing the productivity, collaboration and safety of our store colleagues has been central to both our current and future growth plans. We’re committed to always improving our customers’ experience when they are shopping with us, whether that’s on our store floors or beyond. With the rollout of the Series 5 Pro Headset, VoCoVo has delivered the foundation for our connected store programme, with the journey only just beginning.
You’ve mentioned a reduction in theft; can you talk about how the system contributed to that?
The headsets have the dual purpose of acting as a deterrent to potential shoplifters while helping colleagues witnessing a theft to contact someone for help, rather than having to deal with it on their own. Being connected at all times also helps them to feel safer, particularly in smaller stores where there may be a higher chance of isolated working.
What steps did you take to ensure successful adoption at scale across 1,000+ stores?
VoCoVo worked at speed to prepare the kit for rollout across every one of our stores, shipping the headsets to our partner, Barron McCann, for installation and hardware maintenance. Thanks to the strong collaboration between all three entities, the solution could be deployed rapidly and at scale. With the headsets being intuitive and easy for colleagues to use, the onboarding proved quick and effective. Additionally, there was an awareness of the need to balance the number of notifications to avoid overwhelming our colleagues, showing adaptability to operational feedback.
If you were advising another CIO in retail considering similar technology, what would your top piece of advice be?
My advice would be to choose a technology partner that both provides a robust solution, actively listens to feedback, and guides an organisation through the entire process. The success with VoCoVo was rooted in close collaboration, rapid responsiveness, and a willingness to adapt the solution to real operational needs. The VoCoVo team has continuously valued our input, helped us balance new features with practical day-to-day realities and have supported us through any major changes, helping ensure the technology delivers real value for both colleagues and customers.
