White Paper: Cellular Networks Driving New Retail Business Models

Advances in technology are empowering businesses to provide products and services when, where, and how consumers expect them. Connected retail is driving new forms of vending, with kiosks, e-lockers, pick-up, and self-service solutions that all need to be connected to the Internet.

Instead of going into a retail outlet and buying lottery tickets, visiting a hardware store to have a key made or stopping at the post office to pick up a package, we increasingly rely on self-service devices such as kiosks, automated retail vending machines, and 24-hour pickup lockers to accomplish those tasks. As restaurants cope with COVID-19 shutdowns, "ghost kitchens" and food trucks have become a way to serve their customers. And as a supplement to their brick-and-mortar stores, some retailers are setting up pop-up shops at venues including farmers' markets, parking lots, and the local park.

Although many of these business models have existed for years, a desire on the part of consumers for contact-free transactions has accelerated their adoption.

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