Electronic Shelf Labels or plain paper? We compare ESL and paper labels on cost, speed, reliability and sustainability.
Paper price labels are cheap and simple. Why should you switch? Because the calculation on closer look works out different than you think. Here is the honest comparison on six concrete points.
1. Cost per label. Paper costs almost nothing per piece, but you print thousands per year. An ESL label is a one-time purchase that lasts for years; its price depends on size and type.
2. Staff cost. Paper: in a supermarket, many hours per week go into changing labels. ESL: that work largely disappears.
3. Speed of price changes. Paper: from decision to label on shelf: days. ESL: seconds.
4. Error margin. Paper: shelf and checkout regularly diverge. ESL: prices come from the same system as the checkout, so shelf and checkout match.
5. Sustainability. Paper: tens of thousands of thrown-away labels per store per year. ESL: one label for 5-7 years.
6. Customer experience. Paper: static. ESL: can show stock status, origin, recommendations. More information without extra material.
We at WH Retail are brand-independent — Hanshow, Pricer, SES Imagotag Vusion, SoluM or Zkong. Based on your store setup we select the right platform.
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