By TAKESHI SUEZAKI/ Staff Writer
August 31, 2023 at 07:00 JST
A remotely controlled avatar icon serves customers at a Lawson outlet in Tokyo’s Toshima Ward on Nov. 28. (Takeshi Suezaki)
To address a growing labor shortage, major convenience store chain Lawson Inc. is introducing a technology that enables remote workers to serve customers using animated avatars.
Sitting in front of computer screens at their homes or offices, workers act as Lawson Avatar Operators (LAOs) to serve customers.
LAOs talk to webcams and their voices and gestures will be reflected on animated characters on screens at Lawson outlets.
Currently, LAOs are operating at four of the chain’s stores in Tokyo, Osaka and elsewhere.
Lawson said that on-site workers at these stores can focus on physical tasks such as cooking, cleaning and stocking shelves while LAOs help customers, for example, use the self-checkout machine.
The chain will start a trial to see if a single LAO can deal with three or four outlets during the day as well as short-staffed late night and early morning hours. The pilot program will start as early as August.
Until now, at least two workers would do night shifts together at Lawson outlets, mainly for security reasons. During the trial, one will be replaced by an LAO.
This might put stores at greater security risk, but the chain operator says robberies are on the decline thanks to the introduction of self-checkout machines, which, by design, cannot be unlocked by on-site workers.
Customers can continue to pick up event tickets bought online and drop off parcels at Lawson outlets. Such services will remain the task of on-site workers.
“Labor shortages will become more serious in the future, particularly for night shifts,” said Lawson President Sadanobu Takemasu. “A single LAO manages multiple outlets from home, which means more productivity with lower cost.”
Together with self-checkout machines, the avatar technology is expected to help run outlets with fewer workers.
Lawson also hopes the new technology will help recruit more remote workers, including people rearing children or caring for family members at home.
Lawson starts test on using sign-language avatars at stores
June 28, 2023
Lawson opens trial store for automated settlements
February 27, 2020
Tokyo unmanned test convenience shop to open amid staff shortages
August 31, 2021
Lawson adds new convenience for those who are hard of hearing
September 27, 2022
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