NEWS FEATURE
18 ASIAN TRADER 17 OCTOBER 2025
offender exit.
“Evidence packs can be uploaded directly
to the police, which has drastically reduced
the manual workload for the team.”
Meanwhile, Razaq feels that Retail AI is
proving to be a boon at his store.
“The introduction of AI technology has
brought significant benefits to our business. It
has made our store more secure, reduced
theft, and helped us foster a safer and more
welcoming atmosphere for both staff and
customers.
Our staff does not have to spend most of
their time on monitoring and security, and
eventually, they can focus more on customer
service and operational tasks.
“There was, of course, a cost involved in
setting it up, but it’s already paid off through
reduced losses and smoother day-to-day
running.”
Meanwhile, Dartford-
based retailer Nishi Patel is also
testing Retail AI but admits it’s
still “work in progress.”
“It does work, it just needs a
bit of management,” he said.
“Give it another few months,
it is going to be working
perfectly in the shop. It comes
with music and advertising,
which is great.”
“It’s more about the
customers knowing that we
have something like this in the shop as it acts
as a deterrent,” Nishi told Asian Trader.
Words of caution
From predictive ordering to anti-theft
analytics, AI’s promise is dazzling. But its
pitfalls are equally real.
A recent GlobalData survey of 2,000 UK
shoppers found that 35 per cent feel uncom
fortable with facial recognition, while 26 per
cent dislike VAR-style tracking cameras in the
store.
According to Aliyah Siddika, retail analyst
at GlobalData, convenience stores are at a
higher risk of “alienating customers”.
“The challenge of balancing implementa
tion of visible deterrents without eroding
margins or losing sales will require conveni
ence retailers to adopt less intrusive meas
ures,” she said.
The risk isn’t just theoretical. Tech after all
tends to glitch and when that happens, the
accountability is most likely to fall on the
retailer facing the customers.
In May, a shopper in Greater Manchester
was escorted out of two Home Bargains
branches, twice , for something she never did.
Staff claimed she had been flagged by
facial-recognition software Facewatch as a
suspected shoplifter.
After repeated emails and queries, the
shopper later discovered that her image had
been added to Facewatch’s retail watch list,
due to which she was being flagged as an
offender.
The company acknowledged the incident
but also stressed that its technology had not
malfunctioned, but it was “human error”,
thus shifting the accountability on the retail
staff.
The UK’s leading civil liberties campaign
group Big Brother Watch is ringing alarm bells
due to rise in such cases.
Jasleen Chaggar, Legal and Policy Officer at
Big Brother Watch, explained to Asian Trader,
“By subjecting thousands of innocent
members of the public to biometric identity
checks, live facial recognition turns its
shoppers into suspects by default and puts
them at risk of being misidentified, black
listed and wrongly accused of theft.
“It is completely disproportionate that
customers should be confront
ed with intrusive surveillance
when doing something as
everyday as buying groceries.
“Far from protecting shop
workers, live facial recognition
will put them at increased risk
of abuse and violence by
requiring them to intervene.
Grocery stores should
prioritise the rights of its
shoppers and staff over
misplaced promises of
security.”
AI at crossroads
One thing is clear, AI is here to stay and shows
the way forward.
Convenience retailers across the UK are
taking notes, making their minds from where
to start off with.
Pontefract-based independent retailer
Bobby Singh said, “We are still in the process
of doing our due diligence, exploring how best
to apply it and ensure AI works effectively for
our particular setup.
“It certainly seems to be the way forward,
and we’re keen to understand how AI can be
implemented in a way that genuinely adds
value and efficiency to what we do.”
For Cambridgeshire-based Nisa retailer
Amit Puntambekar, the need lies in a better
forecasting system.
“I think in the future EPOS providers will
start using smarter APIs that will help with
ordering and forecasting. That could be
hugely beneficial for all retailers,” he told
Asian Trader.
In Northamptonshire, retailer Vidur
Pandya is also ready to dive in.
“I am more interested in consumer
tracking to see how I can improve offering and
range to customers and from crime preven
tion side from customers as well as from
staff,” he said.
In Greater Manchester, retailer Mos Patel
too is curious though he remains somewhat
unconvinced by AI’s magic.
“We have tried asking AI for ordering
advice, but it doesn’t really understand
shopper behaviour in the current climate.
“With the challenges, we can’t commit to
investing in new hardware or software purely
because of the upfront cost.
“I do believe tools like digital shelf labels
could help in the future, but with footfall
already down, automating too much would
just make existing staff less productive,” Mos
told Asian Trader.
Early adopters like Selvaratnam, Vekaria
and Razaq, meanwhile, are upbeat about the
results they are seeing.
Since using these tools, Selvaratnam has
seen around a “25 per cent” reduction in stock
wastage in his store, improved cash flow, and
much faster reporting.
Vekaria echoed similar thoughts, “Overall,
artificial intelligence has delivered tangible
financial benefits through revenue growth,
shrinkage reduction, labour savings, and
operational efficiency.
“The smart audio network has elevated
our promotional capabilities, while the
security and analytical tools have strength
ened the backbone of the business. It is not
flawless, nothing in retail ever is, but it is a
leap forward in how we protect our teams,
engage customers, and grow sustainably.”
Razaq is hopeful that AI will help cut costs
in the future, not just in security but in other
areas too.
“It has the potential to take over repeti
tive, time-consuming tasks like monitoring
stock levels or tracking product performance,
which could save on labour hours and reduce
waste. It can also help us better understand
what customers want and when, so we can
order smarter and keep the right products on
our shelves.
“I see it as something that won’t replace
people but will make their jobs easier and
more focused. For a local, independent store
like ours, that kind of support can make a
huge difference in staying efficient, competi
tive, and connected to our community,”
Razaq said.
Nishi also has high hopes for what AI can
accomplish for his generational family
business.
“I would like to see some innovation to cut
down energy costs like fridge temperature
controllers, for age verification. The sky is the
limit if you start thinking about it. But AI
should be more about saving money rather
than being an added cost.
“However, I don’t want to leave every
thing on AI; people still want the personal
touch,” Nishi concluded.
It is evident that AI may soon predict our
next purchase, price it perfectly and stop it
being stolen. Time will only tell whether it
will be the next evolutionary step in retail or a
costly gamble.
Nishi Patel