Holiday shopping can be stressful: Long lines, lists of items to purchase, tired shoppers and then, there are the family gatherings themselves…
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Because of the sheer volume of food (and maybe spirits) required for these occasions, these shopping trips are some of the largest of the year for many retailers.  Nothing is more frustrating than not being able to fit everything you need for the Thanksgiving Dinner into your shopping cart. Are the trendy, smaller “two-tier” carts up to the challenge of a Thanksgiving Shopping Trip?

It’s no secret that phones have changed the way we shop. What might not be obvious though, is how pervasive phone use has become while shopping at a physical store. A 2019 study by PYMNTS revealed that almost half (48%) of shoppers actively use their phones while shopping in stores.

This offers retailers some new opportunities to engage with their customers. Retailers are already taking advantage of this trend with smart shelves that can push offers to shoppers’ phones. Mobile apps are also getting upgrades to include recipe ideas, store maps and “scan as you shop” features.
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Shopping carts have a big role to play in this digital transformation of physical retail. Have you tried to push a shopping cart and have your phone out at the same time?

It’s not easy.

Some carts have a coupon tray that you can rest your phone in…but it was built for paper coupons, not phones. We can’t have our phone rattle around in a small metal bin and use it at the same time. It's the same reason our car consoles have been upgraded from dials and small LCD displays to larger touchscreens that we can use for navigation.

​Bemis shopping carts are already equipped for this latest trend: Every cart has a “phone prop” molded in. The prop fits common phone or tablet sizes and props the device at a reading and item-scanning level. Because the prop is molded into the cart’s structure, it is very difficult to damage or steal.

Making your shoppers' phones easily usable with your carts should be a priority if you want to take advantage of mobile use in your stores.

We take them for granted...but most vehicle manufacturers now start their interior design with the cup holders. The cup holder has literally become the anchor for designing our car interiors. This was not always the case: Cup holders didn't appear in cars until the 1950s...when things like drive-in's and eating food on the go started to become mainstream. The first attempts at cup holders were....not so functional. Some early patent filings are shown to the right. Don't they look similar to the cup holders on many shopping carts today?