Walmart is putting the LED lights built into its digital shelf labels to work for shoppers with Shop to Light, a feature that lets customers use the Walmart app to find a specific item on the shelf.
When a customer asks for help locating a product, the request tells the store system which product location to light up, and a small LED on the shelf label flashes to point the way — useful in sections such as the spice aisle, where dozens of similar items sit side by side.
The feature joins two associate-facing tools using the same hardware. Stock to Light lets associates activate a shelf label’s LED from a mobile device to confirm where an item belongs when stocking, while Pick to Light guides associates to the exact brand and size a customer selected when filling online pickup and delivery orders.
“None of it is particularly high-tech. That’s the point,” the retailer said in announcing the feature. “Technology works best when it takes something that used to require a little more time or effort and makes it simpler.”
Addressing pricing questions
Walmart paired the announcement with a Q&A addressing concerns that have followed digital shelf labels across the industry. The retailer said the labels display prices set centrally through its Every Day Low Price approach, with approved changes typically made outside shopping hours; they do not independently determine or change prices, and using Shop to Light does not change an item’s price.
The labels operate on a closed system with no cameras or microphones, Walmart said, and cannot identify customers or track shopping behavior. The company also reiterated that it does not use surveillance pricing: “Walmart does not use personal customer information to determine what price an individual customer sees or pays online or in stores.”
Walmart announced in March that it would deploy digital shelf labels chainwide within a year.
Related: Walmart CEO Pledges No Personalized Pricing As Surveillance Pricing Scrutiny Grows