Second UK trade-retail pilot for eLocker combines a shopfront-integrated locker design with mobile-first collection and live operational analytics
eLocker has partnered with Toolstation to deliver a new smart locker pilot at the retailer’s Toolstation GO store in Battersea, giving customers access to online orders 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The installation marks eLocker’s second pilot in the UK trade-retail sector. It comprises 17 locker doors across two columns, integrated directly into the store front so customers can collect orders from outside the building while Toolstation colleagues load them securely from within the store.
The pilot supports Toolstation’s focus on customer convenience across its GO store format, including extended access, faster collection options, easy-to-reach locations and a simple, efficient store experience. For trade customers, the service is designed to make it easier to collect tools and materials before the store opens, helping them begin the working day without waiting for a staffed collection point.
The design was developed specifically for the Battersea location. Pavement access, nearby bus stops, public-safety considerations and local planning requirements meant that a conventional external locker installation was not suitable.
eLocker and Toolstation therefore developed a shopfront-integrated approach based on a principle similar to an ATM. Customers access their orders from the exterior of the building, while the lockers are loaded and managed securely from inside the store.
The modular design also gives Toolstation the option to amend the number or configuration of locker columns in the future, subject to available space and operational requirements.
Customers place an order through the Toolstation website or app. Once store colleagues load the order into the appropriate compartment using the eLocker platform, the customer receives an email and SMS notification with collection instructions and a secure access code.
The mobile-first, screenless collection journey allows customers to access their order using their own device, without navigating an on-locker touchscreen or waiting at a staffed counter.
Each compartment can hold products weighing up to 24 kg. The largest compartment has internal dimensions of 800 x 850 x 382 mm.
Alongside the locker hardware and collection platform, eLocker is providing installation, maintenance, enterprise-level support and remote system management. The platform also includes live business intelligence and analytics designed to help assess operational efficiency and capture customer experience feedback during the pilot.
The technology has the potential to support relevant customer communications during the collection journey, including promotions that could help retailers generate incremental or associated sales. This capability will allow Toolstation and eLocker to explore the wider commercial role that automated collection could play alongside its primary purpose of improving customer convenience.
When customers select a locker collection, Toolstation sends their orders to the eLocker platform via API. eLocker also provides Toolstation with live reporting and business intelligence analytics to monitor key performance indicators, assess performance against agreed success criteria and identify areas for improvement.
The Battersea location presented a number of challenges, so a standard pavement-based installation was not appropriate. By working closely with Toolstation, we developed a shopfront-integrated design that provides the convenience of an ATM-style service for click and collect, giving customers access from outside while allowing orders to be loaded securely from within the store.
The journey to this pilot has been technically complex, but that complexity has helped us develop a more considered and innovative solution for Toolstation and its customers.
This pilot demonstrates how automated collection can be designed around a specific location, customer base and operational model rather than treated as a standalone piece of hardware. It is also an important step in eLocker’s wider retail strategy. Our role is not only to provide the lockers, but to bring together the hardware, mobile customer journey, operational data and support required to make unattended fulfilment commercially viable and capable of scaling.
Retailers are looking for practical ways to extend customer access, simplify collection and make better use of their physical store estates.
The eLocker platform is designed to support a wider range of retail collection and returns models through a single system. These can include click and collect, quick-commerce orders, grocery collections, temporary or pop-up services and customer returns.
The Toolstation pilot will allow both businesses to assess how customers use the service, how effectively it supports out-of-hours collection and the role automated fulfilment could play within future retail operations.
Chris Other, Customer Director at Toolstation, comments: “The installation of eLocker will deliver a quick and convenient shopping experience without compromising on the high level of service that customers know and trust Toolstation for. We know how busy and time-poor tradespeople can be, and our around-the-clock service aims to streamline work schedules and provide customers with the flexibility they need to oversee their next project or job.”
The lockers are located at Toolstation GO, Unit 1, 481 Battersea Park Road, London SW11 4LW.
The pilot duration is 6 months with a check-in after 3 months. The key success criteria of the pilot are demonstrating the added convenience of customers being able to collect their orders 24/7.
To learn more about eLocker’s retail click-and-collect solutions, visit: