BP Southern Africa yesterday launched the first of a new wave of Express convenience stores based on a concept from its operations in the UK and US. Among the new features of the store is an Internet kiosk identical to that used in a failed venture by competitor Engen.
[VIDEO]Seven similar stores, all with Internet kiosks, are to be opened within a year with around 20 per year added after that in the sub-Saharan Africa region.
The R60 000 NCR kiosk features a touch-screen and printer with a dedicated ISDN line that automatically connects when activated. Activation is through a prepaid magnetic swipe-card sold over the counter at the BP Express shops in R15 and R30 denominations. Access is charged at R1 per minute with printouts costing the same per page, a price BP says was determined by the average charged by Internet caf'es.
Net Near U, the application service provider that manages similar kiosks in Britain on behalf of BP, manages the service. The opening screen features links to selected local news, travel, entertainment and shopping sites.
[VIDEO]"We want to offer people the ability to buy things we don`t have in the shop," says Troy Maidwell, retail e-business manager for BP.
Bar filtering pornography and "things which do not conform to the BP image" the kiosk also allows general Web access.
BP is excited about the potential of future functionality, both for customers and itself. Maidwell says webcams may soon be added to the units, allowing users to send "video mail" from the store. There are also plans to enable the kiosks with infrared or Bluetooth hardware to enable users to upload and download information to it.
As early as next year, BP will provide incentives to entice users to enter personal details, which will be linked to the magnetic-strip card in use. This will allow the company to profile customers based on their Internet usage; data it believes could be very valuable.
[VIDEO]Maidwell says running costs per unit will be in the region of R800 per month, including the cost of calls. BP Express shops are open 24-hours-a-day, making more than 40 000 minutes of usage available at R1 per minute.
"We plan for it to be profitable," says Maidwell. "It has been a great success in the UK where it has been running for more than a year and we believe it can work here."
TranZact, a Cape-based e-commerce gateway provider, went into liquidation earlier this year when a deal to provide Engen service stations with kiosks went bust. At the time, TranZact said usage of the kiosks was low and the service station proprietors were not driving usage. The deal was expected to be worth R4 billion.
[VIDEO]Maidwell says the business models of the BP and Engen ventures are very different. He explains that TranZact provided a transaction engine, and people were not willing to stand in line to make payments at a kiosk. But the BP store, which features a miniature coffee bar, wants customers to spend more time there and giving them the opportunity to surf the Net is only one part of the overall strategy.
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