365 Retail Markets debuts anti-theft kiosk camera, smart cooler integrations, age verification tech and room charge innovation | Live from 2025 NAMA Show

Ryan McWhirter: Well, let’s start right behind us here with what we call MarketSight. So MarketSight is an accessory for already very popular kiosks called MM6 Mini that you see here. And for a long time, we’ve offered a number of security features, such as the cancel report that’s driven from here from our friends at Panoptyc, that have the overhead cameras. Lately, we’ve realized there’s been a gap in what the operator can see the consumer doing, and that really has to do with what’s happening in front of the kiosk here in the scanning area. And one of the main ways that we see some consumers unfortunately steal product is through a tactic called under-ringing.

And that’s where they go and scan one product, make it look like they’re scanning the other product legitimately, but in fact, they’re covering the UPC with their thumb or they’re turning the product away and basically getting a ‘Buy one, get one free’ at the cost of you, the operator. So MarketSight is designed to combat that, mitigate that behavior and really turn would-be thieves into hopefully honest consumers before they do that.

So I can demonstrate that for you if you’d like.

Bob Tullio: Yeah, please.

Ryan McWhirter: Yeah, so let’s go ahead and we’ll scan the Olipop here legitimately. And of course, we’ve got one of those, and I’m going to take my Jack Link’s beef jerky. I don’t want to pay that price, so I’m going to try to steal this, and I’m going to put it in front of the scanner and off to the side. And then when I go to pay, it’s going to say, “Oh, did you forget to scan that item in your hand?”

And I’m going to say, “Oh my God, I didn’t think they could see that because usually my body covers it, and they’ve got me dead to rights. I’m not going to steal now. They know that I’m going to steal.” So, I’m going to say, “You know what? Yeah, I forgot to scan that item. Let me scan that missing item and go ahead and do that. Where’s the barcode?” There it is. Scan it. And now, when I go to pay, it lets me pay just like it should. You know, it’s not stopping the transaction from happening. It’s just reminding would-be thieves, “Hey, we see what you’re doing. You have a chance to do the right thing, and if you don’t, then we’ll see that in the back office, and you know we’ll see in court.”

Bob Tullio: And this was not available last year?

Ryan McWhirter: It was not. No, we’ve had the MM6 Mini. I think we launched that two years ago, Bob, and so this is our hottest-selling kiosk right now. And that’s why we designed MarketSight to work exclusively with MM6 Mini. Everybody who has an existing MM6 Mini who’s got FOMO right now should know, that this can be retrofitted to what you already have, or bought on the new MM6 Minis that you’re going to buy tomorrow. So that’s an easy conversion. Very easy. And you can mitigate theft with this little camera. We think operators will really appreciate the added diligence in the process.

Bob Tullio: Fantastic. What’s the next thing you want to show me?

Ryan McWhirter: You know what, let’s go over to our ambient cabinet, which is probably the real star of the show.

Bob Tullio: OK, perfect. So, I recognize the PicoCooler Vision, but it doesn’t look quite the same as what I’m used to seeing.  

Ryan McWhirter: That’s right, Bob. Yeah, because we have a brand new accessory that we’re launching this year called the Ambient Cabinet Vision Add-On. This ambient cabinet can connect to your existing PicoCooler Vision, leveraging the Pico payment terminal and the computer vision hardware that already resides in the PicoCooler Vision that’s out there today. So, the ambient cabinet add-on is a response to our customers who are asking, “How do I merchandise and sell ambient products alongside the cooler products?”

And you may remember Bob, in NAMA 2019, we launched our Stockwell product, which was about half this high, that had one side cooler, one side ambient, and everybody at the show said, “When can I have a double-high, double-refrigerated, double-ambient?” The time is now. We’re launching that right now. And so, we’ve added this ambient cabinet that daisy chains to the PicoCooler Vision. It connects via a simple cable, and the consumer experience is exactly like you would expect with Stockwell.

You walk up to it, you present your app, or you can scan your credit card, swipe, tap, insert. It’ll go out to the internet, make sure that you have enough money on your account or funds in your credit card. Both doors unlock, and if you want to open that one, Bob, you’ll see the cooler opens alongside with the ambient. Cameras in the corners detect what the consumer removes from the cabinet, either side, and we bill that credit card they use to unlock it accordingly with the products that they take.

It’s really a very affordable way to expand what you’re doing with PicoCooler Vision and add an ambient cabinet to it to sell snacks and candy and things like that alongside.

Bob Tullio: Well, and the flexibility here in terms of the kind of products you could add. That’s pretty impressive.

Ryan McWhirter: That’s right. Yeah, I mean, we’re showing some snacks, but you can see things like trash bags, Clorox. This doesn’t have to go in a break room at a B&I location. could be in a multifamily living apartment. The sky is the limit with what you can sell out of the ambient side and the cooler side, gyms and golf courses, etc.

We think it’s going to find a lot of new homes that our solutions have never been in before.

Bob Tullio: That’s great. So it’s available now.

Ryan McWhirter: It’s available now, and again, this is the standard body size, so it looks exactly like the cooler. It has the same silhouette for places where you need that symmetry, and in a moment, we’ll show you the other version, the wide-body ambient cabinet that’s seven inches wider, and you won’t believe how much capacity that unit has.

Bob Tullio: This really is a wide-body cabinet.

Ryan McWhirter: Yeah, we weren’t kidding, Bob. I mean, you can see here that it’s just massive.

We’ve listened to our operators who really wanted maximum merchandising space, who didn’t want to have to come back to locations three times, four times a week to fill it. And so, you can see here that we’ve got a standard beverage cooler, a PicoCooler Vision. And again, daisy chain to that is our wide-body ambient cabinet vision add-on. And so again, we’re showing a very diverse set of products here, from snacks and toilet paper to mac and cheese to Clorox. The sky’s the limit.

And the capacity is the limit here as well with the wide-body because it’s never had so much merchandising space as it does right now. So, we think operators are going to choose to buy one or the other, but where they do need that extra capacity, because maybe they’re replacing a vending machine, not only the drink machine from the past, but now the snack machine as well.

They want to make sure that they can merchandise larger products, more of the same products, so they don’t have to visit as often. And the ambient cabinet wide-body is the answer for that. So, it connects to the PicoCooler Vision the same way. And it’s just up to the operator if they need this much space or something that’s more traditional.

Bob Tullio: Well, it’s definitely a step forward having this ambient cooler. That’s great.

Ryan McWhirter: Yeah, we think so, too. It’s been the hit of the show. Everybody comes through Imagination Way, and they make their first stop here, and it’s hard for them to leave because they hang around and want to know, “How much does it cost? How much can it fit? And when can I have it?” So, it’s been very popular.

Bob Tullio: What’s next?

Ryan McWhirter: You know what, let’s go over and look at our age-verification solution.

Bob Tullio: Great. Looks like a machine I could have used in the fraternity house many years ago.

Ryan McWhirter: That’s right. So, this is our standard PicoCooler Vision Bob that we’ve seen a couple of times now with the ambient cabinet next to it. But what’s different about this PicoCooler Vision, aside from the beer inside, is that you’ll see our new age-verification capability showcased on this unit exclusively. And we’ve partnered with Clear, the kiosk that you might see at the airport that lets you through the line faster. Many people don’t know they have another side of the business that does age verification.

And so the consumer walks up and they scan this QR code with their phone. They’re taken to a mobile website run by Clear, where if you’re a first-time user, you take a photo of your license and then a selfie. If you’re a repeat user like Bob probably would be, you’re just going to do the selfie and not need to scan your license. And then, it just advances to the normal prompt for payment. And so, it’s a very quick, maybe 30-second process to validate that in the USA, I’m over 21. In Canada, I’m over 19, wherever you may be, and the door just unlocks.

The other feature that operators have asked for with this is that there’s a lot of regulation around “When can I sell alcohol?” It may be, you know, not until afternoon on a Sunday or not after 2 a.m. every day. The operator is able to configure that in the back office. And when it’s not available, it just shows the hours here that it is open. So, you’re able to comply with all of your local regulations. And we think that this new ability to add age verification will unlock new opportunities for operators to sell things they never thought they could before. And whether it’s at a golf course or on a cruise ship or in a casino or in Vegas. We think this is going to be something that resonates with our customers.

Bob Tullio: Definitely some multiple applications available for this piece of equipment. Is it available right now?

Ryan McWhirter: It is, yes. So, we’re launching it here at the NAMA Show, Bob, and you’ll start to see this at some hotels over the summer. I think there are about a thousand hotel locations that have already bought into this solution. And I think from there you’ll see it go into other venues like golf courses and cruise ships and casinos and things like that.

So it’s definitely found a home already, and we’ll see where it goes from here.

Bob Tullio: Fantastic. What’s next?

Ryan McWhirter: You know, let’s go look at our hotel solution for room-charge integration.

Bob Tullio: Great. Then, of course, there’s Stockwell. And I know this was a game changer when it came out in New Orleans.

Ryan McWhirter: That’s right, Bob. I mean, at Stockwell, it’s continuing to be a huge hit in places where they need something that looks unlike a traditional cooler. And that’s exactly what Stockwell is delivering here with a custom wood fixture. We see people putting Stockwells into gyms and all sorts of places, sometimes two, three of them at a time inside these custom enclosures to really integrate them into the aesthetics of the location. And what we’re showing new on Stockwell this time is room charge.

So last year, 365 acquired a company in Denver called Impulsify. They were in the hospitality space, and they’ve been a terrific addition to the 365 family of companies. And what they have been doing for years is selling the micro market concept into hotels. And of course, when you’re in a hotel and like me, Bob, I’m sure you’re buying a beer, and you don’t want it to say beer on your credit card or another thing. You want it to say pantry generically, whatever that might be. And now we can do that with room charge.

So, the guests can come up, and of course, they can use their credit card like they’ve always been able to do on Stockwell. But now we’ve added the flexibility that if they choose room charge, just like when you connect a Wi-Fi to hotel, you enter your last name and your room number, it validates that live with the property management system. That’s the magic that Impulsify delivers. And then it proceeds to unlock, and you can grab whatever you want. And rather than billing a credit card or my app, as I’ve shown you in other spots, it’ll bill your folio, your room charge, and for whatever it is you remove out of Stockwell. Also, we think this will make it a lot easier to add a Stockwell or a PicoCooler Vision behind you, Bob, to a hospitality location that expects that level of room charge. Because, as you know right now, you go get that Ben & Jerry’s, you go to the front desk, and you say Tullio, room 123. They write it down on a scratch piece of paper. Maybe they add it, maybe they don’t. And so, how much revenue are these hotels missing because it’s not being done correctly? Stockwell, PicoCooler Vision with room charge solves that.

Bob Tullio: Wow. What a great year you have here at NAMA.

Ryan McWhirter: Yeah, we’re not done yet.

Bob Tullio: Thanks so much for taking the time and having us in here.

Ryan McWhirter: You got it, Bob. Thanks for coming.