Pulmuone Introduces 'Pulmuone Promotion Robot' in Large Offline Stores

Placement at Seoul Yangjae Hanaro Mart
Plan to Expand After Testing Through This Month

Pulmuone is introducing autonomous robots that promote products in large offline stores.

On the 18th, Pulmuone announced that it will deploy a total of three promotional robots called 'Pulmuone Promotional Robots'?one guide robot and two sales robots?at the food sales counter on the first floor of Yangjae Hanaro Mart in Seoul. The guide and sales robots will operate at Yangjae Hanaro Mart until the 30th of this month, with plans to expand to more stores afterward. Since January, Pulmuone has been collaborating with LG Electronics to plan autonomous Pulmuone promotional robots.

A customer visiting the Hanaro Mart in Yangjae, Seoul, is touching the 'information robot' to check Pulmuone product information.
[Photo by Pulmuone]

The guide robot provides customers with information about Pulmuone products sold in large marts and collects customer feedback. It features displays on both the front and back. The sales robots carry Pulmuone products on their bodies and move around; both types of robots autonomously navigate along preset routes around the Hanaro Mart food sales counters.

The guide robot includes interactive functions with customers and promotes Pulmuone products. Based on voice response scenarios, the guide robot answers customer questions and encourages the purchase of Pulmuone products. For example, if a customer touches the guide robot with a finger and asks, "Please recommend today's lunch menu," the guide robot introduces Pulmuone products suitable for lunch. Customers can check detailed information about the recommended products as well as their locations within the mart through the product information section on the guide robot. By clicking on the survey event on the guide robot’s display, customers can also provide feedback on Pulmuone products and the operation of the sales robots. Pulmuone plans to collect customer opinions to improve products and utilize them in future robot operations.

The sales robots include product advertising and shelf weight detection functions. They play videos related to the loaded products, and when a customer picks up a product from the sales robot’s shelf, the robot detects the change in weight and interacts by giving a thank-you message. If the products on the shelf weigh less than 500g, the robot moves to a designated product loading area so that a manager can restock. The driving routes can be set by day and time according to the store’s product promotion schedule. Pulmuone sets the driving routes by day and time to enhance the promotional effect and help actual sales. The sales robots are equipped with AI autonomous driving functions, such as automatically stopping to promote when they detect customers via cameras installed at the bottom of the robot, and avoiding obstacles when detected.

Jae-hong Park, NH Sales Manager at Pulmuone Foods, said, “We introduced promotional robots to provide a special experience to the many customers visiting Yangjae Hanaro Mart. We hope that the introduction of Pulmuone promotional robots will not only enhance the young and future-oriented image of the Pulmuone brand but also help promote Pulmuone products.”