Retail Gift Cards Now Available At Coinstar Kiosks
Feb 7 2005 : US consumers can now use gift cards to convert idle change into a DVD rental, a latte, groceries or home accessories by purchasing a gift card from a Coinstar coin-counting kiosk at a mall or supermarket. Eighty per cent of US households accumulate coins, but just 58 per cent cash in this change, which nationally is estimated to total USD 10 billion. With the gift card market predicted by the Pelorus Group to total USD 132 billion in 2008, up from USD 79 billion in 2004, Coinstar is tapping two new potential revenue streams while entering into partnerships with retailers such as Starbucks, Hollywood Video and grocery stores.
Coinstar will roll out its gift-card-for-coin kiosks across the US over the next two to three years and plans to extend the range of gift cards on offer, to include books, apparel, restaurants and home improvement. Supermarkets and shopping malls where the kiosks are installed will benefit from increased foot traffic, while gift card-dispensing retail tenants at the respective malls can leverage a new sales channel. Kiosks, as a multi-channel retailing tool, are gaining traction with US retailers and Coinstar’s coin-counting model is just another take on automating the sale of gift cards while promoting the gift cards to a mainstream consumer base.
Business Wire