As ePaper moves beyond shelf labels and onto shopping carts roaming through store aisles, a new retail media format that combines mobility, contextual awareness and interactivity is taking shape — opening up fresh solutions for in-store precision marketing and digital asset management. In late August, Hangzhou Zhikong Network Co., Ltd. (ZKONG), a council member of the Shenzhen Retail Smart Informatization Industry Association, officially launched a new-generation mobile retail medium — CartWave — for medium- and large-scale retail chains. Built around a shopping cart mount display, the product deeply integrates a 10.95-inch elongated ePaper screen with high-precision positioning technology, marking a leap from "single price display" to "dynamic marketing touchpoint" for ePaper in retail scenarios.

ePaper "on the move" — Breaking the limits of fixed-position delivery

Traditional in-store media — shelf POPs, end-cap light boxes, hanging posters — is constrained to fixed positions and only reaches consumers when they happen to walk by. CartWave takes the screen with the shopping cart, sustaining information exposure throughout the entire customer selection journey. It uses ZKONG's A-series elongated ePaper screen, with a nearly 180° ultra-wide viewing angle, high-definition four-color display, template customization, multi-content rotation and cloud-based batch updates. When a new product launches, a member day arrives, or a major promotion kicks off, a one-click push from the store backend completes content sync across all devices, dramatically reducing manual change-out costs. What's more, the inherent ultra-low power consumption and long battery life of ePaper is a natural fit for mobile scenarios. Combined with ZKONG's self-developed wireless cloud base station, the screens install on existing carts quickly without complex wiring — greatly lowering the deployment barrier at scale and making the digital upgrade of medium- and large-format stores lighter and faster.

Location-linked — Letting marketing content follow the customer

Getting the screen moving is just the first step. The real value kernel of CartWave lies in its intelligent response to "location." Leveraging AoA high-precision positioning capability, the device can identify the in-store area it is in real-time and link with backend strategies — when a cart enters the fresh produce area, beverage aisle or personal care section, the screen automatically switches to category-specific product recommendations, time-limited offers or member-exclusive benefits. Compared with playing uniform content store-wide, this region-matched approach makes marketing information highly aligned with the customer's moment-of-decision scenario, lifting conversion precision and offering a viable technical path for stores to explore "personalized" offline experiences.

Interaction closed loop — Extending the private-domain acquisition chain

Beyond display, CartWave also serves as an offline traffic entry point. Consumers scanning the on-screen QR code can jump straight into the brand's enterprise WeChat, community group or mini-program to claim member benefits, join promotions or go directly to the online product page to add items to cart. This design converts transient in-store traffic into the brand's private-domain assets, extends the reach of in-store marketing, and gives retailers a new offline anchor for digital member operations.

Geofencing — Empowering shopping cart asset management

Beyond marketing features, CartWave also delivers incremental value to store operations. In the past, problems such as carts being left in the wrong zone, lost carts or uneven circulation relied mainly on manual inspection — low management efficiency and hard-to-control loss. Leveraging AoA positioning and geofencing technology, the system automatically detects out-of-bounds or abnormal movement of devices and sends real-time alerts, helping stores track vehicle location efficiently and reduce asset-loss risk. With this dual "marketing + management" drive, CartWave is not just a media tool but part of the store's digital foundation.

CartWave has completed scenario validation and has begun deployment in several domestic supermarket chains. As retail shifts from "traffic dividend" to "efficiency dividend", the deep integration of mobile terminals, location awareness and content distribution may become an important direction for the next wave of in-store intelligence upgrades.

About Hangzhou Zhikong (ZKONG)

Hangzhou Zhikong Network Co., Ltd. (ZKONG) is an integrated high-tech enterprise covering product R&D, manufacturing and sales. The company focuses on the R&D and application of wireless smart hardware products such as ESL electronic shelf labels and LCD commercial display screens, and provides one-stop digital store solutions. Building on 20 years of R&D and manufacturing experience in wireless communications, ZKONG continues to explore the deep integration of ePaper, IoT technology and retail scenarios. Currently, the company's business spans multiple countries and regions, with branches in North America, Europe and Japan, serving more than 3,000 customers worldwide.

Key product specifications

• Display: 10.95-inch elongated four-color ePaper, 147 DPI

• Viewing angle: ≈180° ultra-wide

• Positioning: AoA high-precision, region-aware dynamic content switching

• Power: Ultra-low power, up to 5-year battery life

• Management: Cloud-based remote push, multi-cart synchronized updates, geofencing

• Installation: Snap-on cart handle design, no complex wiring required

• Content: Template library with customization, multi-rotation support, QR-code scanning for enterprise WeChat / community / mini-program entry

• Target scenarios: Supermarket fresh, home furnishing, drugstore chains, smart retail, warehouse-club stores, fashion apparel