Public Gaming International March/April 2021

Now, consumers in Kentucky can add another amenity to the list—lottery scratch games. In March, the largest grocery retailer in the U.S., Kroger, began selling instant games in 49 checkout lanes at 16 locations across the state. The long-term initiative with SCiQInLane ™ isexpandingtootherKrogermarkets. The huge leap forward in the grocery stores’ front-end convenience is made possible by Scientific Games’ SCiQ Inlane , which tracks every unit of instant product sold in real time. The technology is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to modernize the consumer retail experience at grocery stores and big box retailers, while helping lotteries drive maximum proceeds. “All of us at the Kentucky Lottery are excited to be chosen as the first state to test this new system, andwe’re looking forward to seeing how it performs in the marketplace,” said Kentucky Lottery President and CEO Mary Harville. AWinning Partnership Oneof theTop20 lotteries in theworld for instant gamesalespercapita,theKentuckyLottery set a record in fiscal year 2020 with more than $1.2 billion in sales. For over two decades, Scientific Games has served as the Lottery’s primary instant game partner and launched Scientific Games Enhanced Partnership program for instant game management in 2018. In-lane sales at grocery stores is the latest in a long line of innovations. All the pieces came together through a partnership between Scientific Games; the Kentucky Lottery; Kroger, the world’s second largest retailer; and Blackhawk Network, a leader in branded payment programs. “ThroughourpartnershipwithScientific Games and long-standing relationship with Blackhawk Network, Kroger is delighted to be the first grocery store partner for checkout line lottery sales in the U.S., and we look to expanding this effort to additional states,” said Jarrod Cummins, Director of Prepaid Services for Kroger, the largest of the Kentucky Lottery’s grocery store partners. SCiQ Inlane marks an immense improvement in the ease of selling instant products at the point of sale. Thanks to the reduced labor required to sell scratch games, potential for boosting sales and the added convenience for consumers, Kroger is making history with SCiQ Inlane. This level of category management, which was not previously available to retailers, allows greater visibility into sales performance and available inventory. SCiQ® also automates the shift accounting reconciliation process, significantly reducing the store’s labor costs. SCiQ Inlane is the first solution that securely integrates with the retailer’s point-of-sale system to sell lottery instant games via technology from payments partner Blackhawk Network. Blackhawk is a global financial technology company and a leader in payment technologies and solutions. Through this partnership, Blackhawkwill further enable thedeliveryof amore convenient lottery experience at retail, and more importantly, Picture the grocery store checkout lane. From the conveyor and payment kiosk to candy bars and soft drinks, the entire experience is built around one main idea—maximizing convenience. Moving customers through quickly, offering last-minute purchases and simplifying employee tasks are top priorities.