Click and Collect Lockers for Australian Retailers
A click and collect locker lets a customer pick up an order they have already bought, at any hour, without queueing at the counter. Staff load the order into a cell. The customer gets a code by SMS or email, and that code opens one door, once. For an Australian shop this means after-hours pickup without extra staff on the floor, and fewer customers waiting at the counter at lunchtime. Vending on Track adds one thing other locker suppliers do not advertise in Australia: optional payment at the locker, so pay-on-pickup orders can be collected unattended too. We are taking reservations for the first production run, on the same terms as our parcel lockers.
Where click and collect lockers pay off
- After-hours pickup. Customers who work your trading hours can collect on the way home. A locker inside the entrance or through the wall keeps the shop shut.
- Busy counters. Click-and-collect pickups queue behind walk-in customers. A locker moves them out of the line.
- Specialist shops. Instrument, bike, hobby and parts shops where customers order ahead and collect on a weekend or after work.
- Multi-site retailers. One portal for every store’s locker, with pickups reported per store.
- Pay-on-pickup. Orders taken by phone, repairs and special orders where the customer pays when they collect.
How it works
| Step | Customer | Shop staff | Locker |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orders online and chooses locker pickup | — | — |
| 2 | — | Picks the order and marks it ready | Assigns a cell of the right size |
| 3 | — | Loads the cell and closes the door | Logs the load against the order |
| 4 | Gets an SMS or email with QR code and PIN | — | Sends the code |
| 5 | Scans or types the code. Pays first if the order is pay-on-pickup | — | Opens only that door and logs the collection |
| 6 | — | Sees uncollected orders after the pickup window | Sends reminders automatically |
Connecting to your store
Most retailers want the locker to follow the order status they already use. The usual pattern:
- Your online store or POS sends a “ready for pickup” event to the locker over our REST API or a webhook.
- The locker assigns a cell and returns a pickup code.
- Your system sends the code to the customer in its own branded message, or the locker sends it.
- When the customer collects, the locker sends a “collected” event back so the order can be closed.
The API is the same one integrators use for our Programmable Locker. Small shops can skip the integration altogether: staff create a pickup in the portal by typing an order number and the customer’s mobile.
Payment at the locker
Vending on Track has built cashless payment for vending machines and unattended kiosks for years, including VendCoin and card readers. A locker bank can take a card or phone payment before it opens a door. That makes three things possible:
- Pay-on-pickup orders collected after hours.
- Deposits or balances on special orders and repairs.
- Unattended sales of pre-packed items, where the locker works like a vending machine with larger doors.
Payment hardware and the payment account are set up per retailer and quoted with the lockers. Funds settle to the retailer’s own merchant account.
Sizing for retail
Size from orders, not floor space: daily locker pickups × the average days before collection, plus 30% for sale periods. Retail orders are often bulkier than apartment parcels, so plan more large cells. Parcel locker sizes has the cell dimensions and a worked example.
Prices
A small bank of about 10 cells with a courier touchscreen typically comes in at a few thousand dollars, roughly A$3,000–7,000 ex GST. A building system of 50–100 cells is roughly A$12,000–30,000 ex GST. On top of that there is a flat monthly software fee of around A$150 per building, with no per-parcel or resident fees. Delivery and installation are quoted per site, and your quote fixes the price.For a shop, software is per site and there is no per-order fee. Integration with your store system and payment setup are quoted separately. Choose Retail in the form below.
Price enquiry
Ask for a price for your building
Where this is the wrong answer
- You have fewer than a few pickups a day. A shelf behind the counter is cheaper.
- Most orders are too big for a cell, such as furniture or timber. You need a staffed yard or a dedicated collection bay instead.
- Orders need age checks at handover, such as alcohol. A locker cannot check ID the way a person at the counter does, so keep those orders at the counter.