Source Technologies, a provider of self-service bill-pay kiosks, yesterday announced the addition of a new layaway function to its existing bill-payment kiosk solution.

The layaway functionality allows shoppers to browse available products including those that may not be in inventory at their current store location, select an item, place the item on layaway and make payments toward the layaway item — all from a single kiosk located within the retail store.  It also eliminates the need for shoppers to search the aisles for product or wait in line to make a deposit or payment toward their layaway selections and allows retailers to accommodate layaway shoppers’ product selections while reserving inventory items for purchasers.

"Our bill payment kiosks are readily accepted by consumers as a quick, convenient way to pay their bills. Expanding the solution to include a layaway option gives the shopper and the retailer more options to engage, ultimately converting more shoppers into purchasers," said Sarah Burkhart, director of product marketing. "Empowered shoppers can place select items for layaway or make payments toward layaway items while employees are free to focus on more complex transactions or ring up today’s purchasers."