Prior social robotics research has shown that robot design influences if people perceive a robot as friendly, trustworthy, or safe (Castro-Gonzalez et al., 2016; Rosenthal-Von Der Pütten & Krämer, 2014). Meanwhile, recent conceptual work has suggested that social robots will increasingly be used in the front line of service encounters (Gonzalez-Jimenez, 2018; Van doorn et al., 2017). According to The International Journal of Social Robotics social robots are robots that can communicate and interact with humans, among themselves, and with the environment, within the cultural and social structure assigned to its role. Real examples of the inclusion of these robots in retail settings already exist. For instance, some retailers use Softbank´s robot Pepper to greet and inform customers. Social robots such as Pepper can use their sensors and cameras to interpret customer reactions and adapt accordingly. Moreover, the robot can even make product recommendations based on the assessed customer´s mood, age, gender and, if available, purchase history (McKenna, 2018). Not surprisingly, there is a vast market potential associated with these robots, which is expected to grow to 87 billion by 2025 (BCG, 2017).

• Hector Gonzalez-Jimenez(ESCP Business School, Spain)
• Yang Sun(Zhejiang SCI-TECH University, China)