"Worldwide, this is the first intelligent system of delivery stations that brings goods and services right in your apartment building lobby," Mihail Gîrneţ, CEO of Bob Concierge, a Romanian start-up, told CGTN Europe.

The system is intended to work as an electronic doorman for residential buildings, a digital valet, hence the name 'concierge,' built as a hybrid between a smart locker and a refrigerated cabinet for temperature sensitive foods.

By using the app and its marketplace, you can get water, milk, juice, beer, and various other foods straight from the temperature-sensitive lockers, or even pick up the cooked meal you ordered.

There are also compartments where couriers can leave or pick up parcels, as well as a laundry compartment where users can leave clothes for the cleaning company, to be delivered back in 48 hours, washed and ironed.

You can also use the Bob Concierge app to order house maintenance services from various handymen, such as plumbers, electricians, painters etc. What's more, you can even request various cosmetic services through the app.

The machine uses 'grab-and-go' technology, meaning that after making the order via the app interface, the user opens the locker via a QR code, takes what they need, and the amount is withdrawn from the user's bank account after sensors have scanned the withdrawn product.

As well as the lockers, the machine also has a minishop with free-checkout associated with Bob Concierge delivery stations which makes food and beverages available nonstop.

"We wanted to integrate all the services one might need in a single device," said Mihail Gîrneţ.

Although the business is still in its infancy, 50 apartment and office buildings across Bucharest are already fitted with Bob Concierge. But, the plan is to have over 5,000 smart lockers installed across the country, in Romania's major cities, and then expand on a regional and international level.

But getting here wasn't easy. Mihail Gîrneţ said he had to fight off both real estate developers and then Romania’s cumbersome legislation.

"Developers want to hit and go, meaning they're interested in selling fast and not so much in adding facilities to the building. The bureaucracy associated with owners' associations, deciding how the shared space within a building gets managed is also an obstacle," Gîrneţ added.

The cost of the Bob Concierge smart locker is about 10,000 euros ($11,800) to make and several hundred euros to install. The devices, however, are distributed free of charge. The installation costs are also covered by the manufacturer.

The company plans to pay off the costs by charging a commission to companies using the Bob Concierge platform to distribute their goods.

People tend to shop mostly online during the COVID-19 pandemic either because of lockdown restrictions, with non-essential stores and malls closed, or because they want to minimize and reduce any unnecessary risk.

"E-commerce has grown to such an extent that logistics has trouble keeping up with demand. That is why our goal was to develop a system where delivery happens quick, easy and without any health risks, without having to wait the entire day for the courier to arrive or requiring any person-to-person interaction," added Mihail Gîrneţ.