Is it possible that Whole Foods Market shoppers in the Bay Area might soon see cashiers and checkout stands disappear from their local stores?
Amazon, which has introduced the concept of checkout-free shopping at its Amazon Go convenience stores in San Francisco, Seattle and Chicago, reportedly is testing out the technology at a larger-format location in Seattle. While the retailing giant has said it doesn’t intend on doing away with traditional checkout practices at its Whole Foods locations, the grocery store chain is viewed as natural proving ground for Amazon’s technology, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. Amazon bought Whole Foods in 2017 for $13.7 billion.
The Journal said that “people familiar with the matter” confirmed Amazon’s testing of the technology in the hopes of bringing to locations larger than the Amazon Go shops, which typically take up about 2,500 square feet and are more like 7-Eleven or other convenience stores in terms of their style and quantities of products. Spokespeople for neither Amazon nor Whole Foods would comments on the matter, according to the Journal.
One of the main issues with Amazon Go technology is that it still in the developmental stages. While it is said to work well in a small location such as an Amazon Go store, using it for a Whole Foods-size store — with a larger footprint, more inventory, higher ceilings and produce that is sold by weight — could be years away.
Shoppers at Amazon Go locations use their phones when they enter a store to scan an app, and their purchases then are recorded by devices throughout the store to confirm they are paying for the correct items.
