Amazon has revealed plans for a new checkout-less grocery shop where shoppers use the Amazon Go app to pay.
The revolutionary new retail space — with the first to open in Seattle — will use the same technology as driverless cars, detecting when items are taken or returned to shelves via virtual tracking, according to the BBC.
Instead of having to scan each item with the app, or pay at a checkout, each item is added to a virtual basket and the person’s Amazon account is charged as soon as they leave the store.
When entering the shop, a customer will swipe into the store using the Go app, beginning the shopping process.
The system reportedly took four years to complete.
“Grocery retail is a crowded sector, and customers have incredibly high expectations of the Amazon brand,” Planet Retail analyst Natalie Berg said.
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“If they’re going to differentiate, they’ll need to translate the fantastic customer experience that they have created online in a physical store setting. This is no easy feat. Removing the traditional checkout process does exactly that.
“Despite significant investment in store technology, the checkout experience has been largely ignored.
“Retailers have made a lot of progress on mobile payments as a standalone option; however, very few have been successful in moving towards a comprehensive mobile wallet and thereby addressing the problem of long queues. This is where Amazon comes in.”
On sale will be a range of ready-made breakfast lunch and dinner, prepared every day by chefs and local kitchens and bakeries. Essentials and Amazon Meal Kits will also be on sale.
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