Much of our money exchange system changed the past few years to contactless payments. While COVID certainly helped propel it quickly, truthfully, it was a format that began before the worldwide pandemic. Amazon takes the idea one step further with its “Just Walk Out” technology that eliminates a stop at the cash register on your way out the door. The online retailer has now brought the system to its first Whole Foods Market store.
Also read:9 Smart Hacks to Save Money on Amazon
Just Walk Out of Amazon
For the most part, it’s not shopping as a whole that people dread – much of it can be tied to the time wasted having to wait in long lines at the cash register. Amazon eliminates that with Just Walk Out.
In stores equipped with Just Walk Out, cameras and AI record you walking in and logs the items that you take off the shelf and put back on the shelf.
Once you leave, it records you again and charges you for the items you picked up but didn’t put back on the shelf, then adds the total charge to your credit card. Once you leave the store, you’ll receive a digital receipt notification in your email. The receipt is also included in your Amazon account.
After launching in 2020, this system is already in place in Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh Stores. The company bought the Whole Foods Market chain three years prior, so it was clear where it was headed.
Just Walk Out in Whole Foods Market Stores
After owning the Whole Foods Market chain for five years, Amazon is finally bringing Just Walk Out. It has plans for two stores in 2022, with the first in Washington D.C. now open with the new technology. It plans to add Just Walk Out to a Sherman Oaks, California, location later this year.
Amazon said it only takes a few weeks to change an existing store into one that can use the Just Walk Out system. Customers can still shop the traditional way, paying at the cash register, albeit self-checkout. But if you choose to use the new technology, you’ll need an Amazon account. Help will be available for you as well, either way, at the customer service booth.
“At these two Whole Foods Market stores with Just Walk Out Shopping, customers will be greeted by a Team Member at the store entry gates and can then choose if they want to shop using Just Walk Out technology or the self-checkout lanes,” explained Amazon.
There are concerns over what this technology will do to the cashier jobs at Whole Foods, but Amazon claims it’s just a shift in focus for the employees.
It’s still up in the air whether Just Walk Out will come to all stores in the chain. “For now, we’re excited to see how customers like being able to skip the checkout and use Just Walk Out Shopping when we open our doors in Sherman Oaks and Washington, D.C.,” said the company last year.
The company is also giving back to the Washington, D.C. community, perhaps to be seen as a more enticing option. It’s supporting STEM For Her programs in the D.C. metro area and is leaving itself open to supporting more non-profits.
If you’ve resisted opening an account until now but are considering it to take advantage of Just Walk Out, learn more about Amazon Prime.
Image Credit: Amazon
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