Just Walk Out Shopping: No Lines. No Checkouts!

Few years ago did you even imagine what a shopping look like if you would enter a store, grab what you like and exit the store without waiting in the long checkout lines.

YES! you heard it right, the world is going one step forward breaking all barriers of Digital Grid and has launched a new trend that is spreading its tentacles, which has created a boom in the Digital World.

Let's take a look inside Amazon's futuristic new store, which promises no checkout lines and tracks your purchases with high-tech sensors. Amazon Go is a chain of convenience store in United States, operated by online retailer Amazon. It was founded in 22 January 2018 in Seattle, Washington, US. As of 2020, Amazon Go has opened 27 stores and has covered many locations: Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco and New York City. 

These stores are partially automated and partially manually, which means the store doesn't have cashiers, but still it has workers. Workers to greet the customers, stockers who shuffle and arrange the goods from the back rooms onto the shelves. For liquor purchases, the workers checks the ID's.

Functioning of Amazon Go:-

It might be the first store in the country that actually requires its customers to download the app before they enter into the Amazon Go store. Before entering, you must scan Amazon Go app's bar code at the turnstiles. During that moment cameras and sensors identify you by your Amazon Account as you move inside. Then put away your phone and starts shopping.

Surprising right? Amazon uses various technologies to automate Go stores, including computer vision, deep learning algorithms and sensor fusion for the purchase, checkout and payment step is associated with a retail transaction. 

Anything you pick up from the shelf will be automatically added to your virtual cart with the number of items that you have picked. There may be a scenario where you have picked up an article and later on you change your mind for that particular article, you just simply have to put it back and it will automatically be deleted from your virtual cart. 

And after you have taken everything from that particular store then there is only one thing you have to do just walk out of the store that’s it. How amazing it is right!

Once you step out of the store then just walk out technology will send you a receipt and charge your Amazon account. Seriously! 

But wait a second there is a Restriction!! Yes you heard it right Amazon has held your hand at only one point in the entire retail transaction. 

A little bit confused? Restriction here means that you don’t take anything off the shelf and it to someone else to buy unless you’re both are synced to the same Amazon account, The system will charge only the grabber of the product and not the one who is actually taking it from the grabber. 

“You grab it, you buy it” – these are the rules and restrictions..

But every digital story comes with some disadvantages, then why not this. Yes!! Although Amazon Go has managed to enter various countries including the hearts of many people as it is convenient and time saving, but this “just walk out technology” has its own disadvantages too.

Ever wonder that how does Amazon Go manages the entire store without cashiers? As the store has minimal staff to deal. It is because of a complicated array of technology that tracks every move of yours within the store. Dozens of cameras work simultaneously with sensors in the shelf to track when shoppers picked up or put back an item into the shelves. All of these leads to a costly retail transaction system. 

With self-serving technology, it has lead to Job Loss of peoples which were earlier associated with the stores. 

But as the world advances, the people there also advances. That is the best thing about the Digital World. Similarly another addition has been made in the Amazon Go chain which is the Amazon Go Grocery. 

Amazon Go Grocery is the first grocery store to offer Just Walk Out Shopping: come in, take what you want, and just walk out. Amazon Go Grocery offers everything you’d want from a neighborhood grocery store to bakery items and household essentials. Amazon Go Grocery and Amazon Go both use the Amazon Go app for entry. You can find the Amazon Go app in the Apple App Store, Google Play, and Amazon Appstore.

It is expected that by 2025, Amazon Go will flourish the Indian markets and will expand the Digital Grid. Like Amazon Go is waiting to start their retail transaction in other parts of the world including India. We are also sitting at the corner of our seats waiting for the launch and rushing to these stores soon. As every wait is fruitful in the end!

Bye Digital Amigos!!