Amazon is bringing its Just Walk Out tech to a full-size Fresh store for the first time
It's powered by the company's 'Just Walk Out' technology.
On June 17th, Amazon will open the first full-size Fresh grocery store that uses its Just Walk Out technology in the US. The e-commerce giant introduced the checkout-free tech as part of its Amazon Go stores a few years ago. True to its name, it enables customers to walk inside a shop, fill their carts with items and walk out without having to go through a checkout line.
Amazon says the the new Fresh location — in The Marketplace at Factoria in Bellevue, Washington — is the first time it's built the option to shop using both Just Walk Out tech and traditional payment methods in a full-size grocery. The company opened a Fresh store in the UK with the technology back in March, though, which became its first checkout-free retail location outside the US. Amazon also licensed the platform to other retailers, including airport shops where customers are able to purchase food and drinks without having to interact with a cashier. It's worth noting that the company opened another full-size Fresh store in California last year, but that one uses Amazon's Dash Cart technology that enables customers to skip the checkout line if they're only buying about two bags worth of groceries.
In the Washington location, buyers will be able to walk through the Just Walk Out gates by scanning a QR code in their Amazon app, using Amazon One to scan their palm or inserting a credit or debit card associated with their Amazon account. Once they're inside, they can shop like usual: Every item they get from the shelves gets added to their virtual cart, and every item they put back will be taken off. They don't have to go through a cashier to walk out, but they do have to rescan the QR code or their palm or to re-insert their credit card at the exit.
Whether other Amazon Fresh stores are getting Just Walk Out in the future remains to be seen. In its announcement, the company says it's "excited to see how customers like the Just Walk Out shopping experience at the Amazon Fresh store in Bellevue" for now and that it'll "go from there."
