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November 5, 2018
On the web
7-Eleven is testing new ‘scan-and-go’ technology
Digiday
“7-Eleven is making more moves to go cashierless — or at least give customers the option to. Starting Monday, 14 stores in Dallas will have scan-and-go technology built in the company’s mobile app, so customers can scan and pay for items on their phones.”
October 31, 2018
Top Post
Soon you’ll be able to check out at Walmart without going to the register
NBC
““Check Out With Me,” a new program announced Monday, will enable customers to pay for items directly with Walmart associates using hand-held devices and stationed around the store. The new strategy is intended to spare customers the hassle of trying to get large items like Christmas trees and televisions through long and cumbersome checkout lines, though the service “is not limited to any one particular type of item,” a spokesperson for Walmart told NBC News.”
August 20, 2018
On the wires
Buick Delivers Peace of Mind at the Gas Pump
‘This service allows drivers to pay for fuel from their vehicle without swiping their credit card or using their smartphone. The platform also automatically syncs drivers to their ExxonMobil Speedpass+™ app account, and drivers accumulate rewards points with each purchase. The new service is available at more than 11,000 Exxon or Mobil stations across the United States.”
For the first time UK grocery shoppers can scan and pay in an app for groceries in-store
“In a UK supermarket first, Sainsbury’s is trialling new scan, pay and go technology that will enable customers in one of its busy London convenience stores to pay for products in-store using their smartphone. The new technology gives shoppers the option to grab their groceries and skip the checkout completely.”
July 16, 2018
On the web
Most Prefer Amazon Go Experience Over Traditional Grocery Shopping: Report
Progressive Grocer
“The research shows that 84 percent of respondents to a survey said that they see Amazon Go as a “type of grocery shopping experience” they’d enjoy more than traditional grocery shopping. It also reveals that three in four respondents would be either extremely or very likely to shop at an Amazon Go store if one opened close to where they live. Even higher price points are acceptable to a large number of shoppers. One in four respondents said that they’d be willing to pay more for groceries if it meant not waiting in line at checkout.”
June 29, 2018
On the web
Tesco Trials Cashless ‘Shop And Go’ Store At HQ
Essential Retail
“Tesco staff are trialling a completely cashless store at the grocer’s headquarters in Welwyn Garden City, including ‘shop and go’ technology similar to that used in the Amazon Go store in Seattle. Solely in test mode and restricted to the staff shop on its HQ premises, the technology allows customers to scan and pay for their products via their smartphone before walking out of the store without visiting a traditional till point.”
June 22, 2018
Top Post
Dollar General Pilots Mobile Checkout App
Progressive Grocer
“Goodlettsville, Tenn.-based Dollar General is the latest food retailer and first dollar-store chain to move into mobile checkout with a new app. DG Go, according to its description on the Google Play store, is a shopping app that lets users scan and pay for products they select directly from their phone, allowing them to skip the checkout line altogether. It’s available for both Android and iOS devices.”
May 21, 2018
On the web
In Faddish China, Even Glorified Vending Machines Raise Billions
Bloomberg
“Names from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. to Walmart Inc. and Sequoia have poured more than $1.7 billion into startups such as Mr. Fresh and Xingbianli (Gorilla Convenience) that for now offer little more than tricked-out vending machines or kiosks…It’s a high-tech twist on the venerable vending machine, with the latest iterations hawking cooked food and strawberries. They’ll track purchases via facial and object recognition and a smartphone app.”
April 26, 2018
On the web
53% Of Consumers Want Smartphone Payment Option
Retail Touch Points
“Smartphone-based payment solutions have so far been slow to take off in the North American market, but that trend could be shifting. Nearly one in three (31%) of consumers already use mobile wallets such as Apple Pay, and 53% of consumers feel stores should accept smartphone payments. That figure rises to 67% for Millennials, who collectively account for $200 billion in purchasing power.”
April 19, 2018
On the wires
Walmart Launches Check Out With Me, a New Service Designed to Save Customers Time
“Walmart is testing a new program called Check Out With Me in the Lawn & Garden Centers of more than 350 stores across the country, just in time for the busy spring season. Outfitted with cellular devices and Bluetooth printers, Lawn & Garden associates at these select stores can check out customers and provide a receipt on the spot. Customers no longer need to venture inside the physical store to pay for items like mulch, soil and flowers, saving them valuable time.”
April 10, 2018
On the web
Spar Netherlands opens first cashless store
Retail Systems
“Called ‘Skippen’, or Skipping in English, the new concept enables students who download the accompanying app to purchase goods in-store without having to queue for a cash register. Shoppers simply scan items into their shopping cart via a QR code, before completing the payment with Tikkie – ABN AMRO’s online payment solution. “
March 21, 2018
On the web
Macy’s to add mobile checkout to all stores by year’s end
CNBC
“The company is also adding an augmented reality shopping experience for furniture to the Macy’s app, hitting phones as early as next month for some shoppers. With the upgrade, customers will be able to virtually place Macy’s furniture within their own living spaces, seeing how it looks there before they buy.”
March 16, 2018
On the web
Here’s What Macy’s Says Is the Worst Pain Point for Shoppers
Fortune
‘As part of Macy’s ongoing efforts to improve its business and build on its first quarter of comparable sales growth in three years over the holidays, the retailer is testing out mobile checkout at some stores, with a plan to offer the service at 450 of its 650 or so Macy’s stores.”
March 12, 2018
On the web
Instacart is thinking about a self-checkout system, patent reveals
Fast Company
“Instacart is a service that does your grocery shopping for you, delivering it to your door. The patent details a mobile application and online concierge service that would allow shoppers to make purchases on behalf of customers, thereby bypassing the checkout line. Essentially, Instacart is looking at ways to speed up its delivery operations. This mobile app would ostensibly let its concierge shoppers fulfill orders without having to stand in line with regular shoppers to make purchases.”
January 25, 2018
On the web
Supermarket checkout designed to scan entire shopping basket trialled in London
Evening Standard
“A checkout designed to scan an entire basket or trolley’s worth of shopping in one go is being trialled in London. The centrepiece of IBM’s “shop of the future” is said to be 15 times faster than standard self-service checkouts.”
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