**The Rise and Fall of Amazon’s Cashierless Checkout Dream**
In 2012, Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos expressed his desire to create a unique retail experience that would set his company apart from traditional brick-and-mortar stores. Six years later, Amazon launched its first Amazon Go convenience store, featuring a revolutionary “Just Walk Out” technology that allowed customers to shop without standing in a checkout line. The company soon expanded this technology to its Fresh supermarkets and two Whole Foods locations.
However, Amazon has since taken a step back from its cashierless checkout ambitions. In April, the company announced it was removing Just Walk Out technology from its U.S. Fresh stores and Whole Foods locations, citing the need to rein in costs. Instead, Amazon Fresh stores and Whole Foods supermarkets will feature Dash Carts, which track and tally up items as shoppers place them in bags, enabling people to skip the checkout line.
The main challenge for Amazon and other startups working on autonomous checkout is scaling the technology to enough locations and retail categories to make it a mainstream experience. According to retail consulting firm Tomorrow’s founder and CEO Jordan Berke, “Until that’s the case, it’s an uphill battle.”
Amazon’s decision to phase out Just Walk Out from its own supermarkets has raised questions about the technology’s viability. However, the company remains committed to selling the technology to third-party businesses, with over 200 stores already signed up. Jon Jenkins, who previously served as vice president of Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology, believes that the company has proven the technology’s capabilities through tests in its own grocery stores.
Despite the challenges, Amazon continues to fine-tune its Just Walk Out technology. In August, the company gave a behind-the-scenes look at a mock convenience store where it tests the system before deploying it in third-party retailers and its own stores. The testing lab, located in Amazon’s Seattle headquarters, features faux gates, shelves of typical grab-and-go products, and coolers stocked with beverages.
Amazon’s primary focus is now on selling the technology to third-party businesses and deploying it in small to medium-sized store formats, where the system tends to generate a better return on investment. The company has also begun selling its connected grocery carts to third parties.
While Amazon faces the challenge of convincing retailers to trust one of their biggest competitors with handling valuable shopper data, the company’s decision to move the Just Walk Out team from its retail organization to AWS signals its commitment to selling the technology to other retailers.
As Amazon continues to push forward with its cashierless checkout technology, it remains to be seen whether it can overcome the challenges and make the technology a mainstream experience.
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