Amazon has finally released it’s first cashier free convenience store, Amazon Go in downtown Seattle and is ready for business. This is a new concept that has been launched by Amazon for the public. The store which is one of its kind will change the definition of retail shopping without carrying cash or card. The store is completely outfitted with sensors and cameras to keep track of the customers as they come in to get the grocery supplies.
The customers should have Amazon Go app, where the QR code is generated and needs to be scanned at the entrance of the store. Once scanned, the glass door opens and the customer can go get the items. The cameras and sensors track the virtual cart of the customer by the way they pick up the items and keep in their basket. On exiting, the customer will get charged for the purchases in the app. The app will be linked to the credit card, where the customer will be billed for the items they bought, confirming that there is no need to stand in the check out line or to pull out the credit card.
Inside the 1,800-square foot mini-market, there are about 10 workers making salads, few others checking the ids in the wine section and others stocking the shelves again.
Amazon has always bought in new visions for shopping experiences and this is just the next new chapter of their story. There were about 3.5 million cashiers in the United States in 2016. If the technology behind Amazon Go becomes a success, there might be some risk for the cashiers. But for now, Amazon says its technology simply changes the role of employees and will not affect their jobs.