Amazon opening second high-tech grocery store in Seattle
The newest Amazon Fresh brick-and-mortar grocery location will launch in Seattle on Thursday, Aug. 12.
Amazon Fresh stores are designed from the ground up to offer a seamless shopping experience, with extra perks for members of the Amazon Prime paid loyalty program. In addition to offering traditional checkout, the approximately 35,000-sq.-ft. store will provide customers with the option to use the Amazon Dash Cart, which leverages a combination of computer vision algorithms and sensor fusion to identify items placed in it. Customers can place their bags in the cart, sign in using their Fresh QR code in the Amazon app, shop, and exit through the Dash Cart lane to automatically complete their payment.
Traditional checkouts will also accept Amazon One palm-based payment. In another omnichannel offering, customers can find items more quickly by using Amazon Alexa voice technology and Alexa shopping lists. When customers arrive in store, they can access their Alexa shopping list through the Amazon app or on the Amazon Dash Cart, enabling them to more quickly navigate aisles and check off items as they shop.
Currently, Amazon operates 16 other Amazon Fresh stores, including a recently opened location in Bellevue, Wash., that offers the same type of “Just Walk Out” autonomous checkout experience available in its convenience and small-format grocery stores. In addition, the company operates eight other Amazon Fresh stores in California, four locations in Illinois, one in Pennsylvania, one in Virginia, and one in Washington, D.C.
“We’re thrilled to bring the first Amazon Fresh grocery store in Seattle to the Central District, providing customers with a wide selection of low-priced, high-quality fresh foods and a convenient in-store shopping experience,” said David Nielson, regional manager of Amazon Fresh grocery stores. “We’re proud that this store has brought hundreds of great jobs to the area, and we are committed to continuing to contribute positively to the community.”