New high-tech Amazon grocery store has ‘Just Walk Out,’ palm payment
California is getting is 10th Amazon brick-and-mortar grocery store, and its second featuring fully autonomous checkout.
Open as of Thursday, Dec. 16, in La Habra, Calif., the approximately 40,000-sq.-ft. location is the largest Amazon Fresh store to feature Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” technology. Just Walk Out leverages a combination of computer vision, sensor fusion and deep learning that enables shoppers to shop the store, pick out what they want and skip the checkout when they’re done.
Anyone shopping at the new Amazon Fresh store can take advantage of the technology, which connects to their Amazon account or credit card. Customers are prompted at the store’s entry gates to scan the QR code in their Amazon app, use the Amazon One proprietary palm payment solution, or insert a credit or debit card linked to their Amazon account to open the Just Walk Out gates.
Once inside the store, customers can shop like normal. Anything they take off the shelf is automatically added to their virtual cart, and anything they put back on the shelf comes out of their virtual cart. At the end of their trip, customers scan their QR code, palm or payment card again to exit.
[Read more: First Look: Amazon debuts new high-tech grocery store]
In addition to Just Walk Out, the La Habra Amazon Fresh location also provides shoppers with the option of paying by cash, SNAP EBT, or credit or debit card at traditional, staffed checkout lanes. Employees are also available throughout the store for assistance.
Customers shopping the La Habra location can also use a coupon for $10 off an order of $20 or more, or $20 off an order of $50 or more found in their weekly Amazon Fresh circular for shopping trips made at the store until Dec. 26. Customers may use the paper coupon at the Just Walk Out exit or at the traditional checkout.
Low-priced items are available to shop every day—including $0.15 cent bananas; $0.89 cent freshly baked bread; $1.79 freshly baked pizza slices; and $4.97 rotisserie chickens. As we open our doors, we’re offering deals on a variety of items across our aisles like those listed above, as well as $2.69 for a 12-pack of Coca-Cola and buy one get one free Lay’s chips (7.5-8 oz.). All opening deals can be found here.
The omnichannel giant now operates 23 Amazon Fresh stores across the U.S., including 10 in California, six in Illinois, three in Washington state, and one each in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. 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.
Amazon has also introduced new ways to make grocery shopping more convenient and new Alexa features to help customers manage their shopping lists and better navigate store aisles, as well as order ahead for service counters.