Kroger to Make Checkout Lanes Obsolete
Kroger will soon give its shoppers a cashier-free shopping experience. This year the grocery chain is rolling out a new service to 400 stores that will enable shoppers to scan and pay for their items without checkout lanes, registers, or cashiers.
Shoppers scan the barcodes of items they wish to purchase using a handheld scanner provided by Kroger. Consumers can also use the “Scan, Bag, Go” app on their smartphones as they place items in their carts. The technology keeps a running tab of the total order and also offer discount coupons in real-time. The consumers will also be alerted when they walk past an item added to their shopping list.
When customers are ready to check out, they can visit any self-checkout register with the “Scan, Bag, Go” logo. Shoppers will also be able to provide payment through the app. This means consumers won’t have to stand in line or visit a register at any point during their shopping trip.
Similar brick-and-mortar grocery concept by Amazon, called Amazon Go, is still in the planning phases.