Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

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Re: Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

Post by SamSpade »

... meant to add I was specifically referring to the "Stadium" Fred Meyer remodel/expansion, although the WFM in Pearl District used to have two seating areas and I enjoyed the coffee bar upstairs/back entrance in the good ol' days.
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Re: Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

Post by storewanderer »

Okay- have tried both of their cashierless options. I'll try to make this as short as possible and refrain from making the various comments I have about the stores and format.

1. Cart with Scanner/Sensors attached: I kind of liked this system. The screen on the carts was really nice and it was well organized and well laid out and it was great to see the ongoing tally as I shopped showing the total also big images for produce to ensure you have the right item for the code entered. With produce it was not fully obvious how to process it, but really no different than how a self checkout handles produce. I found it interesting this store sold produce and prepared food by the pound. Basically takes a starting weight of cart then tells you to drop the item into the cart then measures the weight like that. I assume the carts are calibrated/weigh accurately (looked right to me). However it seemed to get clumsy as I had more items in the cart. Also the handles from the paper bags in the cart were messing up the sensors. Also any item that rolls around in the bag seems to potentially cause problems (or like a box standing up that tips over). Another problem I had was a few times I had the cart in front of a shelf and I guess I lifted a product off the shelf and above the cart to look at it and the cart thought I put something into the cart (but I didn't). At those points the cart would turn orange for a while and show some sort of error in my "item list" but eventually those errors would go away. That happened at least 3 times. I never talked to any employees when I left the store so I'm not sure if they remotely used video cameras to clear the errors or what. However overall I did enjoy the system and would use it again in the future.

2. "Just Walk Out" ...................................................
This is an absolutely terrible system. Every item in the store has a "unit price" like produce and the prepared food bar, nothing can be sold by weight with this system. I was attempting to use that $15 off $35 coupon. This system does not tally your items as you go in any way shape or form that you can actually see/watch. I assumed I'd be given/quoted a total at the exit. I scanned my coupon then scanned myself out and exited. I asked where I can find a receipt. The employee in the store told me I'd receive a receipt in "30 to 40 minutes." I received a receipt about 1.25 hours later. The receipt was missing a couple of items so my total did not reach $35 and the promotion did not apply. I decided I wanted to return part of my transaction since I only bought part of it to get up to the $35. So I went back to the store as I was still near it anyway. I told the person up front that I wanted to do a return. I was sent to "customer service" which is located in a very strange place in the back corner of the store and I had to walk past way too much merchandise to get back there. The employee there told me "Just Walk Out is a separate system from us you have to do your return through there." I was clearly confused and the employee must have seen it in my face. The employee helped me with finding that return option in the app and when we went to the return option then item in question there were two choices for return reason "1. I did not take this item and 2. Something wrong with this item." I said neither of these fit my reason for return. First we tried choice 2 and it gave an "item ineligible" error. Next we tried choice 1 and I said wait a minute I did take the item, to which the employee said yeah but you are going to just give it back here now, to which I said, yes that is true, so proceeded with that one and it went through and said it would process a refund.

I have a really serious problem with a system that does not quote a price to you before you leave the store with the product. I question if this is even legal. I expected I'd receive a receipt the second I walked out of the exit gate. After all, isn't this technology all automated? What if there is a pricing error? I have a theory that this technology is not in fact automated and the reason it took 1.25 hours for a receipt is because Amazon has someone or multiple someones watching all these cameras somewhere and tallying up your bill as you walk through the store but the process is so complicated/backlogged that they do not keep up with you as you walk through the store so they have to go through video footage and bill you later. This would also explain why a couple items were missing from my receipt as well. And then to make matters worse the process to return an item seems to either be extremely convoluted as well.

I would never use this "Just Walk Out" system again, and suggest it be scrapped immediately. These retailers who are trying to roll this type of system out need to go do what I did and try to do a shop using this system and see how it works. Terrible system. And as for these "Wall Street" analysts who seem to be pushing this technology on various retailers and basically delivering the hidden message that you need this type of technology in your business to "keep up with the competitors/not be punished by Wall Street" - all I can say is- shame on you. Go try this system. Try it to buy more than just a candy bar. I'm sure it works great if you walk in take a candy bar and walk out and will charge you for the candy bar accurately. But when you are dealing with a 40k square foot store, produce, fresh items..... no.
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Re: Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

Post by mbz321 »

storewanderer wrote: March 30th, 2022, 10:48 pm Okay- have tried both of their cashierless options. I'll try to make this as short as possible and refrain from making the various comments I have about the stores and format.

1. Cart with Scanner/Sensors attached: I kind of liked this system. The screen on the carts was really nice and it was well organized and well laid out and it was great to see the ongoing tally as I shopped showing the total also big images for produce to ensure you have the right item for the code entered. With produce it was not fully obvious how to process it, but really no different than how a self checkout handles produce. I found it interesting this store sold produce and prepared food by the pound. Basically takes a starting weight of cart then tells you to drop the item into the cart then measures the weight like that. I assume the carts are calibrated/weigh accurately (looked right to me). However it seemed to get clumsy as I had more items in the cart. Also the handles from the paper bags in the cart were messing up the sensors. Also any item that rolls around in the bag seems to potentially cause problems (or like a box standing up that tips over). Another problem I had was a few times I had the cart in front of a shelf and I guess I lifted a product off the shelf and above the cart to look at it and the cart thought I put something into the cart (but I didn't). At those points the cart would turn orange for a while and show some sort of error in my "item list" but eventually those errors would go away. That happened at least 3 times. I never talked to any employees when I left the store so I'm not sure if they remotely used video cameras to clear the errors or what. However overall I did enjoy the system and would use it again in the future.
My Amazon Fresh has been out of the small paper bags for a couple weeks now (they are a shorter size than the ones used in the staffed checkout lanes due to the cart sensors) so they have been giving out their reusable bags for free. I had so many I brought a pile back in today and put them back in the stack that the attendant uses to set up in the carts. They don't seem to be encouraging bringing your own bags. (The paper bags suck anyway and they seem to double bag them and the handles pretty much rip if anything remotely heavy is in them). I don't think there is really anyone monitoring the carts..errors just seem to go away on their own. One time an attendant had to do something as I had some sort of wonky error but they only took a quick glance before removing it.

There is no 'just walk out' technology in this location, but based on your experience, seems like a hassle if there is any promotion involved.

Anyway, unless they release another high value coupon since the latest expires today, it's back to Aldi for me!
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Re: Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

Post by storewanderer »

mbz321 wrote: March 31st, 2022, 8:08 pm

My Amazon Fresh has been out of the small paper bags for a couple weeks now (they are a shorter size than the ones used in the staffed checkout lanes due to the cart sensors) so they have been giving out their reusable bags for free. I had so many I brought a pile back in today and put them back in the stack that the attendant uses to set up in the carts. They don't seem to be encouraging bringing your own bags. (The paper bags suck anyway and they seem to double bag them and the handles pretty much rip if anything remotely heavy is in them). I don't think there is really anyone monitoring the carts..errors just seem to go away on their own. One time an attendant had to do something as I had some sort of wonky error but they only took a quick glance before removing it.

There is no 'just walk out' technology in this location, but based on your experience, seems like a hassle if there is any promotion involved.

Anyway, unless they release another high value coupon since the latest expires today, it's back to Aldi for me!
There is a $10 off "$30" floating in store, expires 4/27. Not sure what amount it will actually apply at.

Yes, the short paper bags were present, but not doubled, in the location I went to. Two per cart. They are weak paper bags that are Made in China (you can tell by how the paper feels). What happens if you use the cart without any bags (I didn't want to experiment too much)? Is the problem items keep rolling around? Seems like a compartmentalized cart may work better but I guess that would require even more sensors.

I got errors a couple times and it seemed like one error stayed with me a while (there were orange lights around the perimeter of the top of the cart) which I thought maybe would mean an employee would be coming to find me and audit the cart or something but I never saw anyone and at some point as I was walking the orange lights went away.

I did like the cart. I would use that technology again as long as I wasn't running a large order. I'd probably avoid it on a large order.

I also think the stores need self checkout... as dumb as it sounds with all this technology designed to avoid a trip to the front end... I think they need self checkout for the customer wanting to get in and out with an item or two (and not scan a QR code in/scan a QR code out).
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Re: Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

Post by mbz321 »

storewanderer wrote: March 31st, 2022, 9:26 pm

There is a $10 off "$30" floating in store, expires 4/27. Not sure what amount it will actually apply at.
You mind sharing the QR code if you happen to come across it? ;)


storewanderer wrote: March 31st, 2022, 9:26 pm I also think the stores need self checkout... as dumb as it sounds with all this technology designed to avoid a trip to the front end... I think they need self checkout for the customer wanting to get in and out with an item or two (and not scan a QR code in/scan a QR code out).
This....it seems kind of odd there is no traditional self checkout. My local Fresh has like 8 or maybe 10 staffed checkout lanes, yet I have never seen more than one open, because they really don't have to with fairly low traffic at least on my visits (to be fair I've never popped in on a weekend afternoon, so maybe they are a bit busier then).
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Re: Amazon Fresh's cashierless plan falling short

Post by storewanderer »

mbz321 wrote: April 2nd, 2022, 5:52 am

You mind sharing the QR code if you happen to come across it? ;)



This....it seems kind of odd there is no traditional self checkout. My local Fresh has like 8 or maybe 10 staffed checkout lanes, yet I have never seen more than one open, because they really don't have to with fairly low traffic at least on my visits (to be fair I've never popped in on a weekend afternoon, so maybe they are a bit busier then).
I left it in the cart but it was a dollar-bill sized coupon in each dash cart. The employee had a stack of them and was replenishing them between customers but I just left the one in mine.

I am pretty sure this was the coupon. I thought it said April 27 expiration but maybe I was seeing the March 27 start date and taking that as an expiration date. Shows how well I read it. Also I see here it says CA only (wonder if that is really the case).

https://slickdeals.net/f/15704947-amazo ... apr-9-2022

I think these $ off transaction coupons are not a great idea but then at the same time I wonder how much does it cost them to pick orders? Maybe for this format these $ off transaction coupons are basically the way to compensate the customer for going into the store and picking their own order from the shelves/transporting it home. Also in my case I would never unless for some reason I couldn't leave the house even consider ordering online groceries, I would always go to the store. So this coupon could potentially shift some of my purchases there vs. some other store.
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