After leading the boom in the e-commerce space, Amazon is now also looking to simplify offline grocery shopping for its customers. The company wants you to just be able to order groceries (or mostly, anything you require) from your smartphone and just drive in to pick up the packaged goods, without having to go inside the store and wait in line at the cashier’s counter.
Called AmazonFresh Pickup, this new service was announced back in late March this year and has today been launched with two store locations in Seattle. It has been in the testing phase, involving only Amazon’s employees, until date but is now being made widely available to Prime subscription holders in the state. As mentioned at the time of the announcement, these stores have popped up in SODO and Ballard neighborhoods of Seattle.
These brick-and-mortar grocery stores could possibly be directly aimed at eating up the market share of Amazon’s fiercest rival in the United States — WalMart. While the latter is trying to expand its online e-commerce presence, the former is using innovative ideas to make strides into the offline space. And the same is the simple idea behind this grocery drive-through and pick-up concept.
As for how this works, you can simply use the Amazon app to choose from a collection of items such as fresh produce, high-quality meats, bread, dairy and a range of everyday essentials, among others and place your order — either from the comfort of your home or even on the go. You’ll be required to schedule a pick up time for when you’ll be able to drive and pick up the order. There is also an instant pick up option, where you can go and grab your stuff in just 15 minutes.
There is no mimimum order value but as some tester have alreayd noted, the prices quoted for the products are significantly on the higher side as compared to your local supermarket. Also, The Seattle Times notes that the delivery person will input your name and license plate number into the system at the time of your first visit at any one of the two AmazonFresh Pickup locations. This enables Amazon’s computer vision technology to identify your plate number at any subsequent visit and alert the employee of your arrival.
This concept is entirely different from the cashier-less ‘Amazon Go’ stores which the e-commerce giant is trying to convert into a reality. These stores require you to step out of your homes, walk into the store to pick the products and groceries you require and walk away without having to interact with anyone.
You will just need to scan your smartphone at the time of entry and exit for the system to register your purchase and deduct the necessary amount from your linked debit/credit card. This system is currently plagued with technical issues, which are leading to a delay in its official opening. It has also been revealed that automation will reduce the workforce required for the said stores to about a mere six employees.
