After first introducing the technology in a 2020 pilot, Kroger BB #:100073 has installed smart shopping carts that allow customers to shop checkout-free at a concept store in Monroe, OH.
Powered by the company Caper, the carts are dubbed KroGO, and officially launched in mid-October.
A Kroger spokeswoman told the Louisville Business Journal the technology will be “game-changing” for the shopping experience.
Several other retailers are considering frictionless checkout concepts, like Amazon’s Just Walk Out-enabled stores Amazon Go and the Dash cart at select Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods stores.
Others, however, are rethinking their scan and go and self-checkout strategies amid increasing instances of shoplifting. Rochester, NY-based Wegmans pulled its self-scan checkout technology in September. After a brief pilot, Walmart abandoned the technology in 2018.
Caper’s smart shopping carts feature built-in scales and cameras that let customers add groceries – even weighing produce – as they shop, and pay at the cart to skip the checkout line completely.
