Humanless Retail

Ann-Marie Vazzano

When it comes to retail sales, Panasonic is removing store associates from the equation in Japan with the introduction of checkout machines that can both scan and bag items. The Wall Street Journal reports that Panasonic’s new machines include a shopping basket that can determine which products are placed in it and tally up the total accordingly. The items are then dropped into a bag. The Wall Street Journal also recently reported on Amazon’s plans for a system that eliminates cash registers in its Amazon Go store. Instead, customers simply scan their phones upon entering the store. The store is then able to detect which items shoppers take from the shelves and charge their Amazon accounts as they exit. GP