New York Post

Check out Whole Foods’ ‘no checkout’

- By WILL FEUER wfeuer@nypost.com

Amazon announced Wednesday that two Whole Foods Market locations, in California and Washington, DC, will go cashierles­s next year as the company expands its use “Just Walk Out” technology.

The option to skip the checkout line and pay with the technology will be available at two upcoming Whole Foods locations scheduled to open next year in the Glover Park neighborho­od of DC and Sherman Oaks, Calif., Amazon said in a blog post.

The technology enables shoppers to enter a store by scanning a QR code, inserting a credit or debit card linked to their Amazon account or scanning their palm through Amazon One, the company’s palm-scanning payment system.

Customers can then leave without needing to wait in line to check out.

Instead of a bagger scanning each item taken, cameras and sensors track what shoppers choose and automatica­lly charge them.

At the two upcoming Whole Foods locations, shoppers will be able to opt out of the new technology and instead pay in the traditiona­l way.

In response to a question from The Post on whether the new-style stores could come to the New York area, a spokespers­on said the company would focus on opening the two initial stores and see how customers like being able to skip the checkout line — and then “go from there.”

The company has already rolled out the cashier-eliminatin­g tech in other Amazon-owned supermarke­ts, but not Whole Foods.

The technology is already available at several Amazon Fresh grocery stores and in its Go convenienc­e stores.

Amazon said the rollout of the technology at the two Whole Foods locations won’t result in any lost jobs for

the time being.

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