Customers have been left blown away by Aldi’s first UK checkout-free supermarket in Greenwich – despite some confusion over how it works.
The till-less store opened its doors at 7am today and received some rave reviews from excited shoppers.
But some customers took time to adjust to the advanced technology – one joked she was worried she was stealing as she walked out the store with her purchases.
The Shop&Go store works using an Aldi app on mobile phones. Then cameras track what visitors pick up off the shelves.
The shoppers are free to walk out without physically paying and the store charges them using digital technology.
The opening proved to be a hit with customers, even if the rules weren’t always clear.
Courtney King, 27, said: “I love it. It’s so quick and easy just to grab things. And I live locally so it’s great for me.
She laughed as she added: “You walk out and you’re like ‘am I stealing?'”
Jordan Cotton, 27, was also a fan but wasn’t entirely sure what was allowed.
He said: “It was really great. I was holding all my items in my hand and at one point one of the staff said “you’re allowed to put it in a bag [as you shop]”. I wasn’t sure!
“It was fascinating and unnatural.”
Grace Wang, 32, liked how quick and simple it was and noted the difference between traditional supermarkets and queues at the tills.
She said: “I loved Amazon Fresh so this suits me great.”
But shopper Lynne Owen was less approving. She discovered she couldn’t use the store without the Aldi app but she didn’t have the storage space on her phone to download it.
She said: “There’s a part of me that thinks it’s a bit unhuman. I go to the shops and I like to have a chat with the staff and workers.
“It’s also not great for old people who may not have a smartphone.”
Friends Harry Howse and Josh Lansdell enjoyed how “straight-forward” the store was and reckoned it could become a regular supermarket for them.
When asked about the lack of human touch in the high-tech store, Josh said: “It’s fine as I don’t normally like talking to people anyway.”
Aldi follows the likes of Amazon and Tesco in opening the checkout-free stores in the UK.
Giles Hurley, CEO of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “Today is the culmination of months of work, not least from the team here in Greenwich and I’m looking forward to seeing how customers react to our trial.
“This store utilises the very latest in retail technology offering Aldi’s award-winning products and unbeatable prices to customers in a new and innovative way.
“The team are really excited about seeing customers come in and experience Aldi Shop&Go.”
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