Small business information, insight and resources | SmallBusiness.com
MENUMENU
  • Latest
    • Recent Posts

      • White House adds Changes to PPPs; Wants Smallest Small Businesses to Apply| 2021
      • Retail Sales to Exceed $4.33T in 2021 Says NRF | 2021
      • NRF Survey: Valentine’s Day Dip; However, More Local and Small Business Support|2021
      • SBA | More Information About the Paycheck Protection Program (2)
      • Helpful Links to SBA PPP (2) Resources | 2021
  • Topics
  • Guides
    • BANKING | MONEY | TAXES
      • Alternative Funding
      • On-demand Economy
      • Payment Systems
      • Taxes
    • CHECKLISTS
      • Business Checklists
    • LEGAL | COPYRIGHT
      • Creative Commons and Open Source
    • MARKETING | ADVERTISING | SALES
      • Exporting and Trade
      • Influencer Marketing
      • Marketing With Video
      • Managing a Google Business Listing
      • Marketing With Photos
      • Marketing to Small Business Decision Makers
      • Mastering the Whiteboard
      • Website Basics
      • Starting a Blog
    • ORGANIZATION
    • OPERATIONS | EMPLOYEES
      • Office Design and Furniture
      • Co-Working Office Sharing Space
      • Human Resources & Staffing
    • PRIVACY | SECURITY | RISK
      • Business Computer and Tech Security
      • Disaster Planning and Recovery
    • RESOURCES
      • Resources for Military Veterans
      • Resources for Small Business Owners
      • Starting a Blog (Sponsored)
      • Starting a Business
      • Website Basics
    • TECHNOLOGY
      • Starting a Blog (Sponsored)
      • Business Computer and Tech Security
      • High Speed Internet Access
      • Website Basics
    • TRAVEL
      • Business Travel
    • MISC
      • Great Local Holiday Shopping
      • Halloween
      • Small Business in History
  • About
  • Subscribe
  • Wiki
keyboard_arrow_down
December 5, 2016 Rex Hammock
December 5, 2016 by Rex Hammock in TechTrends
Amazon Isn’t Testing a Food Market Concept, It’s Blowing Up the Checkout Counter

Amazon Go is being touted as a store, but the announcement is about Amazon’s payment technology.


Surf around the tech and business web today and you’ll think Amazon is currently doing one of two things: (1) Testing a new retail concept called Amazon Go that sells meals in an 1,800 square foot market, or (2) Testing a radical new “just walk out” payments technology designed to do away with standing in lines and checking out — a technology that could differentiate the company’s Amazon Payments service it markets to small businesses. While most of the coverage of the beta test is focused on the store concept, we’re guessing it’s all about Amazon Payments.


Read the Amazon Go announcement page or watch the video below and you’ll learn very little about what the store sells. It’s all about how the shopper interacts with the payment technology Amazon has been working on “for the past four years.”

Amazon’s explanation of why it created a market called Amazon Go

“Four years ago we asked ourselves: what if we could create a shopping experience with no lines and no checkout? Could we push the boundaries of computer vision and machine learning to create a store where customers could simply take what they want and go? Our answer to those questions is Amazon Go and Just Walk Out Shopping.”

Observation: Huh? Does this sound like a reason for testing a food market concept?

Amazon’s explanation of what someone can buy at Amazon Go?

“We offer delicious ready-to-eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack options made fresh every day by our on-site chefs and favorite local kitchens and bakeries. Our selection of grocery essentials ranges from staples like bread and milk to artisan cheeses and locally made chocolates. You’ll find well-known brands we love, plus special finds we’re excited to introduce to customers. For a quick home-cooked dinner, pick up one of our chef-designed Amazon Meal Kits, with all the ingredients you need to make a meal for two in about 30 minutes.”

Observation: That is the only thing appearing on the page about what a shopper can buy at the store. And only once is the word “artisan” mentioned in the entire paragraph.”

But listen to this love letter written to the “shopping experience”:

“Our checkout-free shopping experience is made possible by the same types of technologies used in self-driving cars: computer vision, sensor fusion, and deep learning. Our Just Walk Out technology automatically detects when products are taken from or returned to the shelves and keeps track of them in a virtual cart. When you’re done shopping, you can just leave the store. Shortly after, we’ll charge your Amazon account and send you a receipt.”

bottle-grab-desktop

Coming soon to an Amazon Payments product near you

Prediction | If you are a small business that has a traditional point-of-sale system, we predict you’re more likely to see Amazon Go as a POS product Amazon wants to sell you rather than as an 1,800-square-foot market down the street.

Amazon Go announcement video

Notice how little time is spent describing the food.

Related Articles

  • Amazon Unveils Delivery-by-Drone Concept

    Amazon is developing a drone-delivery system that will fly packages directly to a customer's doorstep…

    Read More
  • Amazon Yesterday Shipping vs. Amazon Anticipatory Shipping - No Contest

    A comedy spoof from July, 2013, introduces Amazon Yesterday Shipping, five months before Amazon "anticipatory…

    Read More
  • What Amazon's Acquisition of Whole Foods Means for Small Business

    Will the acquisition of Whole Foods by Amazon mean more competition or coopetition?

    Read More

Related Articles

  • Amazon Unveils Delivery-by-Drone Concept
  • Amazon Yesterday Shipping vs. Amazon Anticipatory Shipping – No Contest
  • What Amazon’s Acquisition of Whole Foods Means for Small Business
{"post_type":"post","ignore_sticky_posts":true,"posts_per_page":12,"post_status":"publish"}

White House adds Changes to PPPs; Wants Smallest Small Businesses to Apply| 2021

Retail Sales to Exceed $4.33T in 2021 Says NRF | 2021

NRF Survey: Valentine’s Day Dip; However, More Local and Small Business Support|2021

Resources

SBA | More Information About the Paycheck Protection Program (2)

Helpful Links to SBA PPP (2) Resources | 2021

The SBA provides loans to help qualifying businesses keep their workforce employed.

President Biden Appoints Isabel Guzman SBA Administrator

Guzman was SBA deputy chief of staff during the Obama-Biden administration.

SBA, Treasury to Reopen PPP (2) Small Business Loan Program Tomorrow (1.11.2021)

AdviceGuideResearchResources

SBA Adds 20 More Women’s Business Centers Across the USA

Small Business Highlights from the Economic Stimulus Aid Package (PPP-2)

The President adds his signature to the economic stimulus aid package. Here are some small business highlights in the legislation.

Negotiation Over Renewed PPP With Passage of Small Business Loan Program | 2020

If it doesn’t clear Congress, the lack of government funding would trigger a federal government shutdown Saturday.

Holiday

Five Ways an Up-to-Date Google Business Profile Can Help Connect You With Shoppers

Google presence to connect you with holiday shoppers — wherever they may be.

Holiday

Holiday Shoppers Take Advantage of Early, Online Holiday Weekend Deals

An estimated 186.4 million consumers took advantage of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend including Small Business Saturday.

©2002-2021, Hammock, Inc. | Certain rights reserved