Kroger moves forward with checkout-free smart cart dubbed KroGO

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.