The No. 1 e-tailer has generated a lot of interest — and consternation among cashiers — for Amazon Go, the company’s no-checkout convenience stores.
To see if the attention is warranted, Field Agent, a marketplace research service, sent more than 21 secret shoppers into Amazon’s six existing Go stores in Seattle and Chicago. The deployment was a return engagement for the firm, which checked out the first prototype shop after it opened to the public in January.
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This go ’round, the undercover consumers were asked to make purchases, and more formal assessments were collected. Among their observations:
- It felt odd not paying a cashier
- Shopping was “really easy”
- No lines
- Prices on par with grocery stores
- Nice selection of eats, including complete meal kits for dinner
- Credit card charged correctly
- Plenty of staff to assist
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But the shops were not without their critics. Agents also made note of the tight quarters, the dearth of household items, and the need for better reminders to download the requisite Amazon Go mobile app:
Nonetheless, 86 percent of the visitors were either very or completely likely to shop there again; 100 percent of the transactions proved accurate; and the stores earned a total score of 4.62 out of five from the undercover crew, based on the overall experience. The complete Amazon Go report is available at no charge from Field Agent.
