Aldi closes Dutch cashier-less test store

Aldi will soon close its first cashier-less store in Continental Europe. “We have learnt a lot, but the investment was substantial”, the company explains.

Too small

Aldi’s Dutch trial will soon come to an end: the cashier-less shop that opened its doors in Utrecht in July 2022 will close its doors after two years. “It was a nice experiment, we have learnt a lot. But the investment was substantial“, spokesman Florian Scholbeck told Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad.

Customers can access the shop using an app, after which 475 cameras and 450 scales record all the purchases. When leaving the shop, customers have to scan a QR code; then payment happens automatically. The retailer regularly tweaked the concept, expanding the number of payment options and eventually introducing a payment kiosk for customers who did not want or could not use the app.

The discounter admits that the cashier-less store was not a great commercial success, saying the shop is too small for the pilot project. Therefore, the similar test in a larger shop in Eindhoven will continue for now.