Rewe moves forward in autonomous shops, but “No cost savings”

After two tests with ‘hybrid’ city shops, German supermarket chain Rewe has opened its first fully autonomous ‘Pick&Go’ shop in Munich. According to the food retailer, customers welcome the time-saving alternative.

Automatic checkout

The cashless Rewe Pick&Go shop in Munich’s university district sells a range of 4,000 items on a sales area of 289 sqm. Before their first visit, customers have to install Rewe’s Pick&Go app to sign in at the entrance. They can then put products from the shelves into their shopping basket: intelligent cameras and scales built into the shelves record the purchases. Checkout is automatic when leaving, either via Paypal, Google Pay, Apple Pay or credit card.

For this autonomous shop concept, Rewe is collaborating with Trigo Vision, the technology provider that has also set up cashless shops for Aldi in Utrecht, Tesco in London and Netto in Munich. Rewe had already opened two hybrid test stores in Cologne and Berlin, where customers have the choice of shopping via the app or paying traditionally at the till. The tests show that many customers prefer the cashless option because it is convenient, exciting and time-saving, Rewe claims.

No facial recognition

The supermarket chain says these tests are not driven by a desire to save on staff costs: the autonomous shop employs eleven people, the same number as a city shop with traditional cash registers would. In the autonomous store, employees are still needed to replenish the shelves and guide shoppers through the new system.

Rewe also stresses that the camera images and other data are only used to recognise which products are taken away or put back. There is no facial recognition, nor can the system recognise customers again after visiting the shop. Early next year, the retailer plans to open a second hybrid Pick&Go in Cologne.