ALDI Launches Checkout-Free Grocery

Discount grocer ALDI (Essen, Germany) has launched checkout-free shopping at a Chicago-area grocery store. ALDI said its ALDIgo installation makes it the first major U.S. grocery retailer to deploy checkout-free technology in an existing, full-size store.

“It’s exciting to see a checkout-free capability live in one of our stores,” said Eric Traxler, Vice President of IT at ALDI. “ALDI is continuously looking for new ways to be innovative and provide a best-in-class experience for our shoppers, and ALDIgo is a great example of that in action.”

The installation involved adding a system by Grabango to an existing ALDI store without the need to make any changes to the store’s planogram or product displays. The technology, which uses computer vision to identify and keep track of every item in the store, allows shoppers to exit the store without waiting in line or scanning items.

ALDI did not say if it planned a further rollout of the concept.