Business is booming at first Amazon Go stores

Initial reports about the Amazon Go store concept have been positive, and sales appear strong. In fact, advisory firm Brick Meets Click estimated that sales per square foot at the Seattle store are about $2,700. That's nearly $5 million in annual sales for an 1,800 square foot, cashierless store.

According to Brick Meets Click, "Amazon Go stores produce more sales per square foot than virtually any other retailer except Apple and a few other specialty stores."

The company also estimates that the inventory turns over around 50 times per year, which is four-to-five times more than at other retail operations.

Furthermore, digital marketing firm inMarket believes Amazon Go stores are more of a threat to fast-casual restaurants and convenience stores than to supermarkets. Peak visitation hours at Amazon Go stores in Seattle and Chicago over the past 60 days have been on weekdays during lunch and breakfast.

"Amazon Go's combination of ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook food choices challenges both grocers and restaurants," reported Brick Meets Click Co-Founder and Managing Partner Steve Bishop. "With no lines or waiting, it's easy to see why people would stop by twice a day - first to grab lunch and later to pick up a dinner portion on their way home."

There are six Amazon Go stores open, all with the company's "Just Walk Out" technology, and more locations are planned. In fact, Bloomberg reported in September that Amazon is mulling plans to open up to 3,000 Amazon Go stores by 2021.

Amazon Go convenience stores slated for Chicago, San Francisco

Amazon confirmed last month that Amazon Go convenience stores are slated for Chicago and San Francisco, but no timetable was provided. The first Amazon Go, an 1,800 square foot store that carries mostly food and beverages along with some nonfood items like batteries and over-the-counter medicine, opened in Seattle in January.

Amazon Go stores feature checkout-free shopping made possible by the company's "Just Walk Out" technology. Overhead cameras and weight sensors detect merchandise that shoppers take from and return to shelves, and keep track of items selected in a virtual cart.

Shoppers use the Amazon Go mobile app to gain entry, and when they leave the store, their Amazon account is automatically charged for the items they took with them.

Amazon's first cashier-less store opens in Seattle

Late last month Amazon opened its first Amazon Go store to the public. The store has few employees and no cashiers.

Located at company headquarters in Seattle, customers with the Amazon Go app scan their smartphones and enter the store through a gate. Once inside they are free to roam the 1,800 square foot store and place items in their bags. Through a series of cameras and sensors located throughout the store, Amazon tracks each item customers pick up and places these items in their virtual shopping cart. When customers leave, their Amazon accounts are charged.

According to a reporter who shopped in the store on opening day, the process was pretty seamless. However, he noted that if a customer picks up an item and hands it to a friend, the person picking up the item will be charged.

Amazon has not yet revealed plans for additional Amazon Go stores.

Amazon to open checkout free grocery store

Last Monday Amazon released details about Amazon Go, the company's brick-and-mortar convenience store that will offer "grocery essentials, convenience items and prepared foods-to-go" and allow customers to leave the store without checking out at a register.

An 1,800 square foot store is currently being tested by employees in Seattle, and company officials say it will open to the public in early 2017.

"Our Just Walk Out technology automatically detects when products are taken from or returned to the shelves and keeps track of them in a virtual cart," Amazon said in a press release. "When you're done shopping you can just leave the store. Shortly after, we'll charge your Amazon account and send you a receipt."

Recent reports said Amazon is considering up to 2,000 such stores in the coming decade following a test period in major markets.

Amazon planning major online grocery expansion

Earlier this month Reuters reported that Amazon is planning a major expansion of its online grocery service. According to the report, the expanded service will start in California and then possibly expand into 20 urban markets. And according to Globe Street, a national supermarket analyst says Amazon could be targeting 40 markets.

Amazon is no stranger to the grocery delivery business as it's been operating AmazonFresh for several years in Seattle, where the company is headquartered. In March, KTR Capital Partners, Amazon's development partner, acquired a 900,000 square foot complex in Woodbridge, NJ that it will renovate for Amazon. The facility was previously owned by C&S Wholesale Grocers.

Currently, Peapod, which is owned by Ahold (Giant, Stop & Shop), calls itself the largest online grocer. It serves more than 8 million households in the Northeast.