Theft forces Wegmans to ditch scan-and-go app

Wegmans on Tuesday confirmed that it is ditching its scan-and-go payment option because of high rates of theft.

Sunday is the last day the regional grocer’s SCAN app will be available, the company said.

“Early in the pandemic, we quickly rolled out our SCAN app to provide a contactless in-store shopping option,” Wegmans said in a statement to WGB. “SCAN users have told us they love the app and the convenience it offers.”

But the Rochester, New York-based grocer, which has 107 stores in seven Eastern states, said it is seeing too much shoplifting to make the current app’s use sustainable.

“Unfortunately, the losses we are experiencing prevent us from continuing to make it available in its current state,” the grocer said.

Going forward, Wegmans said the app will remain turned off until it can make improvements to it “that will meet the needs of our customers and business.”

Like Wegmans, many retailers implemented scan-and-go technology during the pandemic to provide a contactless shopping experience.

In 2019, just 26% of food retailers offered the technology. Today, 52% of grocers do, according to the latest The Food Retailing Industry Speaks report from FMI, which was released late last week. Unlike some areas of grocery tech, though, this one appears to be losing steam, the report found.

“In-store scan-and-go technology expanded quickly in the first year of the pandemic, but has since levelled off, with just over half of responding food stores offering this technology, and not many more planning to do so,” FMI noted.

Wegmans said it plans to continue exploring ways that technology can enhance its omnichannel offerings, despite scrapping the SCAN app.

“We’ve learned a lot and we will continue to introduce new digital solutions to streamline the shopping experience for the future,” the retailer said.