Kroger debuts shopping carts that double as check-out lanes

The Kroger Co. held a ribbon-cutting ceremony late last week at a Monroe, Ohio, location to unveil the grocer's “store of the future” featuring KroGo carts—a tech-savvy shopping cart that looks to make checkout-free grocery shopping even faster.

KroGo is an enhanced shopping cart that features a built-in scale and camera for shoppers to quickly shop and check out from their cart, through a partnership with tech firm Caper.

“We think it’s going to be game-changing,” Kroger spokeswoman Erin Rolfes told WGB. “What customers are going to see that’s very different from other stores is that front end where they check out.”

Building on its goal of a seamless shopping experience, the grocery retailer said the KroGo cart allows shoppers to complete their transaction all within the cart and exit quickly through the self-checkout area.

Launching the high-tech carts is not a labor-saving tool, Rolfes said. Instead, the store is hiring even more workers.

“With this store we not only didn’t reduce labor costs, we hired additional associates to help us manage the carts and help get customers interested in using them (and) explaining to shoppers how to use them,” Rolfes told WGB.

Earlier this month, Cincinnati-based Kroger announced news of a $24.6 billion proposed merger with Albertsons. The deal awaits federal regulatory approval.