Cashierless stores from Amazon and Hudson to appear in airports

Amazon’s Just Walk Out solutions will allow travelers to select items and “just walk out” of the store – payment will be automatic.

Hudson retail chain, which operates a network of more than a thousand outlets in various North American airports, will use Amazon’s cashier-less store platform to take the experience of traveling shoppers to the next level.

The Just Walk Out concept has already been piloted in many Amazon Go stores. It has proven to appeal to shoppers, and the company began selling it to third-party retailers in March 2020.

The companies have entered into an agreement under which stores with the new concept, called Hudson Nonstop, will open as early as 2021 in several airports. The first of these outlets will be at Dallas Love Field Airport. It will open in the first quarter of 2021. 

Contactless shopping is becoming increasingly popular because of the coronavirus pandemic. Travelers are expected to be much more willing to shop at stores where they don’t have to interact with staff and stand in lines. 

When customers enter a store, they scan their payment cards and then pick up the items they want. Unique technology automatically detects which products are taken from the shelves. When the customer has finished shopping, they leave the store, and the payment is automatically deducted.

Hudson was not the first company to sign an agreement with Amazon. Cibo Express Gourmet Markets, a chain of mini-markets, began to use cashier-less store technology in its airport stores back in March 2020.