Woolies shoppers rave about ‘genius’ self-service feature

Woolworths customers in Brisbane have discovered the supermarket’s new checkout feature which has been described as “genius”.

There is nothing more frustrating than having a basket full of fruit and veges, only to have to look them up individually – especially during Covid times when you just want to get in and out of the supermarket.

However, a Woolies shopper has discovered what they described as “robot shopping” – taking to TikTok to share a video on the retailer’s new self-service feature.

In the clip, which has been viewed more than 60,000 times, the Brisbane customer, who goes by the name of Scotty McDonald on the platform, records a friend using the hi-tech scale that immediately shows the type of food on the scale.

“The scale at Woolies Annerly can work out what which fruit or veg you put on it,” he said, describing it as “genius”.

A TikTok user has clocked more than 60,000 views over the new Scan & Go scales at Woolworths Annerly, in Brisbane. Picture: TikTok/ scotty_mcdonald

“Welcome robot shopping overload,” he added while showing the scale read a variety of different foods.

“That’s genius,” Mr McDonald said.

Since sharing the video earlier this week, the post has been flooded with comments from shoppers also impressed by the Woolies scales.

“I guess I won’t be getting red capsicum for green capsicum price anymore,” one person joked.

“Cool! I work close by, will have to go shopping there! I like their shop and pay thing too so much easier” another responded.

The supermarket’s Scan & Go system was first trialled in Sydney’s eastern suburb of Double Bay in 2018, before extending to 36 stores nationwide due to positive feedback.

Instead of searching for each individual item, the scale has AI technology that reads the type of food on the scale. Picture: TikTok/scotty_mcdonald

“At Woolworths, we’re always looking for new ways to make it easier to shop for your everyday needs,” Woolworths head of digital in-store, Ben Garvan, told news.com.au.

“We know many of our customers are short on time and the speed and convenience of Scan & Go has been popular with many shoppers across Australia for this reason.

He said the AI-enabled scales help customers “quickly and accurately” add loose fruit and vegetable items to their in-app shopping cart.

There’s 36 stores nationwide that have the scales. Picture: Woolworths

“In addition to the time saving, Scan & Go allows customers to closely track their spend as they shop, which is helpful for budgeting,” Mr Garvan said.

Scan & Go is built into the Woolworths App and allows customers to scan items with their smartphone as they roam the store and pay for them in the app before checking out through a dedicated Scan & Go lane or kiosk upon exit.

However, in order to use it, shoppers must be Everyday Rewards members and will need to upload an accepted credit or debit card within the app.

Scan & Go is offered alongside self-serve and manned check-outs in Woolworths stores – offering customers another option to pay in the way that works best for them.

News.com.au understands Scan & Go is not something rolling out network-wide at the moment.

For a list of which stores have the Scan & Go scales and how to access it via the app, click here.

Originally published as Woolies shoppers rave about ‘genius’ self-service feature