Log in, shop, leave - with "REWE Pick&Go", purchases are recorded securely and with minimal data using the latest camera and sensor technology and automatically settled after leaving the store without a checkout process. The autonomous checkout has already been successfully trialled and further developed in Germany's first hybrid test store in Cologne and is now being rolled out in Berlin. In the video, Youtuber Andong shows how it works.

Customers have the choice
As in the test store in Cologne, customers at the REWE test store in Schönhauser Allee can choose between conventional shopping with payment at the checkout and autonomous checkout via "Pick&Go". If they opt for the autonomous checkout, they register at the entrance barrier in the store using REWE's "Pick&Go" app. They can then take all the products they want from the shelves, pack them up and simply walk out of the store at the end. The invoice appears automatically and quickly in the app afterwards. If there are any discrepancies, complaints can be made just as easily via the app in the first 24 hours after purchase. As usual, store staff are on hand to answer individual questions and provide advice. Group purchases are also possible in the Berlin "Pick&Go" store: families, friends or colleagues can pack items together in a relaxed manner and pay on one invoice at the autonomous checkout.

"Our customers' shopping behaviour has changed and individualised significantly in recent years. As retailers, we have to respond to this with flexible and suitable offers via the right channels. We are taking the approach of making modern technologies such as the 'Pick&Go' system available in conventional and busy supermarkets as an alternative and convenient payment option. This makes REWE a pioneer in Germany. The opening of the hybrid store in Prenzlauer Berg is another important milestone on the way to a better shopping experience of tomorrow," says Christoph Eltze, Member of the Management Board of REWE Group.

Large sales area, large product range
Compared to the first "Pick&Go" store in Cologne, the product range of the second "REWE Pick&Go" comprises a significantly larger selection of around 9,500 items. Customers can also weigh fruit and vegetables. The weighed products are automatically assigned to the "Pick&Go" shopping basket. This further development will also be introduced at the premiere store in Cologne. This expands the range of services for fresh fruit and vegetable products at both locations. In addition, a reverse vending machine has been integrated into the system landscape in Berlin for the first time, making it easier to return empties. Another new feature at both locations is the option to pay via PayPal. The Paypal details are simply stored in the customer account in the app as usual.

Secure shopping with data protection in mind
Data protection was and is a central aspect in the development and operation of the system: the images captured by customers are processed in a data-saving manner and are used exclusively to enable checkout-free shopping in a hybrid store. The system only records data to recognise which products are taken out or put back. There is no facial recognition, nor can the system recognise customers after a visit to the store. The "REWE Pick&Go" stores in Cologne and Berlin are among the first supermarkets in Europe to offer customers hybrid shopping in this way under real-life conditions.