Tesco under fire for Trigo powered London checkout free store
Last year, Tesco launched its first high street checkout free store.
Named GetGo and powered by Trigo tech, this can be found in High Holborn, on the edge of the City of London.
Kevin Tindall, Managing Director at Tesco Convenience, said at the time of the launch: "We are constantly looking for ways to improve the shopping experience and our latest innovation offers a seamless checkout for customers on the go, helping them to save a bit more time.”
"This is currently just a one store trial, but we're looking forward to seeing how our customers respond."
Not everyone’s a fan, unfortunately.
Jonathan Rowson, an author, publisher and Director at Perspectiva, this week took to Twitter to vent spleen.
“Distressing experience at Tesco just now,” he said.
“10.50pm near Chancery Lane tube after a work event I receive a text to get a sandwich for my son’s packed lunch tomorrow. I see a store, think I’m in luck, but I can only *enter* the store if I download the app & sign up to club card.”
He added: “Pragmatism had me download the app, but I said no to the club card. I can’t proceed to buy the sandwich and get home. There’s a barrier. I ask for help. The staff member takes my phone and changes my option to “accept club card”. I say no thanks. He says then you can’t get in.”
Rowson told the employee that he wanted to buy a sandwich and nowhere else was open. The employee apologised and stated this it was now store policy and what customers wanted.
“Soon, all stores will be like this,” he commented. “People protest, but then they come back a few days later.”
Rowson replied: “Sorry but the price is too high. And people only come back because they don’t feel they have a choice. If there was a shop open next door I’d go there.”
He then deleted the app and vowed not to shop at Tesco again.
He continued: “Never have I felt the pinch of surveillance society more acutely.”
“My shock at the compulsory data cost for entry to a supermarket to buy a sandwich made me think of Brett Scott (the author of Cloud Money, a book covering cash, cards, crypto and the war for our wallets) and his argument for cash. Use it to lose it, they say. And tonight I really feel it.”
“I think I have what I need at home to make my son a tasty sandwich. But what I felt at that store tonight was thoroughly dystopian. It was a taste of the future in the present, and I didn’t like it at all.”
Rowson concluded: “Gosh, and now I see an email with my club card number has come through. When the store assistant changed my decision not to accept a club card on my phone I didn’t manage to stop him in time. Tesco, can you please cancel this card and let me know it’s been cancelled? Thank you.”
At the time of writing, Rowson’s series of tweets had been retweeted, quote tweeted and liked thousands of times.
Tesco did not respond to our request for comment.
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