The Future of Shopping

Many major retail outlets have installed Self Checkout stations in the recent past. I really like using them because I can do it "my way" and often get out of the store faster. I thought up an even better idea for shopping in the future though, after my weekly trip to Superstore.

The premise is, upon entering the store, each shopper would receive a unit called a "Personal Cashier". It would work like an inventory device, in that it would scan each item you put in your cart. So, you go about picking out all your items, scanning each one as you shop. Then all you'd have to do is visit a "real" cashier to pay for the items and get a receipt. Novel idea, no? I even thought that you could go a step further with the idea: if you wanted to pay with cash you would have to visit a real person to pay, otherwise you could end off at a Personal Checkout Station where you would dock the device, insert your payment card, and the station would print off the receipt for you.

I've even contemplated the possible issues with loss prevention: the device would have a serial number attached and would trigger an alarm at any exit should someone attempt to steal one. Also, when taking the device, the store could have it setup that you would have to scan a piece of ID or provide an electronic fingerprint. That would ensure the devices couldn't be stolen and were attached to the person using them. All items in-store would also have to be setup to trigger an alarm at any exit, in case the shopper didn't scan something and thought they could get away with stealing. Maybe something would even be able to tell the store which item was missed. Oooooooooh!

Advantages:
1. eliminates long lineups of people waiting for others to go through a cashier
2. shoppers wouldn't have to load up their cart only to have to unload it all so a cashier could scan the items, only to have to load it all back up again
3. lowers costs for the store by eliminating the number of employees they need to have working
4. gives people control over their shopping experience

Disadvantages:
1. may be costly to implement
2. eliminates jobs

I wonder if sometime in our future this is how it will work. I sure hope so, and that I'm around to see it happen! What do you think?