Shopping

Convenience stores that rely on technology instead of cashiers to keep things ticking over might sound like a futuristic notion, but there are a number of such concepts being tested around the world. 7-Eleven is the latest to enter the fray.

​While many kids do like pushing grocery carts, they can get kind of over-enthusiastic about it, and often run into things as a result. It was with this supermarket hazard in mind that Ford recently created the one-off Self-Braking Trolley.

As Waymo’s self-driving vehicles continue to clock up the miles, the company is focusing its trips based on feedback from the first year of its early riders program in Phoenix, Arizona. As well as expanding existing partnerships, Waymo has now teamed up with Walmart and DDR to streamline shopping.

​If you lead a car-free lifestyle, then you likely have to transfer your groceries from the store's shopping cart to your own hand cart or bicycle trailer in order to get them home. Gudrun and Harald Buschbacher have decided to address that situation, with their multifunctional shopping trolley.

​Amazon’s hi-tech, cashier-free convenience store has just opened to the public and predictably resulted in torrents of “store of the future” headlines. But is it really the future of shopping or is it just a very expensive publicity stunt?

GM has unveiled Marketplace, the automotive industry's first in-car e-commerce platform. Customers with eligible GM-branded vehicles can now use Marketplace to pay for fuel, pre-order food as well as make reservations at their chosen restaurant, all from the comfort of their vehicle.

​Machines already play a part in the shopping experience for many, with self-checkout kiosks popping up in stores all over the world. They now continue their push into retail, with Walmart expanding its trials of robots that roam the aisles for sections in need of attention.​​

​What's easier than writing a shopping list with a pen and paper? Well, maybe nothing, although the makers of Lystr would beg to differ. Their device plugs into a wall outlet in your kitchen, creating a shopping list on your smartphone by scanning barcodes and listening for its name to be spoken.

Bird St in London has undergone something of a transformation recently, going from an underused offshoot to the "world's first Smart Street." Designed to showcase the High Street of the future, it merges pollution-busting and sustainable technology with a traffic-free shopping and dining experience.

​Innovative Swedish company Wheelys is opening up the world’s first app-controlled, staff-free convenience store in Shanghai. Accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the prototype store is designed to make it cheaper and easier for small businesses to get into the retail game.

Would you change the food you bought if you knew more about it? The Supermarket of the Future, the new flagship store of Coop Italia, has been built on the principle that you would, with interactive tables, smart shelves and real time data visualizations providing food, deals and cooking info.

Amazon has announced that its Dash Replenishment Program has added a new set of devices, including Nestlé's baby food dispenser and a trash-tracker that monitors your garbage can's incoming traffic.​