The first Amazon Fresh grocery opened in the capital
The area's first full-service Amazon Fresh grocery store opened to customers Thursday at Logan Circle at 1733 14th St. N.W. It's Amazon Fresh's second location on the East Coast.
It's also the first store with Amazon's "Just Walk Out" technology, allowing customers to skip checkout queues. Shoppers can get what they want and walk out.
Upon entering the store, customers scan a QR code in the Amazon app. Anything they take off is added to their virtual shopping cart, then charged to their Amazon account at checkout. (Anything they put on the shelf while shopping also comes from their virtual coaches.)
The technology uses a combination of computer vision, sensors, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.
The Logan Circle store follows the opening of Amazon Fresh in late May in Franconia, Virginia, the first location on the East Coast. Logan Circle also beats out Amazon Fresh District III's planned opening in the capital, Chevy Chase, Maryland. In the former Giant Food store, this location is slated to open soon, although Amazon declined to provide an opening date.
Unlike Whole Foods Market grocery stores, also owned by Amazon, Amazon Fresh stores carry a wide selection of national brands, including items you'll never see at Whole Foods like Coca-Cola and Kraft Mac & Cheese. They also have local brands, such as Bread Furst Bakery Products and Taharka Brothers Ice Cream.
Outside the three Amazon Fresh stores in the metropolitan area—with more coming here—there are other Amazon Fresh stores in California, suburban Chicago, and one location in Bellevue, Washington, outside of Amazon's headquarters in Seattle.
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