Starbucks opened the first cafe without cash desks and sellers. PHOTO

In November 2021, Starbucks, in collaboration with Amazon, opened its first cafe without cash desks and sellers. Amazon Go systems were used to implement the project.

Customers can order through the Starbucks app and grab coffee at the counter next to the door. Customers can also use a credit card, Amazon app or Amazon One palm reader to enter a cafe, take snacks from shelves or sit at tables. The interior of the new Starbucks store, in partnership with Amazon Go, allows customers to order without a cashier.

Starbucks opened the first cafe without cash desks and sellers

According to Katherine Young, Starbucks senior vice president of global growth and development, Starbucks and Amazon plan to open at least two more institutions in the United States in 2022.

Faced with labor shortages in the United States, Starbucks and other companies are expanding labor-saving technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics and digital touch screens.

White Castle is testing a robot cook, and Domino's Pizza Inc is experimenting with unmanned delivery vehicles. IBM is developing automated order acceptance for McDonald's Corp.

Starbucks used Amazon Go to open the first cafe without cash desks and sellers

According to Rabobank analyst Tom Bailey, the number of restaurant staff in the United States as a whole is still at least 10% lower than before the pandemic, which helps increase margins.

You will see that some digital automation tools will be deployed to cover this 10 percent gap as they grow, he said.

The coronavirus pandemic COVID-19 has encouraged people to place more delivery orders online. To keep up, Starbucks has changed its development strategy towards new formats of institutions, adding distribution points only in urban areas, as well as traditional cafes.^[1]

Notes