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SAM’S Club is to open its first-ever all digital store, with the CEO promising members shoppers will see what it’s like to “shop in the future”.
Inside the club, set to open mid October, customers with have to use an app, Scan & Go, to keep track of their purchases as they stroll down the aisles.
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Instead of an area used for cash registers, the club will instead display online-only items.
Members can scan QR codes and then go straight to the items in the app.
Store workers will therefore have around a shocking four times more space for preparing customers’ e-commerce orders for pickup and home delivery, according to the company’s executives,
Sam’s Club CEO Chris Nicholas said: “It’s kind of the physical manifestation of a journey we’re trying to go on as a company.”
The CEO also added that upon its reopening, the location will become a hub for Sam’s Club’s newest features and up-and-coming tech, hoping “it feels like what it’s like to shop in the future“.
Nicholas explained: “The idea is that over time, we will be 100 per cent digital engagement as a business, and you’ve got to prove that things work before you scale them.”
It comes as Sam’s Club has apologized to shoppers who have lashed out at the chain over the payment methods it offers.
Customers have called on the Costco rival to roll out a particular method in its warehouses.
Sam’s Club is one of the few retailers that doesn’t allow shoppers to pay for goods via Apple Pay.
Not all shoppers welcome the fact that they cannot use Apple Pay.
In an X post, one shopper urged the retailer to get with the times.
They claimed they were having payment issues at a café in the warehouse.
The shopper also complained they didn’t want to use the Walmart app.
Sam’s Club apologized to the shopper.
“We apologize for any inconveniences this may have caused,” they said.
“We want to thank you for letting us know about the issues as well so that we may have this opportunity to improve this for the future of our clubs.”
Shoppers have blasted the retailer for not rolling out Apple Pay and Google Pay services.
In response to another customer, the company said it would pass on the shopper’s complaint to the relevant department.
Which benefits do Plus members at Sam’s Club receive?
Sam’s Club shoppers can choose between a $50-a-year Club membership or a $110-a-year Plus membership.
The Plus subscription has offered people more retail perks:
- Free shipping on orders over $50.
- Early shopping at select locations.
- 2% in Sam’s Cash on qualifying in-club purchases, up to $500 a year.
- Free curbside pickup.
- Free home delivery on in-store orders over $50.
- Free tire repairs, regardless of where it was purchased.
- Annual $60 Sam’s Club e-gift card with T-Mobile.
