CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Sam’s Club announced plans to remove all self-checkout kiosks and traditional checkout lanes nationwide,. The retail warehouse chain will rely solely on its app-based “Scan & Go” system, which allows customers to scan and pay for items as they shop.
The move is part of a broader effort to, "redefine the club model and set a new standard in retail." Sam’s Club introduced the concept at its Grapevine, Texas store, where AI technology verifies purchases through image classification as customers exit. That means receipt checkers will also be phased out.
Shoppers share mixed feelings about the change with Scripps News Group in Corpus Christi. Grant Grisham, a Sam’s Club member, said he’s already used to Scan & Go but expressed concern for people who aren’t as comfortable with technology.
"That's probably the biggest concern, really," Grisham said. "Older people are not really up to date on modern technology."
Ivan Rodriguez, another shopper, said he prefers a hybrid system. “I think that it will be better to have a mix,” Rodriguez said.
Experts say the shift may not lead to job loss but could change how employees support customers. Dr. Nikki Changchit, a business analytics professor at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, said it’s important to train workers to help customers adapt to the technology.
"I think it is very important to educate and train employees so that they can also help the customer adapting to these technologies," Dr. Changchit said.
Computer science professor Dr. Lewis Heuermann explained how the AI identifies products at checkout using computer vision. “A banana looks like a banana, a Coke can looks like a Coke can... it’ll recognize it and charge you for that,” he said.
Sam’s Club has not provided a timeline for when the change will take effect.
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