The Ealing Broadway Amazon Fresh store closed its doors on Sunday 23rd July.
In July 2023, after operating for two years, the first Amazon Fresh grocery store in the UK located in Ealing Broadway shut down.
The Ealing Broadway store gained recognition in March 2021 as the first Amazon store outside of the US to introduce a revolutionary checkout-less experience.
However, after performance evaluations, Amazon made the decision to permanently close two other Amazon Fresh stores in East Sheen and Wandsworth on Sunday, July 23rd.
These stores implemented a cutting-edge “Just Walk Out” policy, eliminating the need for traditional checkouts. By utilizing advanced technology similar to self-driving cars, such as sensor fusion and computer vision, the Amazon Fresh app interacted with store entrances to detect whether items have been moved or not.
Although the closure of stores in London is significant, customers in the UK still have access to 17 other Amazon Fresh locations, including East Croydon, Sevenoaks, and Hoxton.
Furthermore, Amazon has revealed plans to expand its presence in Greater London later this year, emphasizing that the recent closures are not indicative of a halt in their expansion efforts.