Latest news with #Walmart-owned
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Costco takes a page from rival Sam's Club to speed up checkout in its warehouses with ‘Scan & Pay'
Costco is testing a feature that would allow customers to scan items in its warehouses and pay for them on their phones, following the lead of Walmart-owned rival Sam's Club. CEO Ron Vachris offered few details on the technology, but a guide on Costco's website said customers will receive a QR code after paying that they scan at a kiosk before exiting. Costco is turning to technology to get its customers out the door faster, a feature first pioneered by rival Sam's Club. On the company's fiscal third-quarter earnings call, CEO Ron Vachris said the company has been quietly testing technology that would allow customers to use their phones to scan items and pay, bypassing checkout lines and improving the speed at which customers can complete their purchases. 'We've also engaged in some 'Scan & Go done by Costco' kind of tests that we're doing out there that have been extremely successful of moving people through the lines and expediting the transactions,' Vachris said on the earnings call. 'We've seen some very, very early results that have been very positive and great adoption from our members—seeing that as well.' The name 'Scan & Go' is trademarked by Walmart-owned rival Sam's Club, which has been developing this type of checkout technology for years. An early version of the tech, which launched in 2013, allowed customers to scan their items in the app but required them to pay in the self-checkout lane. Later, Sam's Club allowed customers to pay for scanned items in the app, and is now looking to replace self-checkout lanes across the U.S. with the tech. Costco CEO Vachris offered few details about its version of the technology, but a guide on the Costco website explains its 'Scan & Pay' technology, offered in partnership with Instacart, is similar to that of Sam's Club. By scanning items' barcodes, customers build up a digital shopping cart which they can then pay for directly in the app and receive a QR code to scan at a 'Scan & Pay' kiosk before exiting. Costco did not immediately respond to Fortune's request for comment. Customers have long complained about the warehouse club's lackluster digital services and the fact it doesn't offer the scanning technology Sam's Club has developed for more than a decade. Now, Costco is apparently embracing the idea with 'several new technology pilots,' Vachris said. More than half of Costco members have downloaded the company's app, and chief financial officer Gary Millerchip sees the company's foray into 'Scan & Pay' tech as a growth area for the company. 'We still think there's plenty of opportunity to keep driving higher penetration of digital engagement with our members and we think it's got a runway to continue to grow in the future,' Millerchip said on the earnings call. This story was originally featured on Sign in to access your portfolio
Business Insider
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Costco is taking a page from Sam's Club's playbook to speed up checkout in the warehouse
Your next Costco run might just be a few minutes quicker. Costco CEO Ron Vachris hinted at several tech improvements the wholesale club is rolling out in an effort to speed up checkout at warehouses. "We found that digital really enhances the speed of checkout, and so we are really working hard on the digital membership card usage," he said during the company's third quarter earnings call Thursday. "We've also engaged in some scan-and-go, done by Costco," he added, borrowing a phrase that sounds an awful lot like a phrase that is trademarked by Walmart for Sam's Club. Vachris did not go into detail about the process, but a section of Costco's Same-Day website outlines a method called Scan & Pay as a feature of the company's partnership with Instacart. According to the guide, certain stores include a QR code near the entrance that warehouse shoppers can scan to use the service. From there, shoppers can use their smartphone camera to scan barcodes and ring up their orders in the app, which brings up a QR code they can present to a scanner at the exit to confirm their purchase. Shoppers on social media have clamored for Costco to introduce a similar feature, and the wholesale club is behind rival Sam's Club in rolling out new tech for members. The Walmart-owned warehouse chain has leaned hard into speeding up the shopping experience for members and even deleted the traditional checkout lanes from its new location in Grapevine, Texas. Such tech improvements have given Sam's Club a significant lift in customer satisfaction ratings, vaulting it over long-time top-dog Costco earlier this year.
News18
6 days ago
- Business
- News18
Flipkart To Create 5,000 Jobs In 2025; Hiring Focus On AI, Quick Commerce, Fintech
Last Updated: A major share of Flipkart's hiring will target its hyperlocal delivery arm, Flipkart Minutes, and its growing fintech platform, Super Money Flipkart, the Walmart-owned e-commerce giant, plans to add 5,000 employees to its workforce in 2025 as it expands its focus on quick commerce, fintech, and AI, according to Moneycontrol. On May 26, Chief HR Seema Nair announced the hiring plan during the company's townhall, Flipster Connect. A significant portion of this recruitment will be directed towards Flipkart's hyperlocal delivery branch, Flipkart Minutes, and its expanding fintech platform, Super Money. Flipkart Minutes aims to leverage the increasing demand for ultra-fast delivery of groceries and essential goods, competing with rivals like Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy Instamart. Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy stated that Minutes is performing exceptionally well and is central to Flipkart's strategy to secure a significant position in the hyperlocal market. In contrast, according to some reports Walmart is planning layoffs, following similar moves by Microsoft and Amazon. Reports indicate that Walmart may lay off around 1,500 employees, primarily affecting corporate staff at its Bentonville headquarters in Arkansas, and other offices. However, it has also been reported that Walmart plans to create new positions, which means that new vacancies will emerge following the layoffs.
Time of India
7 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Flipkart growing at up to 25% despite ecommerce slowdown: Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
Flipkart group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy told employees on Monday that the Walmart-owned ecommerce platform is seeing 20–25% year-on-year growth in orders across its group businesses in May, even as the broader ecommerce industry experiences a slowdown, people aware of the discussions said. Speaking at a townhall, Krishnamurthy called the company's reverse flip to India — approved by the board in April — a key step towards aligning with the country's regulatory framework. ET had earlier reported Flipkart's plan to shift its domicile from Singapore to India as part of its preparations for a public listing in 2026. 'He talked about the group's continued focus on profitability with a renewed emphasis in the context of the reverse flip being initiated,' one of the sources said. Krishnamurthy also noted that the company is on track for 30% order growth in June, indicating sustained momentum amid a cooling market. According to a recent Bain & Company–Flipkart report, India's ecommerce sector is expected to grow 10–12% in 2024, down from over 20% in previous years. The Flipkart CEO said the fashion vertical , including Myntra, accounted for 40% of the group's new customer additions. Myntra, which turned profitable in FY24, improved its bottom line by cutting down on return costs. Also present at the townhall were senior vice presidents Ramesh Gururaja (consumer shopping experience), Hemant Badri (supply chain), and Seema Nair (chief human resource officer), who shared updates from their respective business units. Krishnamurthy reiterated that Flipkart's quick commerce arm, Minutes, is on track to operate 800 dark stores by the end of 2025. As ET reported on Friday, Minutes has been doubling its daily order volume every 45 days, according to Flipkart VP Kabeer Biswas. Gururaja also spoke about the company's renewed focus on GenZ customers across verticals such as fashion, travel, and Shopsy, Flipkart's value commerce platform that competes with SoftBank-backed Meesho and Amazon's Bazaar. The development was first reported by Press Trust of India.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Flipkart growing at up to 25% despite ecommerce slowdown: Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
Flipkart group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy told employees on Monday that the Walmart-owned ecommerce platform is seeing 20–25% year-on-year growth in orders across its group businesses in May, even as the broader ecommerce industry experiences a slowdown, people aware of the discussions said. Speaking at a townhall, Krishnamurthy called the company's reverse flip to India — approved by the board in April — a key step towards aligning with the country's regulatory framework. ET had earlier reported Flipkart's plan to shift its domicile from Singapore to India as part of its preparations for a public listing in 2026. 'He talked about the group's continued focus on profitability with a renewed emphasis in the context of the reverse flip being initiated,' one of the sources said. Krishnamurthy also noted that the company is on track for 30% order growth in June, indicating sustained momentum amid a cooling market. According to a recent Bain & Company–Flipkart report, India's ecommerce sector is expected to grow 10–12% in 2024, down from over 20% in previous years. The Flipkart CEO said the fashion vertical , including Myntra, accounted for 40% of the group's new customer additions. Myntra, which turned profitable in FY24, improved its bottom line by cutting down on return costs. Live Events Also present at the townhall were senior vice presidents Ramesh Gururaja (consumer shopping experience), Hemant Badri (supply chain), and Seema Nair (chief human resource officer), who shared updates from their respective business units. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories Krishnamurthy reiterated that Flipkart's quick commerce arm, Minutes, is on track to operate 800 dark stores by the end of 2025. As ET reported on Friday, Minutes has been doubling its daily order volume every 45 days, according to Flipkart VP Kabeer Biswas. Gururaja also spoke about the company's renewed focus on GenZ customers across verticals such as fashion, travel, and Shopsy, Flipkart's value commerce platform that competes with SoftBank-backed Meesho and Amazon's Bazaar. The development was first reported by Press Trust of India.
