Amazon is continuing to expand the number of stores offering palm payments for your convenience and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The palm payment system is called Amazon One and it was initially rolled out back in September last year. Then in February, Amazon One was introduced at Amazon Go, Go Grocery, Amazon Books, and Amazon 4-star stores. Now Whole Foods stores are getting the contactless payment option.
The benefits of Amazon One during a pandemic are clear. Payment only requires a customer to present their palm over a reader for it to be recognized. There’s no need to take a phone or wallet out of your pocket and nothing to touch, so it’s about as clean as a payment system can possibly get. Rolling the system out at Whole Foods was inevitable, the only surprising thing is the speed at which Amazon is expanding the system, clearly showing it’s both popular and reliable.
“At Whole Foods Market, we’re always looking for new and innovative ways to improve the shopping experience for our customers,” said Arun Rajan, senior vice president of technology and chief technology officer at Whole Foods Market. “Working closely with Amazon, we’ve brought benefits like Prime member discounts, online grocery delivery and pickup, and free returns to our customers, and we’re excited to add Amazon One as a payment option beginning today. We’re starting with an initial store at Madison Broadway in Seattle and look forward to hearing what customers think as we expand this option to additional stores over time.”
For now, Amazon plans to introduce Amazon One at seven Whole Foods stores in the Seattle area. As well as Madison Broadway, expect the palm readers to appear in stores at West Seattle, Interbay, Westlake, Kirkland, Lynnwood, Roosevelt Square, and Redmond in the coming months.
