Amazon Fresh UK to close all 19 stores as surveillance debate shadows experiment

Amazon will close all 19 Amazon Fresh grocery stores in the United Kingdom, a move that affects hundreds of workers and marks a retreat from a high-profile experiment in reshaping the high street.

The company said the closures come after a thorough evaluation of business operations and the substantial growth opportunities in online delivery, and it plans to convert five of the stores into Whole Foods Market locations. There was no specific date announced for the closures.

Beyond the closures, the demise highlights the controversial technology behind Fresh. The stores used cameras, depth sensors and deep-learning AI to monitor shoppers' movements, with entry tied to a QR code on the Amazon app and no traditional checkout.

In practice, the system occasionally charged customers for items not taken when a shopper didn't interact with the shelves properly, and some customers found the app-based entry and absence of a conventional checkout cumbersome.

Privacy advocates criticized the model. Silkie Carlo, director of Big Brother Watch, described Amazon Fresh as a dystopian, total-surveillance shopping experience, saying the intense tracking could create a larger personal data footprint than any other retailer.

Security experts noted the technology was advanced but imperfect and not universally trusted by UK shoppers. Alan Woodward, a computer security professor at the University of Surrey, said it faced footfall challenges and that novelty alone wasn't enough to attract customers.

Retail experts noted a shift toward more traditional formats. In 2023, Amazon revamped its UK branches to allow standard entry and, later, traditional payment at the barrier, moving away from a fully automatic checkout.

Locations included Aldgate, Angel, Chingford, East Croydon, Euston, Holborn, Hounslow, Hoxton, Kensington, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Monument, Notting Hill Gate, Southwark, Sevenoaks (Kent), Wembley, West Hampstead, White City and Wood Wharf.

Amazon said it would expand online grocery with more selection and faster delivery, and that five of the Fresh sites would be converted to Whole Foods Market stores, part of a broader strategy to offer more options through Amazon.co.uk, Amazon Fresh, and Whole Foods Market alongside third-party partners.