You could be shopping in an Aldi store with no checkouts in Ireland in the near future

“At Aldi, we are always looking at new opportunities to improve the shopping experience of our customers."

Aldi has said that the possibility of till-free stores in Ireland in the future will be kept "under review" following the commencement of a trial in the UK on Tuesday. The retailer's first checkout-free store, based at an undisclosed location in London, operates on the premise that customers can collect their shopping and walk out without paying at a till. Aldi said that customers could use its smartphone app to enter the London store, pick up their shopping and walk out and a receipt for their purchases would be emailed once they leave. Amazon and Tesco have both opened outlets in the UK that offers customers the chance to leave with goods without having to visit a checkout first; a Tesco store in London, for example, used technology to track customers with ceiling cameras and sensors to monitor purchases. Asked about the possibility of the introduction of checkout-free stores in Aldi in Ireland, a spokesperson told JOE that Irish stores will be "working closely" with UK sites and keeping developments such as till-free stores "under review". “At Aldi, we are always looking at new opportunities to further improve the shopping experience of our customers in-stores," the spokesperson said. "We work closely with our colleagues in the UK and we keep developments under review on an ongoing basis.” Commenting on the checkout-free store in the UK, Giles Hurley, Aldi’s chief executive of the UK and Ireland said: “We are always looking to redefine what it means to be a discount retailer, and the technology involved in this trial will give us a wealth of learnings." Aldi also confirmed that it will employ the same number of workers at its till-free store, alleviating concerns over possible lay-offs if a checkout-free approach is adopted on a larger scale in the future.