Modern Grocery Cart

Scanners and Tablets Built into Carts

A modern shopping cart should let you just scan your items and go. The carts need to have barcode scanners built into them. The scanner should be easily accessible, so that when items are placed in the cart the total is shown. Shopping, especially grocery shopping can add up. 

Think about when you go to the grocery store and items start piling up in your cart. You start to estimate how much the cost is going to be. Then you reach the cashier and your idea of the total price is five times worse! You don't want to be that person that holds up the line and starts removing items from your cart. So then you suck it up and purchase every single one of those items, and in many cases those items, especially produce, go bad before you can use it. So my solution, a shopping cart scanner, would prevent these outcomes. You would have an exact idea of how much you are going to spend that day at the grocery store, or more importantly at other stores, such as Target. 

Locate Faster

Along with scanning your items before placing them in the cart, the same device could help you located items in the store. 

For example,  Collin Yballa's experience 

I couldn't find hummus the other day. I thought, "Hummus, must be under condiments." It was under Deli"

 Think about when you go to the grocery store and items start piling up in your cart. You start to estimate how much the cost is going to be. Then you reach the cashier and your idea of the total price is five times worse! You don't want to be that person that holds up the line and starts removing items from your cart. So then you suck it up and purchase every single one of those items, and in many cases those items, especially produce, go bad before you can use it. So my solution, a shopping cart scanner, would prevent these outcomes. You would have an exact idea of how much you are going to spend that day at the grocery store, or more importantly at other stores, such as Target.

For instance, when you have finished going through every aisle, then you look at your shopping list and realize that you have forgot an important item, And to top it off you have no idea were in the store it is. So you are forced to push your full cart up and down the aisles and eventually you just give up because you just want to get the hell out! Shopping, any type of shopping, is suppose to be a relaxing experience and it quickly turns into a battle. A shopping cart scanner/ locator would solve all of our problems and would be much more efficient. 

Apps For Consumer and Store Convenience

Apps on your smart phone that sync the consumer to the store. This will provide the consumers features such as;

• make a list anywhere and take it to the cart
• find what you need with a map showing where the items are on the cart
• find when limited items are available
• show you comparable or better products
• offer more detailed information on the products
• show you your running total cost 

This would provide the stores with benefits such as;

• consumer subscriptions/signups
• direct advertisement opportunities based on the consumers habits
• flow and traffic profitability of the stores layout
• the ability to track carts exciting the stores
• offer rewards for return of carts for cleaner parking lots

Main Image Source - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shopping_cart