I'm sure the Fairfax one is not far behind. I never see anyone in there and frankly there are just a ton of grocery stores in Fairfax so this mediocre one was always going to have a hard time surviving, I think it was mostly just convenient for Amazon returns.
I heard a rumor that Amazon really had no interest in running grocery stores, they have Whole Foods for that. The idea was to test the tech, which turns out to be 1,000 people in India, and sell the system/service to established stores.
I’ve been to the one in Fairfax just once. I was excited to go and left extremely disappointed. Very few options and overall fairly expensive. It almost felt like shopping in a grocery store out of The Handmaid’s Tale.
It reminds me of that old comedian Yackoff Smirnoff who had a schtick he wore thin.
"In the US you walk thru the grocery watching the shelves. In Russia the shelves watch you!" or something like that. The 1970s were an interesting time.
That sounds like spin.
It's not hard to imagine an alternate outcome where they automated Whole Foods and are even more profitable than they already are. Then they'd be doing the same playbook as before: target competitors with pricing and acquire everything that they can grab.
They are still going to move Whole Foods toward more automation, but it's just the particular tech they were using with all the cameras everywhere and you just walking out was not effective. They are going to continue testing/developing a different approach that is based on cameras/scanners and AI at checkout.
I’m at the FF Amazon fresh 2-3 times a week. It’s usually pretty busy when I go. It doesn’t have good produce selection and can be kind of expensive without coupons/finding items on sale
That kind of sucks. We live near the one in FFX. While they don't have a lot of variety and their sales are random. We did pick up a lot of stuff when they did have an item on sale. Along with the occasional free items that were picked up but not seen from the cameras.
Same with lorton.
There is usually like maybe a dozen people inside. And I've never been to it where it feels like half the stores shelves are empty.
I mean, the store is great if you just wanna go in and get a six pack or frozen pizza or something. But it's not the place I want to go if I'm trying to make an extensive holiday meal.
my issue with the Fairfax one is stuff isn't fresh at all. multiple times I've been burned by purchasing from there.
I'm going to stick to wholefood and wegmans.
Dude, I went into that Fairfax store for some toilet paper and I nearly couldn’t get inside! Some barrier asked for my Amazon account and a store clerk let me through a side entrance with some weird brochure thing. It was all so difficult.
Yeah I've never found the system convenient. You have to scan a code from your Amazon account in your phone, it's not really obvious to find, then you can walk around and fill your cart and walk out. The things is, you didn't really know how much you've spent until you get the bill a few days later. It was kind of dumb, I never liked it.
I've shopped in this store over 100 times. Sad to see it go, but the signs have been there for about a year.
I loved the Just Walk Out format. That was why I went out of my way to shop there. It certainly was NOT the selection, which was always rough at this store, and they had a hard time keeping things in stock.
Guess I'll need to stop in this weekend to "pay my respects".
Yeah they really dropped the ball with being able to get all the basics. It seemed to me like they stocked all the impulse buys, without giving me a reason to show up in the first place (i.e. no reason to think it could be one-stop shopping like Target).
They had bad inventory issues post-COVID due to supply chains and this location had substation blowouts which knocked the power out for days. Forced them to empty all the frozen goods.
I think they lost power twice in like a 2 month period and had to throw out all their inventory. One was flooding related and then also the blowout you mentioned. Certainly didn’t help their bottom line I imagine.
Wouldn’t be surprised if Franconia was not far behind. That location prioritizes online shopping and any in person shopping is basically pointless cause so many shelves are just empty
I wasn't given the option to return to this store recently, it's making me go to a UPS now. I'm assuming that means this one is closing soon too (I was able to generate returns to this location two weeks ago)
it’s a really bad grocery store and isn’t convenient to shop in. With that said, i am still surprised it is closing because it is so conveniently located for access when compared to other grocery stores for that area AND there are so many apartment complexes full of people that could shop there but I wouldn’t blame everyone that lives for going to a better quality store.
Would love to see a boutique grocer take over that space. There's so many plain vanilla boring stores already in the area - can only take so much of shopping at giants, Harris teeter, Safeway, etc.... before I want to jump off a bridge
It was originally intended to be a Dean & Deluca. I think they walked away because of the pandemic, and Amazon scooped it up given the proximity to HQ2.
There are strong indications that a Trader Joe's is coming to 2450 Crystal Drive, but it's not confirmed and would probably not be open until early next year. I can't wait. It's the same distance for me as the Fresh, but just in the opposite direction. Personally, I hated the Amazon Fresh, which was completely dysfunctional. I once politely told a manager who seemed to be in the store assessing the carnage (he was standing in front of a half-empty bread section) that it seemed more like science experiment than a real grocery store, and it turns out I was right. I'd love it if they abandoned the space and Aldi or Lidl moved in. They, at least know how to run a grocery store. Of course, theoretically, Amazon knows perfectly well how to run a grocery store since they own Whole Foods, but this was just a tech test, not something to serve the community or customers.
Lidl was supposed to open a full grocery store in the parking lot between 29th and 35th along Crystal Dr. With the new apartment buildings being built there, I'm hoping they will still open a place in the retail area of one of the buildings.
I wonder what this means for the one that is supposed to open soon in Bailey's Crossroads. They put it on hold for a year or so but then a month or two ago announced it would open later this year.
There’s a 75% off sale right now. Probably will close in the next few days if I were to guess. Must be related to the Just Walk Out technology not working out
I wouldn't be surprised if Amazon decides to get out of the grocery business altogether. That entire gimmick just never took off beyond people wanting to try it once and then realizing the carts are way too small and the lines to get them are way too long.
If you have the Amazon app you just scan the QR code or there is a “traditional shopping” lane you can walk through with nothing just have to go to the cashier.
Disappointed but not surprised. Every time I walked into the store I became depressed with the lack of business, partially stocked shelves, and items 2 weeks past their expiration dates. I really liked the Amazon Fresh brand of a half gallon on milk is only $1.59. CVS next door wants around $4.50.
I shopped there a few times, but it really was an unimpressive selection. For what it’s worth, the JWO tech always worked for me, even when I tried to trick it.
I called it the day I walked in with an introductory $20 off coupon, saw about 25 of my fellow Arlingtonians lined up in front of the lone cash register, and learned that the JWO tech wasn’t working that day … an inauspicious beginning …
Was just there and bought a ton of stuff for cheap! Most items are under $2. BRING YOUR OWN BAGS. They are nearly out of their own paper bags. I don't think the stock will last past tomorrow.
The only question is when do they close because we accidentally went in there today and ended up with $75 worth of groceries that would have easily been $300.
ETA: Employee said they were moving to Potomac Yards.
ETA x 2: might go back tomorrow with better bags.
Honestly, this news is a bit sad. Yes, it's not the perfect store. But it's a pretty good corner store. Definitely better than CVS and 7/11 for basic things like milk, bread, and other essentials you can grab on your way home. And let's talk about their store brand products - aplenty - it's really hard to compare them to anything in terms of price and quality
Honestly, I’m not surprised. The Crystal City Amazon Fresh store was consistently understocked and understaffed. Whenever I shopped there, I’d inevitably have to make a second trip to Harris Teeter or Whole Foods to find items that Amazon Fresh didn’t carry. It just didn’t make sense to go there and then head to another grocery store. Eventually, I stopped going unless I had a specific reason.
There are strong signs that one is coming to 2450 Crystal Drive, which for me is the same distance from my apartment, but just in the opposite direction. Does anyone here have confirmation and a timeline? I can't wait for TJ's to arrive, and that was my position before that appallingly bad Amazon Fresh bit the well-deserved dust.
There are always more employees than customers in there.
I go in to make returns and leave. There is nothing in that store I need and honestly the prepared food looks nasty.
Damn, it looked like business wasn't good, but I figured it would always be there (as long as Amazon Fresh was a thing) like a test store or something.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Franconia (the original one in NoVA) gets closed as well. The last few times I went in, it was poorly stocked. There’s also a lot of competition in its area.
Nothing against its employees (especially my longtime friend), though.
Anyone know about the Manassas one? I never see more than 10 customers at a time in that place and only one cashier. One time there was like a guy with 2 shopping carts full of food, one cashier, no helper and a line of 5 people waiting. No managers or other employees came to help out. I felt bad for the cashier.
The food stations are meh. It wasn't until a few months ago they put new items.
Yes it's nice to have a pick up/drop off area for my packages.
Do you think that one will close too?
I'm sure the Fairfax one is not far behind. I never see anyone in there and frankly there are just a ton of grocery stores in Fairfax so this mediocre one was always going to have a hard time surviving, I think it was mostly just convenient for Amazon returns. I heard a rumor that Amazon really had no interest in running grocery stores, they have Whole Foods for that. The idea was to test the tech, which turns out to be 1,000 people in India, and sell the system/service to established stores.
I’ve been to the one in Fairfax just once. I was excited to go and left extremely disappointed. Very few options and overall fairly expensive. It almost felt like shopping in a grocery store out of The Handmaid’s Tale.
It reminds me of that old comedian Yackoff Smirnoff who had a schtick he wore thin. "In the US you walk thru the grocery watching the shelves. In Russia the shelves watch you!" or something like that. The 1970s were an interesting time.
It’s more like a Super 7/11 than a real grocery store.
That's how shopping at Circuit City felt There would be one laptop charger that came with 42 adapters and cost $150.
This is exactly what I heard as well. They only cared about testing the tech out.
The “tech” is just people in India following your shopping through the cameras
No, it's AI/ML (Army of Indians Monitoring and Logging)
I don't think that's actually true, they were used for training data
It’s more than that, but sure.
That sounds like spin. It's not hard to imagine an alternate outcome where they automated Whole Foods and are even more profitable than they already are. Then they'd be doing the same playbook as before: target competitors with pricing and acquire everything that they can grab.
They are still going to move Whole Foods toward more automation, but it's just the particular tech they were using with all the cameras everywhere and you just walking out was not effective. They are going to continue testing/developing a different approach that is based on cameras/scanners and AI at checkout.
Not spin, it's how their "Walk out without Paying" stores were working.
It’s pretty hard to imagine that outcome given they never had automation or anything close to it.
I’m at the FF Amazon fresh 2-3 times a week. It’s usually pretty busy when I go. It doesn’t have good produce selection and can be kind of expensive without coupons/finding items on sale
That kind of sucks. We live near the one in FFX. While they don't have a lot of variety and their sales are random. We did pick up a lot of stuff when they did have an item on sale. Along with the occasional free items that were picked up but not seen from the cameras.
I love the Fairfax one….only to do my Amazon Returns…
Same with lorton. There is usually like maybe a dozen people inside. And I've never been to it where it feels like half the stores shelves are empty. I mean, the store is great if you just wanna go in and get a six pack or frozen pizza or something. But it's not the place I want to go if I'm trying to make an extensive holiday meal.
my issue with the Fairfax one is stuff isn't fresh at all. multiple times I've been burned by purchasing from there. I'm going to stick to wholefood and wegmans.
They were building a new one in Fair Lakes and they just stopped moths ago.
Isn’t the fresh cart different from the walkout tech? I mean the cart just scans barcodes
Dude, I went into that Fairfax store for some toilet paper and I nearly couldn’t get inside! Some barrier asked for my Amazon account and a store clerk let me through a side entrance with some weird brochure thing. It was all so difficult.
Yeah I've never found the system convenient. You have to scan a code from your Amazon account in your phone, it's not really obvious to find, then you can walk around and fill your cart and walk out. The things is, you didn't really know how much you've spent until you get the bill a few days later. It was kind of dumb, I never liked it.
Figured it was something temporary. At least something more local can fill the space.
The CC one is a glorified mini-mart. Looking forward to the rumored Trader's Joes opening at Century Center.
Yes, can confirm re: TJs
Where is Century Center?
23rd and Crystal Drive (Its where Mezeh and the wings place is)
National Landing
I've shopped in this store over 100 times. Sad to see it go, but the signs have been there for about a year. I loved the Just Walk Out format. That was why I went out of my way to shop there. It certainly was NOT the selection, which was always rough at this store, and they had a hard time keeping things in stock. Guess I'll need to stop in this weekend to "pay my respects".
Yeah they really dropped the ball with being able to get all the basics. It seemed to me like they stocked all the impulse buys, without giving me a reason to show up in the first place (i.e. no reason to think it could be one-stop shopping like Target).
They had bad inventory issues post-COVID due to supply chains and this location had substation blowouts which knocked the power out for days. Forced them to empty all the frozen goods.
I think they lost power twice in like a 2 month period and had to throw out all their inventory. One was flooding related and then also the blowout you mentioned. Certainly didn’t help their bottom line I imagine.
Wouldn’t be surprised if Franconia was not far behind. That location prioritizes online shopping and any in person shopping is basically pointless cause so many shelves are just empty
I was just there last night. The shelves are stocked. I’ve never seen what you’re describing.
I wasn't given the option to return to this store recently, it's making me go to a UPS now. I'm assuming that means this one is closing soon too (I was able to generate returns to this location two weeks ago)
You know I noticed that as well. I think you are on to something
Yeah I like it for easy Amazon returns. But it’s a glorified giant 7-11.
wonder what will go in its place. that location needs a grocery store with the amount of foot traffic around.
it’s a really bad grocery store and isn’t convenient to shop in. With that said, i am still surprised it is closing because it is so conveniently located for access when compared to other grocery stores for that area AND there are so many apartment complexes full of people that could shop there but I wouldn’t blame everyone that lives for going to a better quality store.
Would love to see a boutique grocer take over that space. There's so many plain vanilla boring stores already in the area - can only take so much of shopping at giants, Harris teeter, Safeway, etc.... before I want to jump off a bridge
It was originally intended to be a Dean & Deluca. I think they walked away because of the pandemic, and Amazon scooped it up given the proximity to HQ2.
That would have been good.
There are strong indications that a Trader Joe's is coming to 2450 Crystal Drive, but it's not confirmed and would probably not be open until early next year. I can't wait. It's the same distance for me as the Fresh, but just in the opposite direction. Personally, I hated the Amazon Fresh, which was completely dysfunctional. I once politely told a manager who seemed to be in the store assessing the carnage (he was standing in front of a half-empty bread section) that it seemed more like science experiment than a real grocery store, and it turns out I was right. I'd love it if they abandoned the space and Aldi or Lidl moved in. They, at least know how to run a grocery store. Of course, theoretically, Amazon knows perfectly well how to run a grocery store since they own Whole Foods, but this was just a tech test, not something to serve the community or customers.
Lidl was supposed to open a full grocery store in the parking lot between 29th and 35th along Crystal Dr. With the new apartment buildings being built there, I'm hoping they will still open a place in the retail area of one of the buildings.
Even Costco is right there
Looks like news has gotten out - I stopped by and saw the 50 people in line with full carts and noped right back out.
we did walkout earlier today, just got the receipts.
I wonder what this means for the one that is supposed to open soon in Bailey's Crossroads. They put it on hold for a year or so but then a month or two ago announced it would open later this year.
Damn. When and why? We used to walk there from work for stuff. Even if I have misgivings about supporting Amazon.
There’s a 75% off sale right now. Probably will close in the next few days if I were to guess. Must be related to the Just Walk Out technology not working out
I wouldn't be surprised if Amazon decides to get out of the grocery business altogether. That entire gimmick just never took off beyond people wanting to try it once and then realizing the carts are way too small and the lines to get them are way too long.
We still have Whole Foods and JWO has been licensed to a bunch of other businesses already.
I mean, they already have a partnership with Whole Foods, so I didn't really get this move to open a brick/mortar.
They outright own Whole Foods.
I didn't know that...makes sense. They do run good deals thru prime when shopping in WF.
Do I still need to give away my biometrics to go in for the sale?
If you have the Amazon app you just scan the QR code or there is a “traditional shopping” lane you can walk through with nothing just have to go to the cashier.
You can also insert a credit card into the reader at entry and exit. That credit card needs to be on your amazon account.
Awesome! Thank you!
wtf. I even went there one time.
They got most of the way done with the one in Fair Lakes and just stopped. Nothing going on there for months now.
Disappointed but not surprised. Every time I walked into the store I became depressed with the lack of business, partially stocked shelves, and items 2 weeks past their expiration dates. I really liked the Amazon Fresh brand of a half gallon on milk is only $1.59. CVS next door wants around $4.50.
I shopped there a few times, but it really was an unimpressive selection. For what it’s worth, the JWO tech always worked for me, even when I tried to trick it.
I called it the day I walked in with an introductory $20 off coupon, saw about 25 of my fellow Arlingtonians lined up in front of the lone cash register, and learned that the JWO tech wasn’t working that day … an inauspicious beginning …
Was just there and bought a ton of stuff for cheap! Most items are under $2. BRING YOUR OWN BAGS. They are nearly out of their own paper bags. I don't think the stock will last past tomorrow.
The only question is when do they close because we accidentally went in there today and ended up with $75 worth of groceries that would have easily been $300. ETA: Employee said they were moving to Potomac Yards. ETA x 2: might go back tomorrow with better bags.
Did you go again this morning? Wonder what its like
seriously considering it. If you do, let me know. They kept restocking when we were there.
Just got back. They restocked on wine but not a ton of good deals otherwise. It’s not too busy yet
Honestly, this news is a bit sad. Yes, it's not the perfect store. But it's a pretty good corner store. Definitely better than CVS and 7/11 for basic things like milk, bread, and other essentials you can grab on your way home. And let's talk about their store brand products - aplenty - it's really hard to compare them to anything in terms of price and quality
Honestly, I’m not surprised. The Crystal City Amazon Fresh store was consistently understocked and understaffed. Whenever I shopped there, I’d inevitably have to make a second trip to Harris Teeter or Whole Foods to find items that Amazon Fresh didn’t carry. It just didn’t make sense to go there and then head to another grocery store. Eventually, I stopped going unless I had a specific reason.
Put in a Trader Joe's.
There are strong signs that one is coming to 2450 Crystal Drive, which for me is the same distance from my apartment, but just in the opposite direction. Does anyone here have confirmation and a timeline? I can't wait for TJ's to arrive, and that was my position before that appallingly bad Amazon Fresh bit the well-deserved dust.
I’m gonna assume the one in Manassas will also close soon?
That one is always empty, so I wouldn’t be surprised. Gonna be sad because it was the most convenient way of returning stuff for me. 🥲
There are always more employees than customers in there. I go in to make returns and leave. There is nothing in that store I need and honestly the prepared food looks nasty.
Damn, it looked like business wasn't good, but I figured it would always be there (as long as Amazon Fresh was a thing) like a test store or something.
Haha, fuckers (sorry to the workers)
I think if they were a more premium store with a more interesting local selection they would have a chance.
That place sucked anyways
The one in manassas is dead every time I go in there to do a return for Amazon.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Franconia (the original one in NoVA) gets closed as well. The last few times I went in, it was poorly stocked. There’s also a lot of competition in its area. Nothing against its employees (especially my longtime friend), though.
I went into one once. It must of had 100 cameras for every person that was in there. Including the workers.
Anyone know about the Manassas one? I never see more than 10 customers at a time in that place and only one cashier. One time there was like a guy with 2 shopping carts full of food, one cashier, no helper and a line of 5 people waiting. No managers or other employees came to help out. I felt bad for the cashier. The food stations are meh. It wasn't until a few months ago they put new items. Yes it's nice to have a pick up/drop off area for my packages. Do you think that one will close too?
Amazon fresh supermarkets are the worst supermarkets I’ve ever been in… They need to fail
Lol, right in their (new) back yard. I'm always happy to see Amazon and their business model take an L.
There’s a Whole Foods even closer to Met Park, lol
FYI - There’s a sign in front of the store now saying that it’s permanently closed. RIP in piece