Thesis Introduction

The Battle for Retail:  Consumer vs. Robot Shopping

Click "place your order."  Swipe your credit card, "sign here."  Both activities provide the same result.  Endless options and the idea of convenience, with regards to saving time, drive consumers to make certain decisions. Large retailers such as Wal-Mart and Amazon built their business model around these two shopping pillars.  Wal-Mart has three types of access.  In-person shopping was the original retail experience when Sam Walton opened its first retail box store in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1962.  Nearly forty years later, in 2002, walmart.com launched.  In 2013, grocery pick-up piloted in Denver, Colorado.  Each process addressed the consumer's increased need for convenience through the use of technology.  In the most general terms, artificial intelligence is the machine's capacity to complete a human intellectual task.  With the ongoing innovation strides of technology, traditional retail centers are in a difficult position competing for consumer's attention.  Driven by choice and convenience, how far will the need for technology impact the future of retail?  How can abandoned retail centers implement a plan to incorporate various shopping types to reclaim their former glory as a hub for retail?