US EditionHow in-store shopping has changed over the last 75 years
UNITED STATES, JUL 23 – E-commerce now accounts for 16.2% of U.S. retail sales as contactless payments and QR codes boost convenience and efficiency in shopping experiences.
- In 1949, inventors Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver filed for a patent on a numerical barcode design, initiating the development of retail scanning technology.
- Stores began regularly using barcodes in the 1970s, allowing efficient inventory tracking and revolutionizing retail with the Universal Product Code design by IBM.
- Since then, retail evolved with major chains like Walmart opening in 1962, e-commerce growth to 16.2% of US sales in Q3 2024, and QR codes gaining traction during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- In 2024, Walmart achieved up to $648 billion revenue while technologies like Amazon Go stores, AI-driven recommendations, and QR payments reshaped physical and digital retail integration.
- Retailers must adapt to growing digital tools, as QR payments expand in the US and China, and AI and smart devices are expected to increasingly personalize and streamline shopping.
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Total News Sources34
Leaning Left1Leaning Right0Center31Last UpdatedBias Distribution97% Center
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- 97% of the sources are Center
97% Center
C 97%
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