[Ads-l] The rise and predicted decline of "dark store"

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

Dan Goncharoff wrote:
> Amazon continues to open new Whole Foods "dark stores", so it's demise may
> not come as quick as you think.

Thanks for your response, Dan. I agree that the predicted demise of
"dark store" may take many years to come true. Also, the prediction
might be wrong.

Tesco was one of the pioneers of "dark stores", but this 2014 article
in "The Guardian" indicates that the company was already building
specialized warehouses to fulfill online orders. Goods are located in
"towers of blue crates". It is not really possible for a conventional
shopper to walk through the aisles and gather goods. So the label
"store" might be considered misleading.

Website: The Guardian
Article: Inside the supermarkets' dark stores
Author: Leo Benedictus
Date: 7 Jan 2014 10.54 EST
https://www.theguardian.com/business/shortcuts/2014/jan/07/inside-supermarkets-dark-stores-online-shopping

[Begin excerpt]
Elsewhere, they look like nothing you've ever seen. At Tesco's sixth
and newest dark store in Erith, south-east London, they operate what
is basically a giant robot butler, although they call it a
"goods-to-person pickstation" and a "dotcom centre" (the supermarkets
themselves aren't keen on the term "dark store"). Instead of laying
out the groceries in aisles, at Erith they store most of them more
efficiently in towers of blue crates. The robot extracts whatever is
needed and brings it to the picker, who stands still (until it's time
to visit the freezer).
[End excerpt]

Here is a YouTube video of the warehouse.
Building a multichannel Tesco
Dec 3, 2013
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QONyKR0KdYs

Nevertheless, some anachronistic terms persist. So "dark store" might
persist. In addition, some "dark stores" are open to the public during
limited hours. Some are open to restricted sets of people, e.g.,
people who are vulnerable to Covid19. Maybe the label "partially dark
stores" makes sense.

Garson

> On Mon, Sep 7, 2020, 11:51 AM ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > I recently heard the term "dark store" while watching a YouTube video.
> > Here is a definition:
> >
> > Website: A blog from Cambridge Dictionary
> > https://dictionaryblog.cambridge.org/2012/07/09/new-words-9-july-2012/
> >
> > [Begin excerpt]
> > New words – 9 July 2012
> > dark store noun
> > a supermarket which stocks goods used exclusively for home delivery
> >
> > David Gray, retail analyst at Planet Retail, predicts more ‘dark
> > stores’ – supermarkets where the public are banned as staff fill
> > trolleys for thousands of online orders.
> > [The Guardian (UK broadsheet) 13 Jan 2012]
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > Wikipedia already has an article for "dark store" which includes the
> > claim that the term was in use by 2009, but "citation needed" has been
> > attached to the claim.
> >
> > Wikipedia: dark store
> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_store
> >
> > [Begin excerpt]
> > The term dark store first appeared in the UK in 2009 [citation needed]
> > when Tesco opened their first such supermarkets in Croydon, Surrey,
> > and Aylesford, Kent.
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > Here is a 2009 citation in an Irish newspaper. I do not know if "dark
> > store" appears in the OED because my OED access is still blocked.
> >
> > Date: December 9, 2009
> > Newspaper: Irish Independent
> > Article: Tesco shares fall 1.8pc on back of limp Q3 volumes
> > Author: John Mulligan
> > Quote Page 26, Column 8
> > Database: British Newspaper Archive
> >
> > [Begin excerpt]
> > Earlier this week, Tesco confirmed that it is planning to open more
> > so-called "dark stores", which are laid out exactly the same as its
> > regular UK stores, but which customers never visit. The stores are
> > used exclusively by Tesco staff fulfilling customers' online orders.
> > The company plans to open one a year in the UK for the foreseeable
> > future.
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > The term "dark store" will probably disappear in the coming years. A
> > "dark store" is a warehouse with a layout that is similar to a
> > conventional store. Yet, modern efficient warehouses are being
> > transformed via automation. For example, a roboticized Amazon
> > warehouse looks nothing like a store. Within a decade "dark store"
> > will be considered anachronistic.
> >
> > Amazon Warehouse is Run by Robots
> > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUx-ljgB-5Q
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org