RETAIL ENVIRONMENT
Wagamama has 'app-etite' for 'just go' technology
Restaurant chain Wagamama has announced the launch of Wagamamago – an app that enables customers to simply walk out of the restaurant once they have finished their meal, with payment automatically taken from their account.
Created in partnership with Mastercard, the new app will reportedly save diners an average of 12 minutes each time they visit. The two companies have worked together in the past, with the restaurant being the first to use the Masterpass Qkr! pay-at-table platform in 2015.
Through the new platform, customers can connect directly to a Masterpass digital wallet – with payment being automatically taken, without the need for the customer to tap a pay button. The app is now available at all UK Wagamama restaurants.
Richard Tallboy, Wagamama CIO, commented: “We wanted to bring truly frictionless payment to restaurants as we know waiting for the bill is frustrating, why shouldn’t you be able to get up and go when you are ready? Well, now you can.
“No more waving your hand in the air, trying to catch the waiter’s eye, once you’re ready you just go, and customers are automatically charged with the receipt emailed directly,” he continued. “Getting the bill is the last thing a customer experiences and it was important that this be quick and stress free for our customers.”
Jennifer Macrae, vice president of innovation at Mastercard, added: “We are bringing our digital ordering and payment technology – Qkr! – into an app tailor-made for Wagamama’s loyal customers. We can adapt this technology to any kind of restaurant and Wagamama is the first to use it in this way, allowing customers to order from phones, and simply walk away.”
The move is similar to Amazon Go, a concept store trial in Seattle where consumers entering the store are charged to their Amazon accounts as they leave with their goods.
