Self-Serve Grocery Checkouts: Pro or Con?

@Linkat,

What's to keep people from putting merchandise in their bags and not scanning it?

@chai2,

Nothing - put I guess upon exiting if your receipt says $10 and you have $100 worth of groceries then you will get into trouble.

My guess is the small amount of theft is equaled out with the savings in less employees. Or maybe we are just more honest in my neck of the woods than yours that you would even think about stealing.

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@chai2,

The Watcher who is there, ostensibly, to approve beer and wine sales.

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@Linkat,

Linkat wrote:

Or maybe we are just more honest in my neck of the woods than yours that you would even think about stealing.

Oh yeah, a common theivery technique here is while you're chatting someone up your kid sneaks behind them and stuffs their pockets with asparagus.

1 Reply

@sozobe,

I definitely like them for up to 15 items and despite having issues with produce, something not reading right and needing clerk assistance, I still prefer it over the serve check out.
I use the cashier when I have big items like the 24 bottle water boxes as
they scan them without me having to remove the box from my kart.

As for the chatty cashiers, I can see how annoying it can be. I had
an ear infection once and both ears were almost shut down. I hardly could hear at all and did not understand what the cashier said and just nodded an occasional Yes, which probably wasn't right either as the cashier looked at me funny while I felt more and more uncomfortable.

1 Reply

@chai2,

I'd have them take lobster or fillet mignons instead.

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@Nogard2u,

Nogard, let me interrupt the checkout line to say welcome to a2k.

1 Reply

@Linkat,

Huh? People steal all over the place (sometimes in big firms) and sometimes even large money movie stars are cleptos in fancy stores. Two come immediately to mind.

Last time I saw it happen I was stunned - I shared the shampoo conditioner hair dye whatever aisle with a young woman who was mulling over the display, as I did I - what was the least expensive shampoo that wasn't horrible, I said to myself, looking to the lower shelves.. (I get to near kneel down or just lean and stick my old butt out). I could be cynical about those lower shelves, but I see the marketing point. Anyway we finished up about the same time. She being more nubile than I walked faster, and directly out of the store. Too fast for me to somehow call a guard/employee re a box of hair dye.

1 Reply

@ossobuco,

ossobuco wrote:

Nogard, let me interrupt the checkout line to say welcome to a2k.

Yes, welcome!

And yes CJane, exactly.

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@CalamityJane,

Why didn't you say "I have an ear infection and can't really hear you, sorry."?

1 Reply

@ossobuco,

ossobuco wrote:

Huh? People steal all over the place (sometimes in big firms) and sometimes even large money movie stars are cleptos in fancy stores. Two come immediately to mind.

Last time I saw it happen I was stunned - I shared the shampoo conditioner hair dye whatever aisle with a young woman who was mulling over the display, as I did I - what was the least expensive shampoo that wasn't horrible, I said to myself, looking to the lower shelves.. (I get to near kneel down or just lean and stick my old butt out). I could be cynical about those lower shelves, but I see the marketing point. Anyway we finished up about the same time. She being more nubile than I walked faster, and directly out of the store. Too fast for me to somehow call a guard/employee re a box of hair dye.

When I steal my hair dye I always check first to make sure that the color in the box is the one it's supposed to be.

In the book "Choke" the main characters crazy mother used to switch around color bottles, trading ash blond and the dark auburn color, switchng mahogany for jet black, etc.

They're out there.

1 Reply

@chai2,

I'm sure you'd be sharper at it if you chose, but this woman was pretty good.

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@chai2,

chai2 wrote:

Why didn't you say "I have an ear infection and can't really hear you, sorry."?

I don't know! I guess I was too out of it to think of an explanation and just wanted to get out and home. When I am in pain, I am useless.

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I always use the self checkout in the store. King Soopers is the main store here and there systems work like a charm. They have the self check out for small trips (15 items or less) as well as checkouts for the big trips. I prefer to just get in and get out with as little conversation as possible.

Hey Soz I didn't know you were deaf. My best advise for the stores is to claim your deafness with a really strong "deaf tone" and then not look at them again, that should keep the talkers at bay.

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Con, I will occasionally use self checkouts at Walmart or Home Depot, but almost never at the Grocery Store. The only grocery store around here that I can recall that has them other then Walmart is Fred Meyer and I rarely shop there.....but I dont like them.

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@roger,

That will be enough of your self-serving commentary thank you young sir.

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Self-Serve Grocery Checkouts: Pro or Con?

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