Current:Home > MyWalmart joins other big retailers in scaling back on self-checkout-LoTradeCoin
Walmart joins other big retailers in scaling back on self-checkout
View Date:2024-12-23 19:43:49
Walmart is joining the ranks of retailers rethinking self-checkout, with the industry giant in the process of removing the self-service lanes at a store in Missouri.
The return to registers staffed by humans at the Walmart store in Shrewsbury, a suburb of St. Louis, comes a month after Target announced only those buying 10 items or less could use the self-checkout lane at its stores, and Dollar General reduced self-checkout at thousands of its locations. The latter removed the option entirely at 300 locations most-impacted by shoplifting.
Retailers are pulling back, but not abandoning self-checkout, according to Neil Saunders, managing director, retail, at GlobalData. "They are trying to see how does this play a role in the future, but it's not going to be the same thing they've done for decades, where it's a free-for-all, and anyone could use it," he told CBS MoneyWatch. There is a lot more caution."
Walmart cited customer feedback as among the factors in its decision to remove the self-checkout kiosks at its store in Shrewsbury.
"As part of our announced plans for additional investments and improvements to stores across the country, we're converting the self-checkout lanes at our 7437 Watson Road store in Shrewsbury, MO., to traditional checkout lanes," a Walmart spokesperson emailed CBS MoneyWatch. "We believe the change will improve the in-store shopping experience and give our associates the chance to provide more personalized and efficient service."
Self-checkout increased in popularity among retailers and customers during the pandemic, allowing shoppers to limit their contact with others and helping to relieve a labor shortage that made staffing registers more difficult.
Still, as the pandemic wound down, many shoppers returned to their former habits, and the appeal of self-checkout lost some of its allure.
"It's a very love-hate technology. A lot of customers see it as a deterioration of the service, and they have to do more of the work. So it's not good for driving customer loyalty, " Saunders noted.
Still, rising theft — part of what retailers call "shrink" — is the primary reason self-checkout is being ditched in some stores and restricted in others, according to Saunders.
"Self-checkout is an area of the store people can steal things," said the analyst, who noted that shoppers also make genuine mistakes, such as not scanning items properly. "Retailers are very actively trying to reduce it, or in Target's case put more restrictions around self-checkout to try to reduce the losses they incur from it."
Costco in November added more staff in self-checkout areas after finding that non-members were sneaking in to use membership cards that didn't belong to them at self-checkout. Costco said shrink had increased in 2023 "in part we believe due to the rollout of self-checkout."
Another approach is adding a receipt-scanning gate at self-checkout areas, which Safeway has done at multiple locations in California, in addition to shutting down self-checkout entirely in some stores.
Kate GibsonKate Gibson is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch in New York.
veryGood! (615)
Related
- Justice Department says jail conditions in Georgia’s Fulton County violate detainee rights
- Alabama governor issues statewide no-burn order because of drought conditions
- Report: Michigan says Rutgers, Ohio State shared its signs before 2022 Big Ten title game
- Actors and studios reportedly make a deal to end Hollywood strikes
- Francesca Farago Details Health Complications That Led to Emergency C-Section of Twins
- A pickup truck crash may be more dangerous for backseat riders, new tests show
- Vatican says it’s permissible for transgender Catholics to be baptized
- 8 dead in crash after police chased a suspected human smuggler, Texas officials say
- More human remains from Philadelphia’s 1985 MOVE bombing have been found at a museum
- Cate Blanchett, more stars join Prince William on the green carpet for Earthshot Prize awards in Singapore
Ranking
- Kentucky gets early signature win at Champions Classic against Duke | Opinion
- North Greenland ice shelves have lost 35% of their volume, with dramatic consequences for sea level rise, study says
- Joel Madden Shares Rare Insight Into Family Life With Queen Nicole Richie and Their 2 Kids
- NBA mock draft 2.0: G League Ignite sensation Ron Holland projected No. 1 pick for 2024
- Who is Rep. Matt Gaetz, the Florida congressman Donald Trump picked to serve as attorney general?
- Tiger Woods' surgically repaired right ankle pain-free, rest of leg still causing issues
- Sarah Paulson and Holland Taylor's Sweet Comments About Each Other Will Warm Your Heart
- 8 dead in crash after police chased a suspected human smuggler, Texas officials say
Recommendation
-
MVSU football player killed, driver injured in crash after police chase
-
Robert De Niro attends closing arguments in civil trial over claims by ex-VP, personal assistant
-
How did AFC North – with four playoff contenders – become NFL's most cutthroat division?
-
7 Nashville officers on ‘administrative assignment’ after Covenant school shooter’s writings leaked
-
Northern Taurid meteor shower hits peak activity this week: When and where to watch
-
Tiger Woods' surgically repaired right ankle pain-free, rest of leg still causing issues
-
Bruce Springsteen gives surprise performance after recovering from peptic ulcer disease
-
Kim Kardashian Reveals Secret Tattoo—and the Meaning Behind It