Wal-Mart - Complete and Only self check-out

[Chester86]

The story said that by April of this year, Wal-Mart could be self check-out only.  So, shop for your groceries, scan your groceries and pay for your groceries.  I stopped going about a year ago when my local Wal-Mart didn’t have a check-out person.  You can’t get down the aisles, they’re rude and that was simply the last straw.  Brookshires is more expensive, but they are friendly and they have checkers.  I know most of you youngsters like all the fancy delivery and load-n-go options, but shopping used to be where you’d see old friends, catch up with people.

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[Hagar]

3 hours ago, Chester86 said:

The story said that by April of this year, Wal-Mart could be self check-out only.  So, shop for your groceries, scan your groceries and pay for your groceries.  I stopped going about a year ago when my local Wal-Mart didn’t have a check-out person.  You can’t get down the aisles, they’re rude and that was simply the last straw.  Brookshires is more expensive, but they are friendly and they have checkers.  I know most of you youngsters like all the fancy delivery and load-n-go options, but shopping used to be where you’d see old friends, catch up with people.

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We’ve done it once with a few items.  I didn’t like it.  Besides, if they sell alcohol, there’ll have to be someone to verify age.  If they go to all self checkout, they’ll lose most of my business.  Market Basket & Brookshires will get my dollars (Yes, I still use money, lol).

[tvc184]

I don’t think I have gone through a checkout line except at Academy for over a year. I especially like to go to Sam’s and I check out on my phone. I don’t even go through self check out line with merely pay for it on an app and show my phone as I walk out the door. Every time I put an item in my basket I scan it with my phone. When I am through with shopping, I hit pay on the app and then walk out of the store.

I believe Costco has a store in Houston that when you put an item in your basket, it automatically goes to your bill which is paid when you go out of the store with the basket. You don’t even have to scan it with your phone.

People  might think that they are cutting a big pig in the butt with a small knife by avoiding Walmart however they are just postponing the future for a short time. Lowe’s and H-E-B now have the same self checkout lines. McDonald’s now has a kiosk for ordering. When the $15 minimum wage goes into effect, probably before long, look for the process to be sped up even more. All big stores well eventually go to this model because they will have to to stay in business. There will be no small mom and pop supermarket so you will either go to Walmart or H-E-B or Kroger and go through their self check out or you will just not eat.

This is not even a new concept. When I got my drivers license had my first car in the mid-1970s, no one was allowed to pump their own gasoline. Everything was full service. When gas stations went to self-serve only, people did not quit buying gasoline in anger or in protest. They simply moved on with their lives. When Henry Ford started assembly lines in therefore streamlined  industry, he cost certain jobs. Those jobs even today but mostly done with robots. The benefit of last workers is translated into less price. I have not seen people quit buying cars.

Store like JCPenney and Sears have gone by the wayside because they could not keep up with modern technology and trends. They stuck with tradition and failed. I love tradition however when tradition loses money, it goes by the wayside.

At the same time that I was pulling up to full salve gasoline pumps in the 1970s, the only way I could make a phone call was holding on to a handset and had a wire attached to it where I could move up to maybe 10 feet away. Workers had to come to your house to install it and to do repairs if needed. Where are those workers now? That’s right, although some exist, for the most part we have gone to cellular technology and the guy that installs the wires in your house no longer has a job.  Did we not buy cell phones because AT&T workers were out of a job? 

I love to see people in long lines at Walmart or H-E-B or Lowe’s. That means the self checkout line will be a lot quicker for me. 

[5GallonBucket]

8 hours ago, Chester86 said:

The story said that by April of this year, Wal-Mart could be self check-out only.  So, shop for your groceries, scan your groceries and pay for your groceries.  I stopped going about a year ago when my local Wal-Mart didn’t have a check-out person.  You can’t get down the aisles, they’re rude and that was simply the last straw.  Brookshires is more expensive, but they are friendly and they have checkers.  I know most of you youngsters like all the fancy delivery and load-n-go options, but shopping used to be where you’d see old friends, catch up with people.

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it’s hard to find American made products in Walmart 

People only catch up via technology now a days.  Very sad.

 

[5GallonBucket]

4 hours ago, Hagar said:

We’ve done it once with a few items.  I didn’t like it.  Besides, if they sell alcohol, there’ll have to be someone to verify age.  If they go to all self checkout, they’ll lose most of my business.  Market Basket & Brookshires will get my dollars (Yes, I still use money, lol).

Same here....cash

[1989NDN]

Restaurants are gradually doing away with hosts/hostesses and reducing wait staff.  You can now use technology to reserve and find a table, order at your table, someone will bring your food to your table, and when you finish eating, you can pay at your table using a kiosk at the table.  Instead of a building full of service workers, there will be a small handful to cook your food, bring it to you, and then clean the table after you leave.  The workforce is steadily shrinking in mos industries due to advances in technology.  In the oilfield, instead of paying men and women to be in the field, companies are using cameras, video-feeds, and drones.  The past 10-20 years have been amazing for advances in technology.  Seeing what has happened so fast in the past two decades makes you think that self-driving automobiles, self-driving long-haul trucks, fully automated planes, and a smaller service industry are not that far fetched.  ATMs and online banks changed things, instantaneous computer access and sharing of information continues to change things, and who knows what the next set of changes will be or what they will bring to society.

Go Indians.  Peace.

[SmashMouth]

2 hours ago, 1989NDN said:

Restaurants are gradually doing away with hosts/hostesses and reducing wait staff.  You can now use technology to reserve and find a table, order at your table, someone will bring your food to your table, and when you finish eating, you can pay at your table using a kiosk at the table.  Instead of a building full of service workers, there will be a small handful to cook your food, bring it to you, and then clean the table after you leave.  The workforce is steadily shrinking in mos industries due to advances in technology.  In the oilfield, instead of paying men and women to be in the field, companies are using cameras, video-feeds, and drones.  The past 10-20 years have been amazing for advances in technology.  Seeing what has happened so fast in the past two decades makes you think that self-driving automobiles, self-driving long-haul trucks, fully automated planes, and a smaller service industry are not that far fetched.  ATMs and online banks changed things, instantaneous computer access and sharing of information continues to change things, and who knows what the next set of changes will be or what they will bring to society.

Go Indians.  Peace.

CapitalOne has shut down all but one of their full serve banks. Direct deposit and online purchases, online loan applications, and payments by phone or online have taken away the need for the overhead cost of a brick & mortar bank. 
 

Also, the China virus scare & restrictions has really sped up the process of electronic and self serve transactions in multiple industries. 

[tvc184]

8 hours ago, 1989NDN said:

Restaurants are gradually doing away with hosts/hostesses and reducing wait staff.  You can now use technology to reserve and find a table, order at your table, someone will bring your food to your table, and when you finish eating, you can pay at your table using a kiosk at the table.  Instead of a building full of service workers, there will be a small handful to cook your food, bring it to you, and then clean the table after you leave.  The workforce is steadily shrinking in mos industries due to advances in technology.  In the oilfield, instead of paying men and women to be in the field, companies are using cameras, video-feeds, and drones.  The past 10-20 years have been amazing for advances in technology.  Seeing what has happened so fast in the past two decades makes you think that self-driving automobiles, self-driving long-haul trucks, fully automated planes, and a smaller service industry are not that far fetched.  ATMs and online banks changed things, instantaneous computer access and sharing of information continues to change things, and who knows what the next set of changes will be or what they will bring to society.

Go Indians.  Peace.

You bring up a very good point, especially for the people that will not go through self check out. I wonder if any of these same people do not use ATM machines. Surely they all use cash and write checks because to do anything else causes the loss of jobs. When I started working my current job 37 years ago, my bank had approximately eight tellers on duty the entire time and had a police officer To secure the lobby area. There were several loan officers and associates also working. Now there are two tellers, one of which works the drive-through and only for five other people. This strictly came from automation.

I am wondering why grocery stores and other retail outlets are somehow consider different. I also wonder how many of those same people never buy anything online. 

[baddog]

My wife uses the Sam’s app and a woman in Sam’s checkout line saw her go around the registers to get in the line leaving the store. She hollered to my wife, “ Ma’am,  ma’am, you have to pay for that stuff.” My wife told her she already paid for it with the app. She ended up showing her, and several other women who had been privy to the conversation, that all you do is download the app and scan your products yourself. Of course you have to link the app to your bank account. They were all downloading as my wife left the store.

I understand where Chester is coming from. I didn’t like debit cards when they first came out, now I use it for everything. Have a separate account for online purchases. Had to change cards a couple times due to being hacked and attempts made for purchases in California and Houston. They were denied and the perps got nothing. Chester is like me and lots of other people who like things the way they are. Things that worked for years are now done a different way. How we grew up was so different than today. I feel sorry for those of you who didn’t grow up watching cartoons in color on Saturday mornings ( if you had a color TV.) lol

Progress will always affect everything we do. Always remember, the opposite of PROgress is CONgress.

[TxHoops]

On 1/29/2021 at 7:36 AM, Chester86 said:

The story said that by April of this year, Wal-Mart could be self check-out only.  So, shop for your groceries, scan your groceries and pay for your groceries.  I stopped going about a year ago when my local Wal-Mart didn’t have a check-out person.  You can’t get down the aisles, they’re rude and that was simply the last straw.  Brookshires is more expensive, but they are friendly and they have checkers.  I know most of you youngsters like all the fancy delivery and load-n-go options, but shopping used to be where you’d see old friends, catch up with people.

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23 hours ago, Hagar said:

We’ve done it once with a few items.  I didn’t like it.  Besides, if they sell alcohol, there’ll have to be someone to verify age.  If they go to all self checkout, they’ll lose most of my business.  Market Basket & Brookshires will get my dollars (Yes, I still use money, lol).

Count me in with the “old heads” (as the kids now say).  I still like someone to scan and bag my groceries.  I even prefer to throw a high school kid a few bucks for loading them in my vehicle.  We are steadily losing good old human interaction for the sake of “convenience.”  I can’t help but wonder if that isn’t contributing to our society’s decline...

[baddog]

48 minutes ago, TxHoops said:

 

Count me in with the “old heads” (as the kids now say).  I still like someone to scan and bag my groceries.  I even prefer to throw a high school kid a few bucks for loading them in my vehicle.  We are steadily losing good old human interaction for the sake of “convenience.”  I can’t help but wonder if that isn’t contributing to our society’s decline...

I believe so. Just to hit on your point of human interaction, when I go out in public, I make it a point to say hi to people. Of course not everyone, but people you run into at the door going in somewhere or seated at a table near you in a restaurant. I think this was lost on Covid and people don’t realize they missed this interaction.

Back to the topic, it seems when I do use the self checkout, I always have a problem scanning a bar code due to plastic interference, wrinkles, or just plain faded. There will always be a job for a helper when it comes to me. Lol

[SmashMouth]

I don’t mind self checkout if I have few items... I actually prefer it. One late night they ONLY had self check out, and I had a HUGE basket full of groceries. I got pissed and left the whole dang basket there. Meat, milk eggs, produce, cheese. Screw em. 

[LumRaiderFan]

I don’t mind it either unless I have to scan something like fruit or vegetables that has to be weighed.  

[WOSdrummer99]

I can't tell you how many times I've drove across town and passed up 3 other stores just to have "fast friendly service".

Just got back. With biscuits and gravy and bourdain balls on top.

[SmashMouth]

1 hour ago, WOSdrummer99 said:

I can't tell you how many times I've drove across town and passed up 3 other stores just to have "fast friendly service".

Just got back. With biscuits and gravy and bourdain balls on top.

Yep. That’s why I go to M&D Supply in instead of Home Depot a lot of times. It costs a little more, but they ALWAYS get me just what I need. 

[bullets13]

I don't really understand how Wal-Mart isn't losing billions in thefts.  There are a lot of people that there are going to walk out with stuff, not scan everything, etc.  that bag checker is only hitting a small percentage of people, and isn't checking that hard.  Even if he does catch someone, he isn't going to try and stop someone from running.  

[5GallonBucket]

2 hours ago, bullets13 said:

I don't really understand how Wal-Mart isn't losing billions in thefts.  There are a lot of people that there are going to walk out with stuff, not scan everything, etc.  that bag checker is only hitting a small percentage of people, and isn't checking that hard.  Even if he does catch someone, he isn't going to try and stop someone from running.  

Walmart. Just another enabler.

[SmashMouth]

9 hours ago, bullets13 said:

I don't really understand how Wal-Mart isn't losing billions in thefts.  There are a lot of people that there are going to walk out with stuff, not scan everything, etc.  that bag checker is only hitting a small percentage of people, and isn't checking that hard.  Even if he does catch someone, he isn't going to try and stop someone from running.  

I refuse to let them check my receipt at Walmart. They ask to see my receipt and I politely tell them, “No thank you. The cashier already saw it.” They look at me like I just slapped a baby in the face. Lol. I don’t care. 

[BS Wildcats]

On 1/30/2021 at 10:27 AM, TxHoops said:

 

Count me in with the “old heads” (as the kids now say).  I still like someone to scan and bag my groceries.  I even prefer to throw a high school kid a few bucks for loading them in my vehicle.  We are steadily losing good old human interaction for the sake of “convenience.”  I can’t help but wonder if that isn’t contributing to our society’s decline...

My first job was at Brookshire Bros.  I would make more on tips, than I did on my paycheck.