It's interesting if the intent really is to have employees unload directly to shelves. The creates a very small buffer with limited ability to handle supply pr

It's interesting if the intent really is to have employees unload directly to shelves. The creates a very small buffer with limited ability to handle supply problems or spiky customer demand. Also your store begins to look kinda crappy if your shelves are maybe even 50% stocked so your realistic queue is maybe 1/2 shelf space. Maybe they think their logistics and prediction tech are good enough to not need the buffer. Anecdotally I shopped at a whole foods last week and it indeed had stocking issues. I had to stand on a shelf to reach far enough back to grab the last bottle of a salad dressing I was after. Sure your backrooms are empty but it's kinda a shitty customer experience.