3 ms·

I had the same reservations when I first saw these machines, the software was buggy and hard to use and people just weren't used to it. However a few stores ne

by jiggy2011 14y ago

I had the same reservations when I first saw these machines, the software was buggy and hard to use and people just weren't used to it. However a few stores near me have now removed human checkouts entirely and just have 1 member of staff floating around to deal with problems. The queues are dramatically smaller, the software has gotten better and people are now more used to using it. They are still slower than a human checkout for very large quantities of shopping, but if I want to make a very large order it's easier just to do it online anyway.

yardie 14y ago
However a few stores near me have now removed human checkouts entirely and just have 1 member of staff floating around to deal with problems. Like the Apple Store? Who has done away with the idea of checking out completely. I can see self checkout working at a boutique where you may buy half a dozen things and I've done it at the Boots, CVS, Apple store. But that bi-monthly food shopping trip, complete with coupons, is completely unworkable with those machines. I've found my online shopping has actually decreased because I'm eating healthier. I'm eating more fresh veg and meats which you need to physically inspect. Plus, the online shops have a 60-100€ minimum and I can't plan that far in advanced.
- jiggy2011 14y ago
  This was at Tesco, if the queuing is short enough perhaps you don't need to buy so much stuff in one go and if delivery gets cheaper then online purchasing gets more attractive.
- larrys 14y ago
  "Like the Apple Store? Who has done away with the idea of checking out completely. I can see self checkout working at a boutique " Apple and boutique same thing high price and margins on the products (generally). Important to factor in that at the Apple store the margins are extremely high. So this is not the local drugstore making pennies when selling razor blades. You can't really lift the computers and desirable products and the other things come with enough margin to cover any theft. If you've ever priced some of either the add ons (like hard drives) laptop bags vs. what you can buy them on Amazon for you can see how much they are making and that well covers the cost of some shoplifting. And on the Apple products even larger. An Apple lightning to 30 pin connector sells for $39. I wouldn't even want to guess how cheap this is to manufacture (I'm talking about marginal cost of course) in other words what their loss is if one is lifted.

yardie 14y ago

However a few stores near me have now removed human checkouts entirely and just have 1 member of staff floating around to deal with problems. Like the Apple Store? Who has done away with the idea of checking out completely. I can see self checkout working at a boutique where you may buy half a dozen things and I've done it at the Boots, CVS, Apple store. But that bi-monthly food shopping trip, complete with coupons, is completely unworkable with those machines. I've found my online shopping has actually decreased because I'm eating healthier. I'm eating more fresh veg and meats which you need to physically inspect. Plus, the online shops have a 60-100€ minimum and I can't plan that far in advanced.

jiggy2011 14y ago
This was at Tesco, if the queuing is short enough perhaps you don't need to buy so much stuff in one go and if delivery gets cheaper then online purchasing gets more attractive.
larrys 14y ago
"Like the Apple Store? Who has done away with the idea of checking out completely. I can see self checkout working at a boutique " Apple and boutique same thing high price and margins on the products (generally). Important to factor in that at the Apple store the margins are extremely high. So this is not the local drugstore making pennies when selling razor blades. You can't really lift the computers and desirable products and the other things come with enough margin to cover any theft. If you've ever priced some of either the add ons (like hard drives) laptop bags vs. what you can buy them on Amazon for you can see how much they are making and that well covers the cost of some shoplifting. And on the Apple products even larger. An Apple lightning to 30 pin connector sells for $39. I wouldn't even want to guess how cheap this is to manufacture (I'm talking about marginal cost of course) in other words what their loss is if one is lifted.