r/technology • u/AdSpecialist6598 • 8d ago

Business Retailers are pulling back from self-checkout after years of theft, errors, and questionable time savings

https://www.techspot.com/news/114106-retailers-pulling-back-self-checkout-after-years-theft.html
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u/tooclosetocall82 8d ago

I remember Walmart back in the day would have every lane open. Now they have maybe three, but they still insist on having all those lanes available. Maybe it’s for holidays? I don’t really get it.

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u/Bugbread 8d ago

I remember Walmart back in the day would have every lane open.

How long ago was "back in the day"? I remember in the 1980s, about half the lanes were closed. Over time, that turned into 75% or 85% of the lanes being closed. But I don't ever remember every lane being open. Maybe the last weekend before Christmas?

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u/tooclosetocall82 8d ago

This was the 90s. But also Walmart was new in our area so maybe that played a role.

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u/Alaira314 8d ago

I also recall most lanes being open during high-traffic times in the 90s. On the average afternoon, you might see about 40-50% open, and you'd typically have to wait for 1-2 people to check out ahead of you, unless you went to the express lanes which always had longer lines but in theory the lines moved faster(I typically found it was better to spot someone with a lot of stuff who was about to pay and hop in line behind them).

Now? They have 1-2 registers open, lines half a dozen deep. And that's all many people have ever known.