Have we hit peak self-checkout?

Self-checkouts at supermarkets elicit strong opinions. People either love them or hate them.

Many YourLifeChoices members hate them, like really, really hate them. If that’s you, good news: some reports claim we may have hit ‘peak self-scan’, and their popularity may begin to wane. 

Self-scanning started rolling out across Australia in 2008. The appeal for supermarkets was clear: less staff, more profit. We know that because prices certainly didn’t go down. 

They hit their stride during the pandemic when we were all trying to stay away from each other and now supermarkets, and certain department stores, seem addicted to them.

Some people like them because they don’t have to interact with another human, others loathe them for the same reason. 

And there is another subset of people who believe we are losing valuable entry-level jobs, which is probably true. However, if you have ever worked in a supermarket, or spoken to anyone who has, they generally hate working the checkouts due to the abuse and poor attitude of customers, and that’s even before the pandemic seemed to make many of us lose our manners.

Coles and Woolworths

Australia’s Coles and Woolworths went for them in a big way. Coles probably even more. My local Coles won’t open a checkout after about 5.30. I tried another Coles but that one had intimidating-looking gates that open and close seemingly at their whim. It’s why I rarely shop there anymore.

But for all the duopoly’s enthusiasm for the self-checkout, there is a growing movement that is slowly weaning themselves off this trend.

The biggest problem is theft. Self-checkouts are a boon for the light-fingered; that’s why there are often more cameras than at a Donald Trump press conference. But stock ‘shrinkage’ is still happening. Favourite thieving tactics are scanning something at a lesser price or not scanning a card for payment. People are getting away with it because precious few staff members are willing to confront them, and with aggressive customers, who can blame them? I know of one supermarket staff member who was off work for a year after a shoplifter beat him following a confrontation. He was a burly man, now imagine a female staff member willing to do that.

Feeling entitled

People also believe that if they are doing the work of the supermarket, then they are entitled to a ‘discount’.

Earlier this year, Greenslopes IGA in Queensland announced it would be removing all self-checkouts due to the crushing amount of theft. 

QUT retail expert Gary Mortimer told the ABC that theft was damaging all sizes of business. 

“It’s significant. It’s not just the big supermarkets and the big retailers that are impacted,” Mr Mortimer told ABC Radio Brisbane.

“I think we’re going to see more of this take place, where self-service is one of those areas where we do see a significant lift in shop stealing.”

Mr Mortimer estimated that theft was costing Australian businesses about $9 billion a year. 

Several overseas supermarket chains have also reined in their self-checkouts. Booths, Asda and Morrisons in the UK are scaling back to original checkouts, with Morrisons admitting they may have gone “too far”. 

Drive productivity

Although they drive some productivity, “some shoppers dislike it, mainly when they have a full trolley”, Morrisons chief executive Rami Baitiéh, told The Telegraph.

The UK is also struggling with theft. Last year shoplifting hit a record high, with recorded offences up one-third on the previous year. 

Will Australia follow suit and give pause to the relentless rollout of self-checkouts? Probably not, because there’s too much profit in it. And the duopoly knows we essentially don’t have a choice.

It’s okay for individual IGAs to make a choice, but we’re probably not going to see sweeping change.

Do you like self-checkouts? Why not share your opinion in the comments section below?

Also read: How much does your supermarket know about you?