Supermarkets discussion

[The exile]

More widely, it’s *another* set of products that have to be treated differently, and the only one that is actually popular with under 16s. There is a very low level of attempted alcohol purchasing by those not entitled, and virtually nil tobacco because it’s all behind the counter

Showing the long-term benefits of making it difficult. Not much is achievable in the time-frames politicians and social-media posters are capable of thinking in.

 

[johntea]

Just another reason not to use or trust those gadgets that are supposed to make your shopping experience quicker.

Not the supermarket but Amazon handily have a locker right outside the front door of the hotel I'm staying at so I ordered a couple of bits I needed...but unlike the usual lockers there is no screen or barcode scanner so they rely on you using a convoluted way of Bluetooth on your phone and the Amazon app to 'connect' to the locker to open it up which in the end turned out to be a lot easier said than done!

Even as a bit of a tech geek I was stood by it for almost 10 minutes trying to work out how to open the damn thing (I almost considered looking for a crow bar ) - the most difficult part being where to locate the option in the app to start the connection process

...it turned out the option was hidden away in the super logical area of 'Track package'! I would have never thought to look there because I don't need to track my package, I know it has been delivered and I'm stood outside the locker it is trapped in!

 

[DannyMich2018]

Seems Lidl have a new style of self service checkout with a large portrait screen rather than the usual smaller squarer style, they've been fitted as replacements to the originally fitted ones at Portland whilst also increasing the number of them by more than double. Didn't buy anything so haven't used one yet.

Also it seems that some of the assisted self-service checkouts in Tesco can have the screen/scanner/scales part rotated so it can be used as a regular checkout as required.

Yes regarding Tesco I've noticed that in 2 stores I've been into.
I presume at very busy times they'll be manually staffed not self service.

 

[Peter Sarf]

Yes regarding Tesco I've noticed that in 2 stores I've been into.
I presume at very busy times they'll be manually staffed not self service.

So that suggests manual checkouts are quicker than self service..........
(OK - but more expensive to run)

 

[317 forever]

A few days ago I saw tins of chicken in white sauce and chilli con carne. Sainsbury's own brand cost £2.40, while Princes cost £2.50, reduced to £2.25 for Nectar card holders.

It seemed odd that they were making their own brand tins more expensive than Princes for Nectar card holders.

 

[JamesT]

A few days ago I saw tins of chicken in white sauce and chilli con carne. Sainsbury's own brand cost £2.40, while Princes cost £2.50, reduced to £2.25 for Nectar card holders.

It seemed odd that they were making their own brand tins more expensive than Princes for Nectar card holders.

Supermarket promotions are often funded by the manufacturer, at least in part. So they’ll likely still be making the same profit whereas they wouldn’t if they dropped their own prices.

 

[styles]

Supermarket promotions are often funded by the manufacturer, at least in part. So they’ll likely still be making the same profit whereas they wouldn’t if they dropped their own prices.

This. Not to mention some own brand products may be loss-leaders to begin with, and the branded product offers serve the same purpose (perhaps even to a greater extent). It's not like canned chilli is going to go off before they sell it

 

[Hadders]

Back to Red Bull, Sainsbury's have been deploying security caps on single cans of Red Bull in some convenience stores for 2-3 years now. In convenience stores Red Bull single cans is often the highest single item for shrinkage!

So that suggests manual checkouts are quicker than self service..........
(OK - but more expensive to run)

It sepends how fast the customers are at self scan! I find the slowest method of paying in a supermarket is staffed checkouts.

 

[Peter Sarf]

Morrisons yesterday. Heinz (565ml approx) Mayonaise £3.25 each (£%.75/i), on offer as 2 for £5 (£4.43/l). BUT 775ml for £3.90 (£5.03/l. So one larger bottle was cheaper than one smaller bottle but two smaller bottles became cheapest.

Not a lot in it BUT then in Lidl with no offer or gimmicks 775ml was only £2.99 (£3.85/l).

Now I am lucky I can do mental arithmetic fairly easily. The hard bit is persuading the missus that price per litre or price per kilo is more important than any "offers" so we never get to the arithmetic stage.

She will not even read the price per unit of measure on the label. Sometimes that is wrong btw - often explained by using the wrong units. eg price divided by weight in kilos but shown as per gram.

Long shot is many people find it easier to judge by being told how much the reduction is even if it is still overpriced.

 

[AM9]

It sepends how fast the customers are at self scan! I find the slowest method of paying in a supermarket is staffed checkouts.

My choice at Waitrose (where 90%+ of our shopping is done) is between staffed desks and quick scan/self scan is available. Quick scan is as fast as the shopper can pay having scanned each item into their bags when pick from the shelves, whereas self scan is manually doing the same as a manned desk does - but much more slowly, scanning/weighing each item on the kiosk terminal. The problem is that self scan shoppers frequently turn up with a large trolley full to the brim and take 5 minutes or more to pick each item from the trolley, place on scales and scan (or just scan) and then place it on the 'bagging area' scales. This means that then 9 kiosks can be clogged up unnecessarily delaying everybody including shoppers with one or two items.

 

[Harpo]

Now I am lucky I can do mental arithmetic fairly easily. The hard bit is persuading the missus that price per litre or price per kilo is more important than any "offers" so we never get to the arithmetic stage.

And the supermarkets do their best to screw the numerate by pricing fruit and veg ‘per unit’. I’d bet my granny they’re buying them wholesale by weight.

 

[BuhSnarf]

It sepends how fast the customers are at self scan! I find the slowest method of paying in a supermarket is staffed checkouts.

Manual check outs are absolutely faster than someone self scanning, mainly because the self scan software is not optimised for speed but for not confusing the customer and lack of loss (weighing every product.) but the main reason is that the person operating the machine is someone who is trained to do that and they do it all day long, so even the worst checkout operator is going to be faster than the average SCO user.

But... you can put in 10 self checkouts in the space of 3 manned tills, therefore you can be serving 10 people at the same time so it "looks" like self check out is quicker as the queue goes down quicker, every few seconds someone is moving forward. But of course this is just perception. And usually as well, out of the three manned tills there might only be one open. Gone are the days where you'd have 30+ tills at large Tescos all running at once.

And of course, most people struggle on SCO as they're not used to finding barcodes, reading the screen, weighing the product, clearing errors etc. However, as someone who used to work in retail I can absolutely scan faster than the SCO can keep up (because it has to weigh each item etc) and if I was on an actual till I could just chuck it down the chute being even faster. The main delays on manned checkouts are waiting for customers to get their money out, have a chat etc.

 

[SuspectUsual]

And the supermarkets do their best to screw the numerate by pricing fruit and veg ‘per unit’. I’d bet my granny they’re buying them wholesale by weight.

You just lost your granny

Stock control where buying and selling is in different units of measure is an absolute nightmare. How do you keep accurate stock where 20kg of apples are put on the store stockfile when a delivery is made and they’re sold as eaches?

Variable weight / catch weight is a ballache for retailers and they are doing what they can to get rid of it. Most of the lower value / faster selling meats like chicken breasts are sold as fixed weight units nowadays

 

[styles]

I find self-service the issue isn't the ability of the customer to scan fast so much as it waiting to weigh everything. You can't scan the next item until the checkout has settled on what weight you've added to the scales, which no matter how fast you are at scanning, slows the whole process down. Then there's the inevitable item which is heavier or lighter than the weight range defined for the product on the checkout, so someone has to come and approve it. Then there's either waiting for staff approval for bags, or sneaking them on with heavy items like 4pts milk. Then waiting for a staff member to approve energy drinks or alcohol. Then if you're buying clothes or spirits or indeed cans of Red Bull, waiting for someone to remove the tag, which in some supermarkets they won't do until after you've paid; so you may have to wait for staff to come and approve a Red Bull, then pay, then wait for staff again to remove the tags.

They're fine if you're just picking up a few things but I don't use them for "big shops".

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Then waiting for a staff member to approve energy drinks or alcohol.

Or even zero-alcohol products! Why is approval needed, BTW?

 

[Hadders]

You just lost your granny

Stock control where buying and selling is in different units of measure is an absolute nightmare. How do you keep accurate stock where 20kg of apples are put on the store stockfile when a delivery is made and they’re sold as eaches?

Variable weight / catch weight is a ballache for retailers and they are doing what they can to get rid of it. Most of the lower value / faster selling meats like chicken breasts are sold as fixed weight units nowadays

How many bananas are in a 18kg case? Answer - it depends on the time of year, smaller bananas in winter mean you get more in the case the case to get to 18kg and fewer in summer.

A supermarket can easily update their stock file by 18kg for each case of bananas that is delivered and decrement it by the weight sold, as long as they are correctly weighed at the checkout using the right PLU code.

If a supermarket is updating the stock file based on the number of bananas in each case then an average number will be used but it will never be 100% accurate.

In smaller stores bananas are often sold by the item rather than weight. This is for two reasons:

1. Customers wanting a single banana generally want to pay a fixed price, not have to worry about the price varying by weight (also means it is easier to include in meal deals)
2. Smaller stores have a smaller range so they really don't want the cost of putting scales on every checkout for a small handful of items that are sold by weight

Whether you're selling by weight or item regular stock counts are required to keep the inventory accurate.

 

[Peter Sarf]

Manual check outs are absolutely faster than someone self scanning, mainly because the self scan software is not optimised for speed but for not confusing the customer and lack of loss (weighing every product.) but the main reason is that the person operating the machine is someone who is trained to do that and they do it all day long, so even the worst checkout operator is going to be faster than the average SCO user.

But... you can put in 10 self checkouts in the space of 3 manned tills, therefore you can be serving 10 people at the same time so it "looks" like self check out is quicker as the queue goes down quicker, every few seconds someone is moving forward. But of course this is just perception. And usually as well, out of the three manned tills there might only be one open. Gone are the days where you'd have 30+ tills at large Tescos all running at once.

And of course, most people struggle on SCO as they're not used to finding barcodes, reading the screen, weighing the product, clearing errors etc. However, as someone who used to work in retail I can absolutely scan faster than the SCO can keep up (because it has to weigh each item etc) and if I was on an actual till I could just chuck it down the chute being even faster. The main delays on manned checkouts are waiting for customers to get their money out, have a chat etc.

The biggest hold up I notice at manned tills is when someone does nothing about packing or putting stuff back in their trolley until AFTER they have paid. Those types can often be seen faffing around putting things in a bag then deciding it goes in another bag etc etc. I often watch them faffing Whereas I chuck it in the trolley, pay, then go to one side to pack my bags at my leisure from the trolley.

 

[DannyMich2018]

Manual check outs are absolutely faster than someone self scanning, mainly because the self scan software is not optimised for speed but for not confusing the customer and lack of loss (weighing every product.) but the main reason is that the person operating the machine is someone who is trained to do that and they do it all day long, so even the worst checkout operator is going to be faster than the average SCO user.

But... you can put in 10 self checkouts in the space of 3 manned tills, therefore you can be serving 10 people at the same time so it "looks" like self check out is quicker as the queue goes down quicker, every few seconds someone is moving forward. But of course this is just perception. And usually as well, out of the three manned tills there might only be one open. Gone are the days where you'd have 30+ tills at large Tescos all running at once.

And of course, most people struggle on SCO as they're not used to finding barcodes, reading the screen, weighing the product, clearing errors etc. However, as someone who used to work in retail I can absolutely scan faster than the SCO can keep up (because it has to weigh each item etc) and if I was on an actual till I could just chuck it down the chute being even faster. The main delays on manned checkouts are waiting for customers to get their money out, have a chat etc.

I work in a large supermarket and agree with the above. When you're on a staffed tills you try and scan as same speed as they pack and try and keep the queue down if it's busy.Customers trying to find coupons, open up their App and paying cash all can slow you down. Sundays also seen to see a lot of cash transactions compared to rest of the week I find.
Biggest things slowing SCO I find are things not scanning (barcodes not printed clearly with customers not realising they can type barcode in), detagging multiple items of clothes, alcohol etc, people putting bags on bagging area during shopping rather than at beginning and telling customers offers won't come off till you press pay at the end.

 

[PeterC]

My choice at Waitrose (where 90%+ of our shopping is done) is between staffed desks and quick scan/self scan is available. Quick scan is as fast as the shopper can pay having scanned each item into their bags when pick from the shelves, whereas self scan is manually doing the same as a manned desk does - but much more slowly, scanning/weighing each item on the kiosk terminal. The problem is that self scan shoppers frequently turn up with a large trolley full to the brim and take 5 minutes or more to pick each item from the trolley, place on scales and scan (or just scan) and then place it on the 'bagging area' scales. This means that then 9 kiosks can be clogged up unnecessarily delaying everybody including shoppers with one or two items.

That annoys me as well. On quiet days I have seen people push a fully loaded large trolley past a checkout with the cashier waiting in order to fiddle around in the self scan area.

As somebody who had done a lot of security work at gigs in pre SIA days that does ring a few alarm bells for me. On the other hand I also learned that if there is an easy way and a difficult way a surprising number of people seem to opt for the difficult one.

 

[The exile]

It sepends how fast the customers are at self scan! I find the slowest method of paying in a supermarket is staffed checkouts.

Until you need An age verification / dodgy barcode etc assistance at the same time as everyone else.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Until you need An age verification / dodgy barcode etc assistance at the same time as everyone else.

You need to get down to Aldi, if you get a good operator and you're organised and have packed your trolley correctly you can get a full shop through in not much longer than a minute.

 

[styles]

You need to get down to Aldi, if you get a good operator and you're organised and have packed your trolley correctly you can get a full shop through in not much longer than a minute.

Also some of the friendliest supermarket staff I've ever met. We use Aldi a lot at the moment and it's a really smooth experience, compared to say Tesco or Sainsbury's.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Also some of the friendliest supermarket staff I've ever met. We use Aldi a lot at the moment and it's a really smooth experience, compared to say Tesco or Sainsbury's.

Yes, I'd agree. The Aldi job is hard but from experience you're treated much better than in Tesco with better pay and usually smaller teams which helps you not feel "just a number."

 

[styles]

Yes, I'd agree. The Aldi job is hard but from experience you're treated much better than in Tesco with better pay and usually smaller teams which helps you not feel "just a number."

I remember looking at their graduate scheme when I was finishing uni. £52k starting salary, company car, travel opportunities. But they expect you to work hard, and you'll start working on the shop floor and in the warehouses so you appreciate what it's like to be a non-manager working there, etc.

 

[jon0844]

Yes, I'd agree. The Aldi job is hard but from experience you're treated much better than in Tesco with better pay and usually smaller teams which helps you not feel "just a number."

Tesco seems to be getting worse and worse at an alarming speed if you look at what employees share online (a lot of which I am pretty certain they're not allowed to!). One thing I find incredible is just how much money is lost in some stores per week.

One concern now is with their new delivery vans (I can't remember if I mentioned this a few weeks ago) and faulty reversing cameras that apparently led to a death, and the subsequent decision to ban the use of them if the cameras were faulty - but apparently management forced staff to use the vans regardless of the safety advice, with the union seemingly unable to do much (most staff say the union is far too close to Tesco to be effective, especially as staff can be replaced in a heartbeat).. then the story went to the media and Tesco relented and confirmed if a van fails it definitely must not be used (no idea what happens to the deliveries planned for that van) but online you can still see staff saying they're still being pressured to use them....

 

[gswindale]

Don't get me started on the new electric delivery vans.

We had an order delivered a few weeks back, where the driver had been struggling all day with the freezer section. When he got to us it was at -14C, but had started at something like +17C when he picked the van up, as the freezers don't chill properly whilst the vans are parked up (presumably charging). Had to return several ice creams as they were just mushL

 

[BuhSnarf]

Yes, my daughter works at Tesco and the conditions have got worse over the years, which is a shame as a few years back they were a decent company to work for.

You're not the only one who looked at the Aldi grad scheme. 60 hours a week is the norm, though.

 

[Tom B]

I work in a large supermarket and agree with the above. When you're on a staffed tills you try and scan as same speed as they pack and try and keep the queue down if it's busy.Customers trying to find coupons, open up their App and paying cash all can slow you down. Sundays also seen to see a lot of cash transactions compared to rest of the week I find.
Biggest things slowing SCO I find are things not scanning (barcodes not printed clearly with customers not realising they can type barcode in), detagging multiple items of clothes, alcohol etc, people putting bags on bagging area during shopping rather than at beginning and telling customers offers won't come off till you press pay at the end.

One thing I often think would be a good idea for tills is to have a designation of 'fast, efficient, in-and-out no frills' lanes, with operators who are speedy and hurl the shopping through at 200mph, and 'slow, calm, have a natter' lanes with the operators who are happy to have a chat and take their time. The customer could thus choose which option is preferred according to their own need.

 

[Harpo]

One thing I often think would be a good idea for tills is to have a designation of 'fast, efficient, in-and-out no frills' lanes, with operators who are speedy and hurl the shopping through at 200mph, and 'slow, calm, have a natter' lanes with the operators who are happy to have a chat and take their time. The customer could thus choose which option is preferred according to their own need.

The big French supermarkets only seem to have a single speed checkout and make Aldi look very slow. I’m not sure if an English accent is an extra motivation.

 

[Hadders]

One thing I often think would be a good idea for tills is to have a designation of 'fast, efficient, in-and-out no frills' lanes, with operators who are speedy and hurl the shopping through at 200mph, and 'slow, calm, have a natter' lanes with the operators who are happy to have a chat and take their time. The customer could thus choose which option is preferred according to their own need.

You’re lucky to get a staffed checkout of any description in some supermarkets these days so I doubt you’ll get fast and slow lanes!