By C. Perera, JadeTimes News
Asda has announced plans to increase staff at checkout counters, acknowledging that it has reached the optimal limit for self service tills. The supermarket chain stated that while self checkouts are convenient for many customers, it intends to allocate more hours to manned checkouts to enhance the shopping experience.
Asda clarified that this decision is not driven by a preference among customers for human assistance over machines. However, other retailers, such as the northern supermarket chain Booths, have nearly eliminated selfservice tills, arguing that customer service provided by staff offers a better experience. Booths made this decision late last year, emphasizing the importance of personal interaction in customer satisfaction.
Supermarket shoppers have previously voiced concerns about self-service tills to the BBC. For example, Pennie Orger, who is registered blind, mentioned that self- ervice options are not viable for her due to her severe visual impairment. She noted that while her guide dog is highly capable, it cannot assist with using the machines. Similarly, deaf customers may struggle with self-checkouts, which rely on verbal instructions.
Michael Gleeson, Asda’s Chief Financial Officer, explained that the supermarket has reached a point where the current balance of self checkouts and scan and go services is optimal for customers. He stated that Asda has decided to invest in more staff for manned checkouts, focusing on enhancing the existing physical infrastructure of the stores rather than increasing the number of checkouts. Gleeson emphasized that this initiative is about adding more colleagues to checkout roles, not expanding the number of tills.
Asda plans to implement these changes throughout the rest of the year, clarifying that the increased staffing is not in response to rising shoplifting incidents. Despite this, it is worth noting that shoplifting in England and Wales reached a 20-year high last year, with police recording 430,000 shoplifting offenses, according to the Office for National Statistics.
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