A SHOPPER at Michaels has been left furious over a recent store experience that left them without assistance from staff.
They claimed that self-checkout was the only way customers were allowed to pay during their recent trip.
2
2
“@MichaelsStores horrible customer service,” fumed the customer, Matt, in a post to X earlier this month.
Matt explained that he wanted a traditional checkout lane with a cashier to assist him in purchasing his items.
After doing just that, he found no traditional lines available and claimed a Michaels employee even demanded that he use the self-checkout to pay and leave.
“No line, started walking towards the HUMAN cashier, and she INSISTED that we use SELF-CHECKOUT, Instead of doing her job,” Matt wrote.
Read More on Self-Checkout
APOLOGY ISSUED
Michaels was quick to respond to the complaint and apologized.
“Hello Matt, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us,” the retailer replied.
“We’re sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
“We will pass your feedback along to the right teams,” it added.
It’s unclear if the incident was ever resolved.
Michaels certainly isn’t the only retailer to come under fire from consumers over the past year for not having enough cashiers or focusing predominantly on self-checkout.
CHECKOUT CHAOS
Walmart, Target, Kroger, and Lowe’s — among others — have all faced backlash over decisions surrounding self-checkout.
Both Walmart and Target have had individual store locations decide when to open and close the kiosks and how many.
Target caused considerable controversy after it changed all of its self-checkout areas to “Express Self-Checkout” in the spring of last year with a 10-item limit.
Not only did customers claim the limit caused long lines and wait times, but select Target stores significantly decreased their available cashiered lanes, leaving those with more than 10 items little options.
Latest self-checkout changes
Retailers are evolving their self-checkout strategy in an effort to speed up checkout times and reduce theft.
Walmart shoppers were shocked when self-checkout lanes at various locations were made available only for Walmart+ members.
Other customers reported that self-checkout was closed during specific hours, and more cashiers were offered instead.
While shoppers feared that shoplifting fueled the updates, a Walmart spokesperson revealed that store managers are simply experimenting with ways to improve checkout performance.
One bizarre experiment included an RFID-powered self-checkout kiosk that would stop the fiercely contested receipt checks.
However, that test run has been phased out.
At Target, items are being limited at self-checkout.
Last fall, the brand surveyed new express self-checkout lanes across 200 stores with 10 items or less for more convenience.
As of March 2024, this policy has been expanded across 2,000 stores in the US.
Shoppers have also spotted their local Walmart stores restricting customers to 15 items or less to use self-checkout machines.
Walmart, following Target’s lead, is also testing a 15-item limit at self-checkouts in some stores.
It’s caused similar complaints, and someone was left confused at their local Walmart a few months ago when employees shut all cashiered lanes and left only self-checkout open with the 15-item limit.
Those with more than 15 items were left with nowhere to turn, and several left their carts behind and walked out.
Lowe’s self-checkout has also been a point of contention, with an elderly customer earlier this month claiming there wasn’t a single cashier and he was forced to use the kiosks when he didn’t know how.
A Kroger shopper also claimed that the supermarket chain doesn’t “value people above profit” after finding no cashiers to help them on New Year’s Eve, and threatened to boycott.
Other retailers like Publix also recently doubled down on a decision to axe a self-checkout payment option, further complicating the process.
In October, a Home Depot customer also cried out after an employee allegedly yelled at them while using a self-checkout kiosk “like TSA.”
