Shopping psychology ('splain this to me, Lucy)

[Ace-Garageguy]

38 minutes ago, bobss396 said:

I used to drive a tow truck in & out of NYC between 1978 and 1981. Mostly The Bronx and Queens.

We would stop in Queens to bodegas and other small shops to pick up smokes and coffee.

Some in Queens were partitioned off. The storefront was set back enough to keep "shoppers" out of the rain.

You could not walk into the building at all. Put your order in, they had people to gather everything and deliver it to the front counter. After paying, the bags were slid out of a plexiglass window. I'd say that shoplifting was about 0%.

So...I'm assuming those were in high-crime areas.

It's just so special that that is becoming the norm.

Ain't progress grand?

[bobss396]

18 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

So...I'm assuming those were in high-crime areas.

It's just so special that that is becoming the norm.

Ain't progress grand?

It was no worse than many areas in Queens and Brooklyn. I guess that sone shop owners got jacked up one time too many.

[sidcharles]

i take it no one here has tried to buy cigarettes or baby formula in the past 20 years. 

[Ace-Garageguy]

17 minutes ago, sidcharles said:

i take it no one here has tried to buy cigarettes or baby formula in the past 20 years. 

Cigarettes had already been removed from easy access 25 years ago when I 'quit' smoking, but last time I bought an 'occasional' pack, the price was such a shocker I'm surprised they don't keep 'em in a vault now.

I didn't realize baby formula was locked up too, but knowing how evil some people can be, it's probably not a bad idea.

Still...it didn't used to be this way, and I STILL lament the passing of a world where locking everything down was NOT the norm.

Edited 1 hour ago by Ace-Garageguy
punctiliousness

[bobthehobbyguy]

Although theft is the reason for locking up items the one problem I see is understaffing as a contributing factor. I used to shop at coscto and they always had a person checking what was in the cart and the receipt. Walmart only has someone mark the receipt so it can't be reused.

Locking up everything is fine if there is enough staff to open cases. Walmart tends to understaff and the creates a horrible shopping experience. My sister has commented it makes more sense to use parking lot pickup if you have enough items that are locked up.. An added advantage for Walmart is that those transactions are credit or debit. Eliminating cash means no cash drawers to be counted which saves money. In addition no cash means no armored car pickups which saves money.

Just something to think about.