WALMART has been criticized by customers frustrated with regular changes at stores across the country.
Instead of complaining about the recent changes to self-checkout, shoppers have now expressed their annoyance at not being able to find products.
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This comes after a new navigation app emerged offering customers a map and directions to participating stores and shopping centers.
“Do you know how dumb you have to be to need a map in a supermarket?” a shocked buyer he said on X, formerly Twitter.
However, this opinion was not fully shared as many customers noted that it could be useful when shopping at Walmart.
“I disagree. Walmart seems to change the store organization every year,” said one he said.
“So one time I need to find a 3m command strip and I go to where they’re supposed to be, and they’re not, now I have to pull up the app and find out which aisle it’s in, haha.”
“This is for when Walmart decides to change the store layout 50 million times in less than 3 months and you go and ask the employees where things are and they don’t even know,” another added.
“Happens all the time at my local Walmart.”
Meanwhile, a third questioned“Why do you say this as if supermarkets aren’t constantly changing store layouts for the express purpose of getting you to stay in the store longer?
“Walmart and Target do this all the time and it’s annoying to have to refigure the layout every time they decide to change.”
However, a new London-based technology company could offer buyers a prime solution.
Hyper is the company behind “creating the most accurate indoor location systems,” according to its website.
Founder Andrew Hart posted a clip on X, formerly Twitter, to demonstrate how the technology works.
Just like the maps app, the Hyper app allows customers to enter their shopping list and then provide directions around the store to locate the items.
“Huge store, where can I find that screw I need?” he he wrote in the caption of another demo clip.
“The accuracy of indoor navigation and location is insane,” the founder added.
Despite warnings from shoppers that retailers may not opt for the technology as it means shoppers don’t see other items on their way through stores, this may be an increasingly used concept.
“Today we signed an agreement with a global retailer to implement it in all stores,” Hart he said last week without revealing the name of the company he signed with.
Latest self-checkout changes
Retailers are evolving their self-checkout strategy in an effort to speed checkout times and reduce theft.
Walmart shoppers were shocked when self-checkout lanes at several locations were made available only to Walmart+ members.
Other customers reported that self-checkout was closed at specific times and they were offered more cashiers.
While shoppers feared that shoplifting would fuel 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 thwart fiercely contested receipt checks.
However, this test has been discontinued.
At Target, items are being limited in auto-checkout.
Last fall, the brand researched new express self-checkout lanes in 200 stores with 10 items or less for added convenience.
In March 2024, this policy was expanded to 2,000 stores in the US.
Shoppers in the US wait for the technology to be introduced as they scramble through multiple aisles to find a specific item.
“Lowes/Home Depot are actually the killer use case for this,” said one shopper in response to a demo clip.
“‘Where can I find a 1 gang 4 New Work box? ‘Here, try sorting through this entire aisle of hundreds of different electrical boxes, oh by the way, it might be out of stock.'”
However, the Lowe’s and Walmart apps already offer maps to help customers find their way around stores, but with shoppers reporting constant layout changes, more help may be needed.
Regular layout changes are often a tactic used by retailers to help achieve a variety of goals.
This means that regular shoppers are forced to walk more, which increases the chances of purchasing items they may not have previously seen.
Additionally, it also helps to get rid of certain products and combat theft.
US Sun has reached out to Walmart and Hyper for comment.
In the meantime, read about how Target is following in Walmart’s footsteps with rollbacks and a big change that’s on the way.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
