‘Where has the world come to?’ Walmart shoppers cry after pens and energy drinks are locked away – as chain returns to self-checkout

WALMART shoppers are shocked to find even cheap items locked behind glass in the national retailer’s latest move to curb theft.

Several all over the country The chains announced sweeping changes to their store designs and self-checkout policies as theft took an increasing cut into company profits.

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Walmart executives said “shrinkage” — the loss of products due to theft — was responsible for more than $6.5 billion in losses last year.

Customers were left wondering what was going on next in the crackdown on shoplifting, when store leadership said earlier this year it would remove self-checkout kiosks from some locations.

Now shoppers have the answer: more products under lock and key.

Photos of the protected goods were shared in the X by Alexander Carrillo (@godsmackfan459).

“Man, they locked up the pens here at my Walmart,” he wrote alongside a photo of Bic pens behind glass.

Other customers noticed too.

“Even the razors and shaving cream are locked up too… who’s going to steal pens and shaving cream,” one person responded.

Riana (@coffeeinamug) also contacted X to complain about the trend and ask what it says about our society.

“My God, Walmart locked the energy drinks,” she said in publish.

“Where has the world come???”

Bye, self-checkout

Walmart, Target and many national retailers have been fighting an uphill battle against theft for years, leading to merchandise arrests.

Now Walmart is closing many of its self-checkout machines in a broader effort to stem lost profits due to theft.

This week, two more stores were added to the list of stores without self-checkout in St. Louis, Missouri and Cleveland, Ohio.

“As part of our announced plans for additional investments and facility improvements nationwide,” Walmart said in a statement shared by Fox Business.

“We have decided to remove the self-checkout lanes and replace them with staffed lanes at select locations, including our store in Shrewsbury, Missouri.”

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 more cashiers were offered in its place.

While shoppers feared that shoplifting would fuel the upgrades, 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.

LOVED AND HATED

Many shoppers have felt strongly about self-checkout machines since they debuted at Walmart in recent years.

Some customers praised the kiosks for speeding up the checkout process, but many others complained.

Social media users have complained about self-checkout causing them to register items incorrectly or accidentally forget to scan something.

They said self-checkout led to checking receipts, which many people said was a hassle and made them feel like criminals.

So when Walmart representatives began announcing that self-checkout machines would be removed from some locations, customers were also divided.

Walmart store closures were also in the headlines.

Store leaders shared that four locations in Ohio, California and Maryland would lose their Walmarts later this year.

Walmart did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The US Sun.