Asda to focus on staffed checkouts across network
Published on: Aug 16, 2024
Despite self-service systems being well-received by customers, the British retailer recognized limitations in the deployment of this technology.
Asda has announced plans to increase the number of staff at checkouts in its stores after recognizing the limitations of self-service solutions.
The retailer acknowledged that while self-checkouts have performed well with customers, it aims to focus on additional hours in staffing manned checkouts. According to a recent report by the BBC, the chain has declared that this decision is not driven by a preference for human assistance by shoppers.
Michael Gleeson, Chief Financial Officer at Asda, stated that the company has reached a threshold regarding the number of self-checkouts that work effectively for customers. "We feel we’ve got the balance just about right," Gleeson said, adding that the focus is not on increasing the number of checkouts but on ensuring more staff are available at existing ones.
Asda plans to add more staff throughout the year, emphasizing that the increased employee presence is unrelated to concerns about shoplifting. Nevertheless, shoplifting in England and Wales has reached its highest level in 20 years, with 430,000 offenses recorded by police last year, according to the Office for National Statistics.
