Comment by davej | Hacker News Reader

Comment by davej | Hacker News Reader

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A couple of things I've noticed here at Aldi in Ireland. Particularly interested in the psychological aspects:

- The packing area (after the till) is quite small. This means that if you're not packing quickly and putting items back into the trolley then the till operator will have to stop scanning because of the backlog. They will often make subtle eye-contact (with a smile) when they have to stop, this puts the shopper under pressure to pack quicker. I'm a fast packer so it doesn't affect me but I've seen it with other people.

- The till operator will ask you "Cash or Card" before you have finished packing. Another nudge to hurry you on to the next stage.

- They will open a new till the second the queue goes beyond the edge of the conveyor belt. Often they will open up the till for just one customer and then close it again as the queues have subsided. I've seen a large variance in this though, some Aldi's are lazer-like, others are more laid-back.

This is not the packing area though. In Aldis you are generally not expected to pack at the till at all. What should be happening is that you put all your shopping right back into the trolley, then take it away and bag your stuff at your pace at the window ledge, getting out of the way of next shoppers.

I don't know about Ireland, but in the UK there's been obviously some backlash from the customers who aren't used to this model. I've seen arguments break out.

> This is not the packing area though.

Yeah but if you pack fast enough and have your bags already open on the trolley then you can it done at the till.

This is not the case in my home town, Enschede, less than 5 miles from the German border in The Netherlands. The lines are terribly slow there compared to other supermarkets. I usually spend more than half of my time waiting in the line. (I only go to Aldi for a few products they carry.) There are more and more shops where you do the check-out yourself either at a scan station or with a hand-held scanner. I guess in the Netherlands the price/efficency difference between the various supermarket chains is less.

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