Morrisons reduces self-checkouts as boss admits tech ‘went a bit too far’

Morrisons is to uninstall some of its self-checkouts as chief executive Rami Baitiéh admitted the technology had gone a “bit too far”.

Baitiéh said that the supermarket is actively “reviewing the balance between self-checkouts and manned tills” with the intention to remove some from stores, reported The Telegraph.

He said: “Morrisons went a bit too far with the self-checkout. This had the advantage of driving some productivity. However, some shoppers dislike it, mainly when they have a full trolley.”

He added that the increase of self-checkouts had led to a rise of shoplifting, a comment that follows Morrisons conducting an analysis of the technology across its stores.

The CEO said: “We reviewed the whole estate and it appeared that 20 stores must balance the number of self-checkouts versus the number of tills.”

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Pointing to one example, a store in Brough in Yorkshire, Baitiéh said colleagues and customers were “very satisfied with the change” that saw some self-checkouts axed in place for four new manned tills.

It is not the first time a major supermarket has cut back on self-checkouts in place of manned versions.

In November last year, high-end grocer Booths axed its self-service checkouts in all but two of its 27 stores in a bid to boost its premium store experience, amid of customers reporting a growing sense of frustration due to the challenges arising from self-service.

The move comes contrary to the wider industry shift, which has until now seen supermarkets gradually replace manned checkouts with automated self-service tills.

Many rival grocers have recently bolstered their own self-checkout technology, including Sainsbury’s which earlier this month signed a new seven year digital commerce deal which will upgrade its 22,500 checkouts across its estate of supermarkets, convenience stores and petrol stations.