Believe it or not, many years ago that is the ONLY way it was done, many sales clerks made a good commission with this method. Which may be the reason they went to Register clerks, no one really did any salesmanship, no one reaps a benefit.
In the olden days, the salesperson was very helpful or a nuisance, depending if your were looking or shopping. lol
Although I seldom shop at Sears, in some departments there is a person on the floor that carries all the way through with the transaction.
I bought a chainsaw last week and an associate made the sale and cashed it out.
The same is true for electronics. I don’t know about clothing