[ponygirl]

I keep reading about how retail salespeople are being laid off "because of the internet." I'm sorry, but every time I go into a store lately, I have to search to find someone to help me. I'm talking department stores like Macy's, Bloomie's, etc. and this recently happened to me at a Sears where I walked 3/4 the circumference of the store before I found an employee to talk to. They are chronically understaffed and that's not the internet's fault. The only place where this has not happened to me is Nordstrom - known for their customer service.

My other pet peeve is the "self service" grocery lines. These are fine if you have two items. But when you are forced to use them because there are no cashiers? Ridiculous.

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

Which came first, internet selling lowered sales in retail stores so they couldn’t afford to staff at a higher level, or shoppers prefer internet because of low staffing at retail stores?

[Sherman Logan]

Or if they gave you a discount for checking yourself out.

[Sans-Culotte]

...every time I go into a store lately, I have to search to find someone to help me.

I think the missing employees were let go because of the recession. However, many companies do not understand that while they are cutting payroll, in many cases, they are cutting profits as people refuse to shop in stores where there is no one to take their money.

I walked out on some groceries in a store that had one checkout line open. I have walked out on Home Depot because the only lines open were "self checkout" and there were long lines there. The business owners are fools to lose business this way. They are practically driving customer to the internet.

[Dr. Sivana]

My other pet peeve is the "self service" grocery lines. These are fine if you have two items. But when you are forced to use them because there are no cashiers? Ridiculous.

They aren't too useful if you have expiring/marked down items and lots of produce, either.