Self-checkout for many retailers has proven to be a failure since its inception.
Retailers such as Target, Dollar General, and Walmart have reported billions of dollars in losses.
Dollar General is just one of several companies to announce big changes to the self-checkout program.
DG is set to remove self-checkout registers from 300 stores. CEO Todd Vasos told analysts on March 14, 2024, that revenue loss is the driving factor behind removing the machines.
Certain cities in Florida, Miami being one, are on the list. Miami is considered a high crime area and theft at participating DG stores has seen a substantial increase in merchandise theft since the machines were put in place.
While some of the revenue loss is due to theft, some of the loss is because people refuse to use self-checkout. Analysts say that if there is not a staffed register available, many customers simply walk out.
Target reported that the company may start limiting self-checkout to 10 items or less, while Walmart says it might have self-checkout open during non-peak times.
Walmart and Target said they will not charge a membership fee to use self-checkout as initially reported by many media outlets.
