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Child Item

Aldi and Lidl checkout system

Commotion Ocean

I regularly go to a local Aldi and Lidl and in principle, the queuing system is excellent.

Lob your stuff on the conveyor belt, move to end of the checkout, your stuff is quickly scanned through and you (just as quickly) put the stuff back into the trolley and pay.

Move to the preparation window sill things at the end and repack and organise there.

What p1sses me off about Aldi and Lidls here is that most people are organising and packing at the end of the tills.
The whole mantra of Lidl and Aldi is efficiency, which thus translates into cheaper goods due to less dwell time and wasted time. There is no justification to have more tills open in Lidl / Aldi if people just copped on and stopped packing at the till.

THAT'S WHAT THE WINDOW SILLS ARE THERE FOR :mad:

I've been to Aldi and Lidl in Germany and the Netherlands and you'll get dirty looks for holding up the system. People there actually respect the system there.

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demanufactured

Aldi/Lidl have the right idea.....
Fire your stuff onto the belt....fire it into the trolly..pay by card...bag it at the window...get the feck out as fast as possible....no faffing around....I'm driving out of the car park while some auld wan is fumbling for the exact change at the till and annoying the queue behind her.

limabromac

I just use a big box that I've duck taped together to make it stronger and it's sits neatly into the trolley and all my shopping goes into it.
No need for bags and my card board box is proper eco friendly..
For the nice summer days when I have no car,no children and only need a handful of items, I have a basket that I bring with me and bring my shopping home that way...

the_pen_turner

Please explain why it is faster to pack at the sill.
I genuinely can't understand how it could be faster.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

the_pen_turner

Patww79 wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

I understand what he means. and I still disagree

[Deleted User]

Elliott S wrote: »

Actually, this thread illustrates to me why inefficient systems are kept in places for years in all kinds of settings and industries. People don't seem to want to welcome change or admit that the way they were doing something wasn't the optimal method. Being "right" is more important to them than changing things for the better.

It illustrates more that people think their system is better when its worse i.e. Sill packing. It's simply not faster no matter how much you say it is.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

the_pen_turner

Patww79 wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

why do you think im wrong

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

the_pen_turner

I would agree if it was going to take longer to put them in properly, it doesn't. unless you literally through the stuff into the trolley there is no time difference

MrDiyFan

Packing at the till can be done without delaying customers by putting extra checkouts in service

The retailer would have to pay for the extra man/machine hours

Shenshen

Jenny Deafening Topaz wrote: »

It simply does not in my experience but that's beside the point really, the aim of shopping is to get the food home and packing at the till gets you to your car and home faster as you handle every item less often and are walking out the door while a sill packer begins to unload their trolly into bags.

I think sill packing is a stupid system and nothing will change my mind on that. I'd much prefer Aldi put in proper tills with space at the end rather than a window sill.

It gets you to your car and home quicker if others do it.
It gets others home quicker if you do it.

It's a system that works if everybody goes with it. Which is why so many people here seem to struggle with the concept.

Advbrd

To jump back into this:
So everybody follows the rules, all unpack onto the conveyor belt, put everything back into the trolley after it is scanned, go to sill to repack into bags. How the hell can this be considered quicker for any individual? Granted, the till queue will move faster, but you will spend more time than you have saved queuing at the checkout, sorting through a full trolley at the sill, what about the queues at the sill as everybody pours through the till queue? What about Mrs Murphy beside you sneaking off with your spuds and broccoli? The queue will also move faster if more tills are opened.

Flippyfloppy

Advbrd wrote: »

To jump back into this:
So everybody follows the rules, all unpack onto the conveyor belt, put everything back into the trolley after it is scanned, go to sill to repack into bags. How the hell can this be considered quicker for any individual? Granted, the till queue will move faster, but you will spend more time than you have saved queuing at the checkout, sorting through a full trolley at the sill, what about the queues at the sill as everybody pours through the till queue? What about Mrs Murphy beside you sneaking off with your spuds and broccoli? The queue will also move faster if more tills are opened.

Great point. It's quicker until you go over to the sill!!!

Shenshen

Advbrd wrote: »

To jump back into this:
So everybody follows the rules, all unpack onto the conveyor belt, put everything back into the trolley after it is scanned, go to sill to repack into bags. How the hell can this be considered quicker for any individual? Granted, the till queue will move faster, but you will spend more time than you have saved queuing at the checkout, sorting through a full trolley at the sill, what about the queues at the sill as everybody pours through the till queue? What about Mrs Murphy beside you sneaking off with your spuds and broccoli? The queue will also move faster if more tills are opened.

More tills open = higher prices for shoppers.

And what on earth are people doing or buying that it would take them so long to pack things at the sill? Are you trying to fit a lawnmower into a plastic bag or something?
And how would they be quicker if they had to do the same thing at the till, with everyone behind them waiting for them?

osarusan

Advbrd wrote: »

Granted, the till queue will move faster, but you will spend more time than you have saved queuing at the checkout, sorting through a full trolley at the sill,

That is what would need to be tested.

If I'm 6th in the queue and each of the 5 before me do their bagging at the till, I'll reach the top of the queue a bit later (on the assumption that this way means they leave the counter a bit slower) than if all 5 had put it back into the trolley and then bagged it at the sill (on the assumption that this way means they leave the counter a bit faster).

But even if I get there a bit earlier because of other people moving to the sill, by doing the same myself (moving to the sill to bag it), I add more time to my own packing.

I don't know which style would allow me to leave the shop quicker, and I'd imagine it's a matter of just a few seconds either way.

duffman3833

bring cardboard boxes with you, put them in trolley when entering shop, fill boxes, go to till and place items on belt. Leave boxes in trolley and then fill boxes as cashier scanning item through. So you leave shop, and load boxes in boot of car, that's the quickest way i can see of going through this process

Advbrd

Shenshen wrote: »

More tills open = higher prices for shoppers.

And what on earth are people doing or buying that it would take them so long to pack things at the sill? Are you trying to fit a lawnmower into a plastic bag or something?
And how would they be quicker if they had to do the same thing at the till, with everyone behind them waiting for them?

Of course it is quicker for the individual to pack at the till.
You simply take your scanned items and put them into bags in your trolley, job done.
If you include the sill process you take your scanned items and put them back into the trolley, then move to the sill where you have to take the items back out of the trolley and pack them into bags. How can that not be slower.

Advbrd

Trolley bags are the way to go although because of their size they can be damn heavy when full especially if you have a lawnmower in them.

MeatTwoVeg

Typical Boards argument. There is no absolute right or wrong answer, it depends on the individual.
For people like me, packing at the till makes sense, I don't hold up anyone.
Slow packers should obviously pack at the ledge.

Boom_Bap

Just seen this and thought of this thread

https://scontent-ams3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14702383_542425892622692_4612337102283386072_n.jpg?oh=6d18bd4f580fc29ba5bda8d8160b1c2d&oe=58A0AB21

Snakeblood

MeatTwoVeg wrote: »

Typical Boards argument. There is no absolute right or wrong answer, it depends on the individual.
For people like me, packing at the till makes sense, I don't hold up anyone.
Slow packers should obviously pack at the ledge.

There's an absolute right answer, overall, which is that it's best for everyone to all pack at the ledge, not at the till on average. They do time and motion studies for this kind of thing to find out what works best if people actually adopt the system.

There's a specific individual case, where it's better for an individual to do it at the till, where there's a negligible time difference between throwing everything into the trolley, and packing things correctly because you've prepared for it. That doesn't help the people behind, though, that only helps you (or me, because I pack fast at the till also)*. It also encourages slow packers to pack at the till too, because they see others doing it.

Slow packers would be slow whether they did it at the ledge, or at the till. How does it help them to pack at the ledge? It only helps the people behind them.

*I prepare by arranging the bags and knowing what goes where, and paying as soon as the total has been announced, then going back and finishing the packing while the receipt is printing. I'm not proud of doing it at the till, but I am efficient.

Satriale

foggy_lad wrote: »

So instead of dithering at the till you dither on the belt as you try to manage placement of your shopping so as not to delay yourself at the till?

What about all the shoppers behind you who also want to unload onto the belt but are prepared to do it the intended way and load the belt then load their trolley at the till and then load their car or bags at the special packing shelf?

One reason I stopped going to LIDL was they are too much like other supermarkets now pandering to customers and wiping their arses with special dividers on the tills as well as selling more and more branded items which are rarely cheaper than other supermarkets!

Aldi/Lidl were like Ryanair, the no frills supermarkets, but Lidl are slowly moving towards the Aer Lingus model.

I still go there but definitely the dirty habits of the Irish retail trade have rubbed off . Prices have been creeping up, lines slowing down.
The latest I've noticed is that the xxxl offers seem to be a little more expensive that their standard counterpart. That's Tesco trickery right there.

ellejay

duffman3833 wrote: »

bring cardboard boxes with you, put them in trolley when entering shop, fill boxes, go to till and place items on belt. Leave boxes in trolley and then fill boxes as cashier scanning item through. So you leave shop, and load boxes in boot of car, that's the quickest way i can see of going through this process

usually loads of empty boxes in store that you can pick up.
by far the quickest method!!!

MeatTwoVeg

Snakeblood wrote:

*I prepare by arranging the bags and knowing what goes where, and paying as soon as the total has been announced, then going back and finishing the packing while the receipt is printing. I'm not proud of doing it at the till, but I am efficient.

So you're arguing that you're doing it wrong.

foggy_lad

Advbrd wrote: »

To jump back into this:
So everybody follows the rules, all unpack onto the conveyor belt, put everything back into the trolley after it is scanned, go to sill to repack into bags. How the hell can this be considered quicker for any individual? Granted, the till queue will move faster, but you will spend more time than you have saved queuing at the checkout, sorting through a full trolley at the sill, what about the queues at the sill as everybody pours through the till queue? What about Mrs Murphy beside you sneaking off with your spuds and broccoli? The queue will also move faster if more tills are opened.

It is not quicker for the individual but faster overall for the till operator who can then go and work at something else and help keep prices down. it therefore works out cheaper for all when packing is done at the Sill.

MeatTwoVeg wrote: »

Typical Boards argument. There is no absolute right or wrong answer, it depends on the individual.
For people like me, packing at the till makes sense, I don't hold up anyone.
Slow packers should obviously pack at the ledge.

Wait till someone complains and then the till operators will be told not to scan if people are packing at the till! I have been told before by Aldi till operators to make sure I pack at the Sill when they see me taking my shopping bags out, I just tell them I always do pack at the till Herr/Frau Kassenoperator:D

Elliott S

Jenny Deafening Topaz wrote: »

It illustrates more that people think their system is better when its worse i.e. Sill packing. It's simply not faster no matter how much you say it is.

Except that it is.

As Snakeblood said, this has been studied.

Elliott S

Shenshen wrote: »

And how would they be quicker if they had to do the same thing at the till, with everyone behind them waiting for them?

Some people here have claimed they can pack as fast as the cashier scans. Firstly, I doubt it. Secondly, that sounds like terrible packing. Packing has to be done right, no matter where one does it.

brooke 2

Boom_Bap wrote: »

Just seen this and thought of this thread

https://scontent-ams3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14702383_542425892622692_4612337102283386072_n.jpg?oh=6d18bd4f580fc29ba5bda8d8160b1c2d&oe=58A0AB21

:D

Can't believe this thread is still going on - the same points being argued
over and over again. Reminds me of the driving lanes thread!
'Young men in a hurry'!! :rolleyes:

Clampdown

snubbleste wrote: »

If the total is €1.18, the Lidl cashier says that will be €1.20 please.
Some of us may have €1.18 in exact change or seek not to pay 1.7% extra.

It's not always rounded up, half the time it's rounded down so you pay less then.

And most people spend a bit more than 1.18 in the supermarket, if you're paying extra it's very rarely going to be 1.7% extra

Can't believe I actually had to explain that tbh