‘It s***s me to tears’: New Kmart receipt-scanning procedure infuriates customers
A fed-up Aussie has lashed out at Kmart over a controversial new procedure that means customers are forced to line up in two separate queues just to make a purchase.
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Kmart has come under fire by customers over its controversial new store layouts, with one woman claiming she was forced to queue up in a second line just to exit a store.
Mental health advocate Laura Strehlau took to Twitter to lash Kmart, arguing the retail giant needed to “trust people” if it’s going to place its cash registers in the middle of its stores.
“Our local (Kmart store) has started scanning barcodes at the front and you have to queue to leave after you’ve just queued to serve yourself,” she tweeted.
She said she had witnessed the frustrating scenes at Kmart’s Chirnside Park store, in Melbourne’s north-east.
Her post quickly struck a chord online, with waves of fed-up customers taking to the platform to share their own experiences.
“It’s everywhere. All over NSW as well,” one tweet read.
“It will last a while; they aren’t going to spend all that money reconfiguring the stores just to change them back in the short term.”
“I stopped shopping at Kmart a long time ago because of this. It is insulting, demeaning and treats customers as an enemy,” added another.
Meanwhile another added: “yes, it s***s me to tears”.
The department store isn’t the only big brand to scan customers’ receipts upon exiting, with hardware giant Bunnings also long-time users of the system.
A relative of a Bunnings employee took to forum Choice Community to explain why the “annoying” procedure came into effect.
“My husband works for Bunnings, theft is a huge problem,” the post reads.
“The reason they stamp the receipts is to stop people from buying items, putting them in the car and returning (with the) receipt in hand and then picking up the same items again.”
“My husband often works on the gate, he checks the vehicles as they leave. He could write a book on what some (people) get up to.”
Others said the tweet was a good reminder for customers not to take out their frustration on staff.
In response to a critic who defended the retail giant’s right to check customers’ receipts, Ms Strehlau wrote: “ They can do what they like but it’s ridiculous and last time I checked customers are the people that generate business. In a cost of living crisis it’s best they try and keep those customers.”
Kmart shoppers have long contested the “frustrating” receipt-checking procedure, with many complaining it wastes time and forces customers into a second “unnecessary” line.
Last year, another customer took to Facebook to share her annoyance about the retailer placing staff at the exit to check the receipts of those using self-check-outs.
The procedure resulted in a second line at the door, so the woman claimed she skipped the queue because she “didn’t choose to participate in that nonsense”.
“So I just skipped the exit line and left. I heard her saying ‘Ma’am’ as I kept walking and raised the receipt above my head, leaving the store,” she wrote.
Similar to the disgruntled customer who took to Twitter, the customer argued retailers should trust customers to be honest or otherwise reinstate staffed check-outs.
“You can either trust me to do a self checkout, or you can put your cashiers back in place like it used to be. I’m not interested in proving that I did your job for you,” she wrote.
“You want me to be a cashier with no training then that’s your problem not mine. Don’t audit me for a position you refuse to employ any longer.”
The procedure has also become the centre of attention on TikTok, with a number of people taking to the platform to re-enact the role of Kmart door staff.
A Kmart spokesperson has previously told news.com.au bag checks were a condition of entry regardless of how customers made their purchase.
“Like many retailers it is a condition of entry across all our stores that if requested, customers present any bags and receipt for checking before leaving the store.”
“This is standard procedure that occurs regardless of how a customer makes their purchase, whether it be from our service desk, self-service check-outs or if they have been assisted by a team member.”
News.com.au has reached out to Kmart for further comment on their apparent receipt-scanning procedures.
Originally published as ‘It s***s me to tears’: New Kmart receipt-scanning procedure infuriates customers
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