Booths, a UK supermarket chain with 28 stores, is eliminating almost all self-service tills in response to customer feedback. All stores, except for two in Cumbria, will now have staffed

checkouts. The move makes Booths the first UK supermarket to shift away from self-service tills, a feature increasingly common in recent years.

The decision is rooted in the belief that staffed checkouts provide a better customer experience. Booths Managing Director Nigel Murray stated that customers found self-scan machines slow, unreliable, and impersonal, particularly for loose items like fruits and vegetables.

The company aims to enhance customer interaction and uphold high service standards. Some customers support the decision, emphasizing the preference for human interaction during shopping, while others criticize it, expressing concerns about queues and delays. Photo by Booth's Supermarket, Kirkby Lonsdale by Bill Boaden, Wikimedia commons.