Cathles.com

There is a Tesco store near to where I work in Colchester that I frequently visit.   I’ve been going there for well over 10 years now, and I’ve seen the store change as it becomes a “Tesco Extra” amd on the face of it thrive.

Now, Tesco (or the current store management at least) appear to be doing something really daft, which is made a few orders of magnitude worse by the fact that a Waitrose store is opening shortly nearby.

I’ve recently been converted to Waitrose, and now more than ever I’m looking forward to it opening.

What have Tesco done that’s annoyed me so I hear you wondering?  It’s simple enough.   They’ve closed checkouts to deliberately force customers to use the self-scan checkouts.   I don’t mind having the self service ones as an option, but personally I hate the things.  That feeling of awkwardness and embarassment when they go wrong, the looks of impatience from the people queuing behind you as if they are thinking ‘doesn’t he know how to work the checkout, it’s not THAT difficult’. All of which combine to me (even though I’m a self professed gadget geek without a technology phobia) means that I hate the wretched things.

So instead of being able to shop “normally” in Tesco, I’m forced to either wait in even lengthier queues for the manned checkouts.

Some of the staff are even getting to recognise me now… I can almost hear them say “oh look, it’s that chap that won’t use the self scan checkouts”.  They know I hate them (for I can be fairly vocal!).  I know I’m not alone, other people I’ve talked to in the Checkout queues feel a similar way.

So, roll on Waitrose opening… I know where I’ll be shopping in future!