A Walmart shopper says she encountered a closed self-checkout area and then tried to circumvent it by checking out at the store's pharmacy. There, she claims to have learned something disturbing that changed the way she thinks about Walmart.
The video documenting the situation comes courtesy of creator Breyonce (@1breyonce), who posted her observations to TikTok on Thursday. As of this writing, her post has received over 495,800 views. In it, she observes, "Walmart gotta be the most full of sh*t company I've ever heard of," before going into why she believes that's the case.
She reports that she was just stopping into the big box store to get a few things and realized the self-checkout area was closed when she attempted to pay for her things and leave.
"You got people waiting in lines at the register," she assesses. "So my impatient a**, I'm already like, OK, well, f*ck that. I'm gonna go to the technology department and have them check me out there." She says she happened by the pharmacy area while getting soap and determined she could get rung up at that register. She notes, "Bear in mind, I only had literally three things," which she assumes is why the person in the pharmacy area was so accommodating.
After Breyonce asked why the self-checkout registers were closed, the pharmacy worker reportedly responded, "Yeah, they're trying to do that to promote you guys to download the app and get the membership." He then clarified, "Because if you have the app, then you can check out through the app, and you don't have to wait in the line."
"So y'all got people standing in line for 30 to 45 stank-a** minutes after you done made us employees and had us checking our own sh*t out for the past year? Now that y'all not making any money off of that, y'all said, 'F*ck that; download this app and become a member for five bucks a month.'"
She then asks rhetorically, with exasperation, "What is the world coming to?"
@1breyonce its like all these companies are competing for who can rip us off the most ???? #inflation #walmart ♬ original sound - Breyonce ✨
It appears they're referring to Mobile Scan & Go, a feature in the Walmart app that allows shoppers to scan items on their phone as they move through the store and then "tap the blue 'check out' button in the app & head over to self-checkout" when finished gathering items, according to Walmart's website. The site then instructs, "Confirm your payment method. Scan QR code at register."
The site also clarifies, "This benefit is exclusive to both trial & paid Walmart+ members." The Walmart+ program, a pay more/get more-styled membership akin to Amazon Prime, costs $98 a year.
Breyonce made her dissatisfaction with Walmart clear in her video's conclusion.
"It's bad enough y'all motherf*ckers don't got Apple Pay," she points out. "Then, every single one of your carts needs a tire rotation and wheel alignment—every single one of them—and an oil change. Employees rude as hell, and you think I'm gonna pay $5 a month? Not today, Satan."
"Can we just boycott Walmart?" one asked.
Another pointed out, "All these companies make it worse on us. They'll continue as long as y'all stay complicit."
Someone else complained, "The cashiers at my Walmart won't bag your items for you. Said they aren't required to. When did that stop being part of the service a cashier offered?"
Finally, another commenter observed, "They also started locking everything behind glass like $10 necklaces or hair dye, but never can find an employee that can open the glass cases so you can purchase it."
The Daily Dot has reached out to Breyonce via TikTok direct message and to Walmart via email.
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The post ‘You think I’m gonna pay $5 a month?’: Walmart closes self-checkout, so shopper checks out at pharmacy. It backfires appeared first on The Daily Dot.
