Supermarkets are pushing customers to be more considerate shoppers.
An American who moved to the UK has gone viral after sharing their experience with grocery shopping across the pond, which they claim left them baffled.
In a TikTok video with over 155,000 views, user @nataliebarbu described a recent trip to Sainsbury’s, one of the biggest grocery stores in London, comparing the brand to Walmart.
And the one thing the American said she “couldn’t comprehend” was the shopping cart protocol, which asks shoppers to bring a one-pound (£) coin deposit to unlock and use a buggy — to be returned only after it is returned to its depot.
Viewers who were familiar with coin-operated shopping carts clarified that it’s actually a courtesy to shop workers, encouraging customers to be more mindful of where they leave their baskets.
In the US, shopping carts are often left strewn about the parking lot, despite the designated cart drop-offs scattered throughout the property for convenient returns.
UK stores beat the inconsiderate habit by forcing shoppers to provide a coin to unlock a cart, and take it as a fee if they fail to return the cart to its proper place.
Despite the TikToker’s confusion, it’s not a completely foreign concept: Aldi stores in the US have implemented their own Quarter In, Quarter Back system, a method used throughout European stores.
Meanwhile, some US supermarkets are also testing other high-tech shopping cart modifications — with the power of AI.
For example, Wegmans launched Caper Carts, Instacart’s AI-powered smart carts, at its upstate New York locations, which allow customers to track their spending while shopping. The carts will automatically recognize items as they are put into them, and customers can bag as they shop.
Viewers on TikTok chimed in with their own observations on the UK-based shopping experience.
“But are you impressed with the trollies that can wheel sideways?” one asked.
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