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WALMART shoppers are furious as the big box retailer is set to alter the price tags on all the items in-store.
Customers fear the change will result in more money spent on each shopping trip.
Walmart shoppers are weary as the retailer announced it would be changing all of its paper price tags[/caption]
Walmart plans to replace its current price tags with digital ones[/caption]
On June 6, Walmart representatives shared that the retailer would replace its paper price tags with more digitally savvy ones.
The digital labels will be rolled out to around 1,400 of its 2,300 stores, and the retailer expects to have them in all stores by 2026.
Greg Cathey, senior vice president of transformation and innovation at Walmart, reassured customers regarding the new price tags.
Cathey said Walmart shoppers shouldn’t fear rapid price changes.
Known as “price surging,” this occurs when prices are altered with little notice and without adapting to the market.
“It is absolutely not going to be one hour it is this price and the next hour it is not,” he said during Walmart’s annual shareholder meeting.
However, shoppers are still afraid the digital price tags will result in a surge in grocery costs.
“Prices change so many times (always upward, never down) that Walmart is switching from plastic price tags to digital price tags at the shelves on all its supermarkets nationwide,” began one customer on Facebook.
“They’re going state by state but they expect the change to be completed by year’s end. JesusChrist! They found a way to screw us digitally!”
DIGITAL JOURNEY
Starting last year, Walmart tested the new price tags at a location in Grapevine, Texas – around 24 miles northwest of Dallas.
Thanks to its success, the digital price tags are currently in 63 stores, per USA Today. 32 of those stores are in Texas.
The new tags were intended to save employees time, as Walmart sells over 120,000 items with individual paper price tags.
Adjusting the price tags manually takes a considerable amount of time, especially with the weekly price updates, Rollbacks, and markdowns.
A price change that would take an employee two days to update now takes just minutes, according to Daniela Boscan, a food and consumable team lead in Texas.
Digital price tags
Digital price tags, or electronic shelf labels (ESLs), were first used in stores in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Kohl’s first rolled out digital price tags in 2013 as part of its effort to modernize and enhance the shopping experience.
Other retailers such as Target, Best Buy, Nordstrom, and Macy’s have similarly utilized digital price tags.
The tags allow for real-time updates of prices, promotions, and product information.
“Digital shelf labels, developed by Vusion Group, allow us to update prices at the shelf using a mobile app, reducing the need to walk around the store to change paper tags by hand,” shared Boscan.
Shoppers will also see some benefits from the digital shelf labels.
Not only will Walmart customers have more readily available support from employees, but also their online orders will more accurately be fulfilled.
“The ‘Pick to Light’ feature guides us directly to the products needed for online orders, speeding up the picking process and improving order accuracy,” said Boscan.
In related news, Walmart’s five new store changes face backlash despite execs promises.
Plus, Walmart shoppers fume after being forced to pay to use self-checkout.
