I am confused, don’t they scan your card before you check out?
Yes, but you’re more likely to run into an irate person when you turn them away with a cart full of groceries then you are if you turn them away at the door. Plus it reduces the wasted time of employees who have to unload said cart.
Yep, I think this is part of the answer.
I’m guessing another is identifying which members are primarily using membership card and cash, membership attached to an alternative FOP from their in-house charge (Citi currently), and digital native customers who are all in on the ecosystem.
Those data points can be used in several manners as Costco can glean valuable marketing insights into their customer base, their shopping habits, and their frequency. More than likely it will be used in ongoing in-house charge provider negotiations to ensure favorable terms for offering their services exclusively.
Makes more profit to let them through than to refuse them at that point.
Also, let them through and they may get a membership for next time, refuse them and they are never coming back.
Apparently the issue is cheaters using the self-checkouts according to the employee I talked to.
So now we all have to jump through more hoops instead of having another cashier or two. Ironically, there were extra staff at the door enforcing the scanning.
The scanning is also supposed to bring up your picture for identification.
They don’t have a picture for me on file and gave me crap when I scanned. I just showed them my license and went on my way. I don’t need my face linked to my name all over the internet when they get hacked next year.
They don’t have a picture for me on file and gave me crap when I scanned. I just showed them my license and went on my way. I don’t my face linked to my name all over the internet when they get hacked next year.
I get that, but its a private club. If its part of their membership rules your choices are comply or not be in the private club.
Yep, totally get it. I’ll squeeze by as long as I can for the sake of privacy.
The article makes it sound like they are doing this to speed up check out, and also to stop people from abusing the cheap hot dogs.
The only other thing I can think of is the possibility that people are getting in with expired cards to bypass the single guest per member limit, and then pooling their purchases once they’re inside at the self checkout. Seems like a bit of a stretch, but it could happen.
But you do not need a membership card to access the food court, and in some states the food court is actually outside of the entrance. So I am going to have a little bit of doubt in the idea that this has anything to do with hotdog abuse. No offense intended!!
I just saw below it maybe varies from state to state on the food court - https://lemmy.world/comment/11638385
