Dollar General is rolling back self-checkout in thousands of stores
CNN
Dollar General is removing self-checkout stations from 300 stores and changing self-checkout strategies in thousands of other stores after shoplifting and customer frustration with the technology.
Dollar General is backing away from the self-checkout trend in retail. The company is pulling out self-checkout stands in 300 stores that have the highest levels of shoplifting and merchandise losses. In 9,000 other stores, Dollar General is converting some or all of its self-checkout registers to regular checkout with cashiers. And in another 4,500 or so stores, Dollar General is limiting self-checkout to purchases of five items or less. Dollar General said the moves will help it reduce shrink — the retail industry term for shoplifting, employee theft, damaged products, administrative errors, online fraud and other factors. Dollar General has skeleton staffing levels in stores and is more vulnerable to shoplifting and other merchandise losses than many other retailers, retail analysts say. “We believe these actions have the potential to have a material and positive impact on shrink,” CEO Todd Vasos said on a call with analysts Thursday. “Shrink” was mentioned 37 times on the call. Vasos said Dollar General made the decision after using artificial intelligence to analyze hundreds of thousands of purchases at self-checkout. The company said it was able to determine which stores had the highest levels of stolen merchandise and mis-scanned items. Dollar General is the latest retailer to backtrack on self-checkout.
The biggest event in New Zealand Thursday may have been the opening of a furniture store.
Even if you believe you haven’t yet been directly impacted by climate change, your wallet will feel its effects soon, according to a new study.
Small businesses are “starting to crack” amid a weakening economy, rising inflation and fickle consumers; and they drove job losses in the US private sector in November, new data showed Wednesday.
Prepare for automotive sticker shock next year – again.
Constellation Brands, the US owner of Modelo Especial and Corona, bet big on Latino customers for growth. But that strategy is unraveling under the Trump administration’s mass deportation push.
The European Union agreed Wednesday to phase out Russian natural gas imports by late 2027 as part of an effort to end the bloc’s decade-long dependency on Russian energy.
US wireless carrier AT&T said in a letter to the US telecoms regulator that it had committed to ending diversity, equity and inclusion programs, a move that comes as it seeks approval from the Trump administration to buy wireless spectrum assets.
Larry Summers has been banned for life from the American Economic Association, a professional organization for economists, with more than 17,000 members, over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The US labor market has weakened over the course of the year as hiring has stalled across many industries. The national unemployment rate has ratcheted higher in the process, hitting 4.4% in September.
Michael and Susan Dell are donating $6.25 billion to fund investment accounts for at least 25 million American children.
Gas prices dropped below an average of $3 a gallon in the United States on Tuesday for the first time in four-and-a-half years.
The United States appears ready for war with Venezuela, a prospect that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro this weekend attributed to America’s desire to control the country’s vast oil reserves.
Pete Hegseth’s hostility toward the press has been a defining characteristic of his time as defense secretary.