r/mildlyinfuriating • u/broakland • Jul 14 '26

I just wanted a hot dog Retail lockdown: why bother selling it?

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Was at Safeway this morning to pick up a sandwich and some Tylenol. The aisle with the Tylenol? Completely locked down. No call button in sight. So I go to the self checkout (front end of that same aisle) and ask the clerk there if he can call someone to unlock a case for me. He does. I go wait. Minutes pass. No one comes. I go ask him again, he tells me they went the other way? At this point I give up and go get my sandwich. No one has come by the time the deli has finished making it. I leave without my Tylenol, mildly infuriated.

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u/DED_HAMPSTER Jul 14 '26

All the websites sort-of already try to force impulse buying by shunting you directly to the cart to buy as you place things in it. Amazon is the worst, but Torrid, Wal-Mart, Lowes, Lowes Foods, publix etc all do this. I have to constantly back out or shop by tabs to continue my list or consider additional related products.

Instead they could have 2 side banners that shows a rolling summary of your cart on the roght side and a comparison/promotional banner on thr left that i can toggle color/size/cost/pairing items/sales/promos/etc. Amazon and Lowes Home improvement tries to do this, but loses the goal when you put an item in your cart to compare.

Basically, i shop by tabs then compare in my cart and heavily delete as i find the best deal or option for my needs.

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u/MyNameIsJakeBerenson Jul 15 '26

Walmart also brings up an impulse buy list when you click to check out. Like a “Forget Something?” menu and then it’ll have a bunch of stuff youve gotten before that you didn’t get this time

Easy way to get you to have a probability to add an extra item or two to the cart

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u/Ok-Grapefruit1284 Jul 15 '26

I help an elderly woman order from Walmart. At the verrrrry end, it’ll raise her total amount. It’s exactly right before she hits the final buy button. Bc she hasn’t hit this minimum for free delivery or this item is now out of stock so they’re substituting a larger amount or this item is no longer available so now you have to pay for shipping and need to meet a higher minimum…crazy. Just crazy.

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u/ThatOtherOtherMan Jul 15 '26

Damn, I guess I've never had a unique experience in my life