Self-checkout changes: The real reason self-checkouts started talking to you

Costco, Kmart and Big W customers are noticing major changes to self-checkouts, with retailers rolling out new checkout technology across the country.

The new technology is designed to streamline shoppers’ checkout experiences, but Australian retailers aren’t ditching staffed checkouts just yet.

Let’s take a look at the latest changes at each retailer, and what this could mean for the future of shopping in Australia.

Costco’s ‘novelty’ concept continues

Costco at Marsden Park in Sydney now features an electronic voice at its newly expanded self-checkout section, which announces the price of each item as it is scanned.

Electronic voice features aren’t unique to Costco, with most supermarkets’ self-checkouts including this in some capacity, but not to the same extent.

Coles and Woolworths customers receive instructions throughout the checkout process, including when paying for purchases, and a friendly voice at the end of the transaction thanking them for their visit to the stores.

Dr Sanjit Roy, Professor of Marketing and Service Science at Edith Cowan University, said Costco’s new feature feeds into the iconic “novelty” experience of shopping there, which has helped the discount bulk retailer attract a loyal following since opening its first store in Australia in 2009.

Costco Australia declined to comment on the new self-checkout technology and whether it plans to roll it out nationwide.

Kmart checkouts leave the centre of the store

Kmart is officially transitioning from its iconic centre-of-the-store checkout design to more traditional checkouts at the exit.

This follows a successful trial across stores, with an additional 40 locations marked for transformation by June 2027.

The new Kmart checkouts have also been designed to create a more streamlined exit experience for customers by expanding self-checkouts and upgrading store technology.

Ben Smith, General Manager of Property for the Kmart Group, said in a statement: “Our customers continue to tell us they want shopping experiences that are simple, convenient and enjoyable.”

Big W’s family-friendly checkout changes

Big W has confirmed a major nationwide overhaul of its stores and checkouts, specifically tailored towards busy families, as part of a new layout being rolled out across the country.

New features will include more spacious checkout spaces, a minimum of two assisted lanes, and bulk-item camera detection technology, which is already used at Coles and Woolworths and removes the need for customers to manually scan bulk and heavy items.

“For parents navigating the daily juggle, we are rolling out upgrades including more seamless layouts, upgraded change rooms, and spacious checkouts,” a spokesperson for Big W told nine.com.au.

“Feedback from our customers who have experienced our new store format has been overwhelmingly positive.”

A bold future – and a delicate balance

The new Costco electronic voice feature, in particular, highlights a tension Aussie retailers are facing – the balance of embracing new technology and maintaining customer connection.

“It’s to establish a dialogue with customers, now that the human dialogue that used to happen at staffed checkouts is being phased out,” retail expert Dr Sanjit Roy from Edith Cowan University told nine.com.au.

The extent of the feature is in line with the “novelty” of shopping at a Costco store, which has helped the discount bulk retailer attract a loyal following since opening its first store in Australia in 2009, he said.

Dr Roy added that this electronic feature may serve the additional purpose of allowing customers to price check as they scan their items.

Griffith University consumer psychologist Gavin Northey believes this feature may also be about theft prevention.

“Across Australia, shoplifting has been increase across retail generally, and various reports have identified self-checkouts as a major part of the problem, rather than a solution,” he told nine.com.au.

“Because of that, I’m almost certain the new voices are a theft prevention measure. Essentially, the voice reintroduces the social presence and accountability a human cashier used to provide.”

Regardless of their age, a large portion of consumers still don’t entirely trust the [self-checkout] technology.

While all these latest checkout technology features at Costco, Kmart, and Big W, are designed to help to create so-called “frictionless” experiences, retailers face a delicate balance between checkout efficiency and privacy, as well as maintaining a connection with customers.

“Customers still want that human interaction,” he said.

“So the ultimate challenge for retailers is: how do we create that sweet mix of technology plus humans?”

Northey said while some shoppers still feel dislike for self-checkouts, younger shoppers are in favour of them.

“There is a caveat in that a clear generational divide has opened up. Research tells us younger shoppers actually prefer self-checkouts for the ease and speed,” he said.

“Older consumers are a different story. Because they have less confidence with the technology [they] actually enjoy the interpersonal ‘human’ communication with the cashier and feel the technology benefits the retailer more than the customer.

“That said, regardless of their age, a large portion of consumers still don’t entirely trust the technology and many don’t like the feeling they’re under surveillance.”

Northey doesn’t see a future where staff at checkouts is entirely erased.

“In fact, retailers in the US and UK have started reintroducing staffed checkouts, so for Australia, I still see both options being offered across the retail sector well into the future.”