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Hello and welcome to the TCC Weekly – the Friday bulletin for people who know their Homo Economicus from their Homo Sovieticus.
A Dutch supermarket recently announced that they’ll be introducing ‘slow lanes’ for customers who want to take time and chat. Our Engagement Hub discusses the importance for councils of maintaining face-to-face channels in a digitised world.
And of course, with an article over Christmas explaining the psychological importance of studying unserious things, we bring you the trove of trivia that is Charlie’s Attic. Today’s Attic includes an interview with the world’s last floppy disk salesman.
Slow lanes
We wrote, in May last year, about one woman’s campaign against supermarkets replacing till staff with self-checkout machines. Face-to-face engagement was important, we argued, for issues like isolation as well as community engagement. “With an ageing society and rapid digitisation…personalisation will be increasingly important for councils in the future, to make sure that less confident groups are enfranchised and included.”
With this in mind, we were fascinated by the recent announcement, by Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo, that they will be introducing ‘slow lanes’. Known as ‘Kletskassas’, these are tills which less busy customers can choose, so that they have time to chat to their cashier and go at their own pace. Far from phasing out till staff, this initiative gives them more one-on-one contact with the public.
Employees of Jumbo have reportedly been happy to work on the slow lanes – passing the time of day with shoppers in the knowledge that there isn’t a queue of impatient customers building up behind. A spokesman for the chain said that: “We are proud that many of our cashiers would like to take a seat behind a Kletskassa. They have a warm heart for the initiative and want to help people to make real contact with them out of genuine interest.” The spokesman added: “It is a small gesture, but very valuable, especially in a world that is digitising and accelerating.”
This final point is important and applies to local authorities and other public bodies at least as much as to supermarkets. Public organisations are often under immense financial strain, particularly at the moment, and reducing face-to-face contact – i.e. via channel shift initiatives to move people online – is one way of easing this.
Done correctly, these initiatives can save money and streamline the resident experience. But it is important to remember, as Jumbo have done, that there remains a section of society who want and even need personal contact – both to help them navigate services and systems, and as a social good in itself. Creating tailored alternatives, like ‘slow lanes’, is an interesting way of re-engaging the groups who are often socially isolated or isolated by change and mistrustful of institutions.
And finally this week, Charlie’s Attic, the meandering chinwag at the end of your Friday shop:
Discover the 6 things that, counter-intuitively, are making you miserable – including free time and city living.
