Upgrading

Thursday, October 13, 2022

So. it’s official, Costco will build a new facility on the town’s north side where RV camping existed years ago. That some forty-acre space originally was for a Super Walmart, but that store dropped out upon the city’s demands that it foot major costs to upgrade highway traffic flows alongside the site.

To be built up is more than an expanded Costco. The development plans are large and available for viewing online.

Costco will close its eastside location forcing residents on this side of town to drive farther or to shop at the eastside Safeway. Another eastside supermarket is planned for development on Butler Market Road.

I work in a midtown cut-rate supermarket. It also will become a destination for more shoppers from the eastside.

For the last couple of evenings, I’ve worked an extra hour or two. Our store is open for 24 hours and mostly slammed with customers. From the time I open my cash register until I’m off work, I’m processing a seemingly-unending line of filled shopping carts.

Like most commercial environments, our store must identify and hire hard-working individuals. New employees seeking an easy ride soon disappear, and we’re often shorthanded. The hard workers pull extra hours.

I worry that my horses need hay while I’m gone from home. I’m uncomfortable about working longer but have helped out for the last couple of evenings.

I’ll be rewarded, too. Today, the manager who asked me to stay will assign me to oversee the self-checkout area. I’ve wanted that opportunity, to keep moving around and learning more. It makes sense that future self-checkout areas will be larger in major retail sales environments. It reduces the need for electronic cash registers and employees and is more cost-effective.

The transition will be tough, as customers generally dislike and avoid self-checkout. Many trying it become frustrated and grumpy. Employees overseeing the process dislike customer attitudes.

I could work well in the environment. My long-ago formal education emphasized sales, customer relations, and teamwork. This will offer a path toward updating and relearning my skills while helping the store.

Dear Friends: Learning and adjusting require flexibility with kindness. Diana