A recent survey has found retailers are experiencing reduced sales, because Aussies and Kiwis get embarrassed when buying personal items.
The NCR survey found the items that cause shoppers to go the reddest are libido enhancing vitamins, haemorrhoid cream, incontinence products and condoms. When buying incontinence products and pregnancy tests, men and women are as embarrassed as each other.
What is really affecting retailers is the number of people who go into a store for a personal item, then overcome with embarrassment, leave without purchasing it. More than 2.2 million Australians and 400,000 New Zealanders have left with their tail between their legs.
“Shop staff may deal with personal items frequently and in a discrete way, but our research shows that retailers could take further steps to reduce ‘personal item anxiety’ for shoppers,” says Andrew Reagan, NCR South Pacific vice president. “Shoppers here and in other parts of the world have always ranked increased privacy as something they value from self-checkout, along with reduced queues and more convenience.” Of the survey respondents, 52 percent of Australians and 64 percent of New Zealanders said they would be more willing to shop at a store with self-checkout.
A smaller self-checkout system is now available for retailers to help reduce sales losses, alongside the previous systems used by medium and large businesses.
