Most supermarkets these days are looking for ways to speed up the checkout process, with customers feeling pressured to shop and checkout as quickly as possible so as not to hold up the line. Unfortunately, some people just can’t shop that fast, either because of their age or various disabilities. Some of these individuals are often made to feel guilty about moving too slowly, with some opting to avoid going to the supermarket at all. Youme Town Supermarket in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture seems to have solved the problem by implementing an extra-slow checkout register where people can spend upwards of 20 minutes without feeling pressured in any way. They can count their money, bag groceries at their own pace, and even chat with the cashier if they want to. The experimental register has become so popular that the supermarket credits its implementation for a 10% increase in sales. It’s unclear if the company plans to implement the extra-slow checkout at other venues, but online reactions to the slow checkout suggest that there's definitely a demand for it.
