Supermarket chain Booths is axing almost all self-service tills in its stores in what it says is a response to customer demand. All but two of the 28 stores run by the company, which trades in northern England, will have staffed checkouts. Booths is believed to be the first UK supermarket to move away from using self-service tills, which have become increasingly common in recent years. "We believe colleagues serving customers delivers a better customer experience and therefore we have taken the decision to remove self-checkouts in the majority of our stores," the company said. Mr Murray added: "We are a business that prides ourselves on the high standards and high levels of warm, personal care. "We like to talk to people and we're really proud that we're moving largely to a place where our customers are served by people, by human beings, so rather than artificial intelligence, we're going for actual intelligence." The company, which has been described as a northern Waitrose, said its philosophy since 1847 is to "sell the best goods available, in attractive stores, staffed with first class assistants". "Delighting customers with our warm northern welcome is part of our DNA and we continue to invest in our people to ensure we remain true to that ethos," the firm added.
