A secret is only good as long as it’s kept, even at Walmart.
TikTok creator and Walmart worker Maria Alvarez (@marialvarez_x) posted a video earlier this week about working at the store’s less-used garden department checkout. The video has almost 3,000 likes and 35,000 views.
As Alvarez explained in the video, the garden checkout had no line during her shift, even while the rest of the store was busy. People didn’t know the garden register was there unless they came in through the department’s entrance, she wrote in the on-screen text.
@marialvarez_x I’m glad I was leaving soon cause it was getting crazy packed Came *** #fypシ #viral #walamrt #associate #cashier #garden #register #marialvarez_x ♬ original sound – Maria Alvarez
“The front is so packed, so now people are starting to come over here. Like, no, please stay over there,” she said.
She wrote in the caption, “I’m glad I was leaving soon cause it was getting crazy packed.”
One commenter wrote, “Everyone runs to garden.”
“I only use garden only if I have like a few items, if I have a loaded cart then I use the front,” another commented.
One viewer chimed in that “they do it in electronics too but i’ll deny them if it’s an entire cart full.”
Another person asked, “Does time not go slow for you when your just by yourself?” and Alvarez replied, “Yea but it’s peaceful rather than customers being all rude.”
“Both Walmarts I’ve worked at allow garden register to check all their items out,” one comment read.
Looking to avoid the lines at big retailers? Finance website Go Banking Rates recommends ordering online at Walmart and taking advantage of their same-day pickup service.
Walmart in 2020 announced a pilot program in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for a new kind of checkout experience meant to eliminate wait times. The test involved 34 registers that are always open and “hosts” instead of cashiers, who assisted customers with the process.
The Daily Dot reached out to Alvarez and Walmart via email and did not receive immediate responses.
