Sometimes, when you’re in Walmart, the goal is to get in and out—that’s hard to do when half the things you need are locked up and no employee is around to help.
Locked items are increasingly becoming a nuisance for customers and employees. It used to be that just high-value items, like electronics, or regulated goods, like medicines, were under lock and key.
But now even run-of-the-mill supplies, like socks, a $19 pack of markers, and an energy drink, are behind glass.
Not only is it annoying (especially for those who get anxious talking to new people or having to ask for help), it’s a time suck. Some customers have spent upward of 30 minutes trying to get the right person with the right set of keys to help them.
It makes the shopping experience unnecessarily long and far less enjoyable.
Why is it so arbitrary?
In a viral video with more than 119,000 views, TikToker Cody (@atlcody) vented about how randomly Walmart chooses what does and does not get locked up in their stores.
Cody, who was in the outdoor goods aisle (think camping gear), explained that he pressed the help button so an employee could unlock a backpack for him, but 20 minutes had gone by, and no one stopped by to help.
Frustrated and with time to kill, Cody started venting about how bad Walmart’s security system was.
First, he was annoyed that nearly everything in the section was behind lock and key.
“Don’t get me wrong, I understand the need for cases,” he said. “Like the ammo should probably be in a case. Like maybe some expensive things should be in cases.”
But he was confused by the huge discrepancy in what was and wasn’t locked.
There was a $3 pack of ponchos locked, but a whole ponchos floating on a shelf. There were propane canisters locked up and another dozen similar ones chillin’ on a shelf. Hundred-dollar coolers were grabbable, but not all the backpacks in the section. And $7 flashlights were loose, but their $1 counterparts were encased.
“Does this backpack that I need that’s only $20 really need to be behind glass? Is there an epidemic of backpack thieves?” Cody said.
A commenter said that the reason this happens is because corporate has a specific layout for items. So if something goes next to a locked item, it’ll end up behind glass, too, due to sheer proximity.
And you won’t believe this
“I feel like it’s designed to be inconvenient,” Cody said as he pressed all the help buttons in the aisle.
He was only able to get a smidge of help after he called customer service, and they sent two employees over—but neither of their keys worked.
In a follow-up video, Cody shared that they finally freed the bag for him, but after the hour-long saga, it ended up being a one-shoulder bag instead of the traditional backpack style he needed.
But he felt like he’d put so much effort into getting it that he figured he’d buy it and see if he liked it. If not, he’d come back for a return.
Another plot twist: The label was wrong, and the item was actually $50. So, after all that, he left it behind.
Are Walmart’s ‘call help’ buttons fake?
Unlike elevator close buttons and crosswalk buttons at stoplights, which rarely work and end up functioning more as a placebo, the help buttons at Walmart do work.
In a Reddit thread, employees explained that when you click the button, “they dial right into the walkie and a robot voice pages for help in the designated area.”
One person said, “We have them but we don’t change the batteries so they’re all dead. So basically, we don’t have them.”
They added that while there are areas where it’s not as much of a problem because employees are paid to walk around monitoring it, there are other parts of the store where it’s hard to find an employee for help.
Even then, it’s hit or miss whether the employee you find will even have that key.
“It’s just not a fun process for anyone. Wish Walmart would be more selective on what we lock up and where we keep the lockups. No fun for anyone when they lock up items they don’t have a good game plan for,” they wrote..
Commenters react
‘I wouldn’t have waited or called anyone, I would have gone somewhere else,” a top comment read.
“as someone who works in automotive/sporting goods/ hardware/paint. 2nd shift has like 2 employees for all of General Merchandising. gas stations seriously have more employees,” a person shared.
“I too have called the store for help while inside the store. No one came to help. So, I placed a pick up order on my phone. Finished shopping and then picked up item,” another wrote.
@atlcody @Walmart ♬ original sound – Cody
The Daily Dot reached out to Cody for comment via email and Instagram direct message and to Walmart via email.
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