Morrisons 'buzz for booze' system causes anger in Wiltshire

The feature has been added to the spirits aisle of the Morrisons superstore off the A350 West Cepen Way in Chippenham.

It means the store’s selection of spirits now sits in locked cabinets and customers must press a button that will alert a staff member to come and unlock the doors so they can pick out their items.

Morrisons confirmed the addition is a “security measure” which has been trialled at other stores throughout the country in recent months.

But many shoppers reacted angrily to the news on Facebook, with some labelling the system “crazy.”

They fear that lengthy wait times to access the shelves could cause delays in the shop, although Morrisons has denied that this will be the case.

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The new 'buzz for booze' shelves in Morrisons, Chippenham (Image: Newsquest) Chris Doncom said: “The very real risk is that this will reduce overall sales depending on how long customers have to wait for the button to be answered.

“The price of the alcohol will need to be extremely competitive to make any extra wait worthwhile.

“There are plenty of alternatives in Chippenham.

“I would also like to understand what thought has been given to the staff… asking them to look after this aisle along with other customer-facing responsibilities will not work, particularly in the run-up to Christmas.”

“Hope they have a member of staff permanently in that aisle otherwise there will be a lot of people having to wait”, said Belinda Rumble.

Amanda Hatfield added: “Glad I shop online, imagine the carnage at Christmas.”

Others expressed sympathy for store staff and concern over the fact that the changes appear to have been made necessary by rising shoplifting.

The new 'buzz for booze' shelves in Morrisons, Chippenham (Image: Newsquest) Gemma Sims said: “If it wasn’t for the people who go into that shop on an almost daily basis and attempt or do steal, then they wouldn’t be required.

“At least now there should be products available for the actual customers.”

Samantha Johnson added: “I feel bad for the stores... they are in a catch-22 situation.”

A Morrisons spokesperson insisted customers can expect a “really prompt” service when buying spirits from its Chippenham store.

They added: “The cabinets are being used in a number of our stores as part of their security measures, as are others across the industry.

“We have received good feedback from customers and have a colleague in the area and the buzzer also goes to the store headsets so customers can expect really prompt service.”