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cigarandcreamsoda t1_j6i6s2r wrote

Grandpa at the bottom buying the most grandpa things ever.

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Bongressman t1_j6igfpp wrote

Golf.

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JMSeaTown t1_j6jfslj wrote

Finally retired so he can golf from the reds every other day for 3 years before dying.

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zoobrix t1_j6jlu14 wrote

Yes, it was also very nice of him to make sure so many brand names were turned towards the camera and not a single item is disturbed in the display at the checkout either. And of course no one is looking at the guy with a camera standing on top of ladder or something. It's almost like it was staged...

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jeronisaurus t1_j6hwcy4 wrote

a line in each checkout. that cant be right as my target only ever has..1 maybe 2 people working registers

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Torkzilla t1_j6i03pu wrote

I worked at a superstore about 20 years ago and it had 30 checkout lanes and 15-16 of them were staffed with humans at all time. Even late night there were 4-5 open. The automated registers and completely unstaffed huge swath of checkout lanes is a very recent phenomenon.

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pirate135246 t1_j6i8f8c wrote

It was like this back in the early 2010s if I remember correctly. Self checkout came out and very quickly wiped out cashier positions

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Whateveryousaydude7 t1_j6isi45 wrote

I’d always rather have a checker. And will willingly wait in line for one.

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Augen76 t1_j6jtedm wrote

The worst is they have a line "wrangler" and when I am content to wait in line for a cashier they go "sir, I have self check out lane right here available for you" and I'm like "I'm fine here, thank you" and they get oddly pushy about it.

I didn't design your shop to have capacity of 12 registers and then staff 3 of them and make the lines be so long they run back into the shopping aisles.

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Whateveryousaydude7 t1_j6jxs91 wrote

Plus you need a fuss made in the self checkout if you have alcohol in your cart. I’d rather just wait on line for a human being. Plus I actually enjoy talking with most of them and have known them for years.

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gateguard64 t1_j6jhvak wrote

I'm curious to see if the pendulum swings back again. Supposedly they are taking it in the shorts with shoplifting.

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callahan09 t1_j6jac9j wrote

My local Target has only 4 self-checkout machines and very close to literally never has any staffed checkout lanes open. I've never seen more than 1 staffed checkout lane open at a time, and about 90% of the time there's zero. If they're going to do this, they could at least get rid of like 15 out of 18 staffed checkout lanes and put in more self-checkout machines so that people don't have to wait in a 30-deep line to self-checkout since 90% of the checkout area is space occupied by staffed checkout lanes that aren't open. It's ridiculous.

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Maverick_1882 t1_j6j5jkq wrote

Right? My local Target has one self-serve lane, the customer service lane, and maybe one other lane open. I don’t go to Target because seeing the long lines to check out is frustrating.

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shipwrekd_sailor t1_j6k0l62 wrote

I recently saw an ask Reddit question, asking people why they use self-checkout. My answer would have been because that's all that is available anymore. Because Target Walmart the grocery store.. no matter where you're at, there's like one checker in 15 self checkout stands. With the exception of Aldi's. Oddly, the most common answer was from introverts who didn't want to talk to people saying that's why they use the self checkout. Does nobody realize that self-checkout is eventually going to take out all the workforce. It's already happened. Target is staffed at its bare minimum. If you happen to live in one of those neighborhoods where they lock everything inside of a glass cabinet, try waiting around on a Saturday to get something out of that cabinet and see how long it takes for one of the employees to show up. But meanwhile.. I did see about 10 different employees pushing shopping carts around for online orders

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Number6isNo1 t1_j6khqbz wrote

And Aldi is looking to implement self checkout, which will fucking suck. The lines move fast as Aldi because they checkers are good. Imagine mee-maw trying to scan her shit and fucking it up. I dread the day.

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betasp t1_j6i0w31 wrote

You can tell this is old because I see more than 3 lanes open.

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ketofauxtato t1_j6jdf2l wrote

Is it just me, or does everyone seem just a little bit happier?

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JagBak73 t1_j6jui89 wrote

It does seem that way. After 9/11, the country's optimism was shaken to its core. Then the financial crisis of 2007/2008 hit the public like a brick in the face, of which the economy only partially recovered from. The country's politics got more and more extreme and polarized, culminating to Trump's election win. And then covid came along....

That 90s optimism is long gone.

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Lemon86st t1_j6jxsjz wrote

American optimism has been in decline since the Kennedy assassination. Vietnam war, watergate, crack cocaine/opioid epidemic, AIDS/HIV, collapse of the manufacturing sector, just a few things that readily come to mind. it’s been a rough journey

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WhoBroughtTheCoolKid t1_j6kefcu wrote

So basically 1954-1958? Prior to that was Korea, world wars, the depression. Even in the 60s we had civil rights and segregation issues.

I feel like it’s always a rough journey with some brief smooth patches in between.

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Lemon86st t1_j6kf4ro wrote

So true, always been touch and go here in the land of Uncle Sam

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WhoBroughtTheCoolKid t1_j6kfuzi wrote

It’s true and I imagine most countries it’s pretty similar. I guess we should count our blessings that we aren’t experiencing civil war, invasion, an unstable government (kinda), or a dictatorship. Gotta be optimistic.

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JaBoTX t1_j6hzn45 wrote

All lines open...... Those were the days

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ComprehensiveNose t1_j6iibja wrote

When everyone made a relatively decent living(liveable).

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scaleofthought t1_j6jvgw5 wrote

I've never seen a bunch of people so happy to spend money before.

Even the kid doesn't give a fuck. Just having a blast. Enjoying life. Not being stressed out by the stress of his parents...

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WhoBroughtTheCoolKid t1_j6kduqd wrote

The US under Clinton had a pretty great economy and our national debt was incredibly low. Thinking that everyone make a relatively decent living is just rose colored glasses. Poor people have always existed and always will. In 1997 I made $4 an hour. Just saying. Same job, same place now is $20 an hour.

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angelfieryrain t1_j6hxsvm wrote

I kind of miss working there in the late 90s. They had some decent employee discounts that extended to Hudsons and Marshall Fields.

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AZPeakBagger t1_j6jbou6 wrote

I worked at Target in the late 80’s. Every male employee was still required to wear a tie and a red vest. If you forgot your tie it was off to the HR office to dig one out of a box to borrow for the day. Every tie in that box had the same fabric as your grandma’s couch and were 6” wide.

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HitmanClark t1_j6isin2 wrote

The thrilling articles of Golf magazine.

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cld1984 t1_j6iwio6 wrote

Haven’t seen anything this 90’s since the 90’s GameStop pic from a few days ago

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tkeRe1337 t1_j6jw1v0 wrote

Its fun how ppl brought their whole families to shop back in the 90’s. They hadnt figured out one parent could stay home with the kids haha. Lovely times

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cld1984 t1_j6k2b4g wrote

Shopping was a family event, man!

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Big-Film6719 t1_j6liwx1 wrote

Heck, back when I worked at Target in 2011-13 the parents still hadn't figured it out. One parent would be shopping for Christmas gifts from Santa while the other was in the store with the kids trying to keep them away from the other parent. (Oh, and I'd also get yelled at if I didn't bag the toys quickly enough in case the prying eyes were nearby). Not sure why they didn't just have one stay at home with the kids.

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file91e t1_j6jfbz1 wrote

I can smell that picture.

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okeydokeyannieoakley t1_j6ju1qf wrote

Popcorn?

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file91e t1_j6k5972 wrote

Popcorn, cleaner, rubber, vinyl. In the older years the popcorn went away and it was left with a musty old smell of dirt under the shelves that was never cleaned…and cleaner.

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okeydokeyannieoakley t1_j6k5wtj wrote

You’re right! There definitely was an underlying rubber and cleaner smell. The popcorn was the most overpowering though.

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-Nordico- t1_j6iy08h wrote

Checkout lanes in the '90s; super 'Cool' man indeed.

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Anxiouslycalm10 t1_j6j73n8 wrote

oh look, every check out lane has a worker

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HappyHighwayman t1_j6imiwx wrote

They rolled out to Canada so badly they abandoned the market entirely.

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zoobrix t1_j6jn42i wrote

What killed them in Canada was that not only did they not have a strong clothing section that the US stores were apparently known for their logistics and ordering system was so bad that they would constantly run out of basic items. And I'm not like talking you go and they don't have the exact brand of kitty litter you'd usually but there is zero kitty litter in the entire store. Apply that to almost anything in the store, you couldn't really count on them to have what you needed. I have never seen a large chain run out of things on such a constant basis as Target in Canada did, it was bizarre.

After that happened a few times with several different things over the course of a few months I just stopped going there, I would assume other people had similar experiences. I was not surprised in the least when they ended up closing.

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HappyHighwayman t1_j6jofp3 wrote

My friends brother got a job as a manager he said it was a complete shit show

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Salarian_American t1_j6ivo4c wrote

Never in my life have I seen a Target or any similar store with that many checkout lanes open simultaneously, not even in the 90s

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fuzztooth t1_j6j94xx wrote

I get the old and school, but where's the "cool"?

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dubiousadvocate t1_j6jc0pe wrote

That picture could have been taken this morning for that matter.

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dog-pussy t1_j6juo79 wrote

Dude’s gonna to change his oil, feed his dog, eat some sun chips, and read about golf. What a life.

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negative_60 t1_j6jwz4e wrote

So many cashiers! My head is spinning.

They were so much more advanced. What a wonderful age!

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FreeDig1758 t1_j6l5zn6 wrote

Looks like a majority of those shoppers are men

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bigdawg00OG t1_j6jkefl wrote

I wonder if that old man and lady are still alive

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hectorboiardi t1_j6jvic9 wrote

Is this from when they had the yellow popcorn and pretzels?

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globbertrottler t1_j6jw2nw wrote

Most of the people in this picture are probably dead.

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JRsFancy t1_j6k05r4 wrote

He reads Golf just for the articles.

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TonofSoil t1_j6k0eh0 wrote

Back then you tucked your shirt in.

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Differ447 t1_j6k8tqk wrote

Dave from Wendy's in foreground

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tdempsey33 t1_j6kjooz wrote

I would give anything to go back…

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lilybirdgk t1_j6kqjjy wrote

As a Canadian, I honest to god thought Target popped into existence like 10 years ago and then promptly popped out of existence again like 6 months later

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Effective-Rub t1_j6l3cza wrote

Why does this picture look so old 😢?

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VersionTop1991 t1_j6l3fa4 wrote

I remember most of my local Gemco stores were taken over/bought out by Target. Did I ever love Gemco as a kid.. well, their toy aisles.

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xavier_grayson t1_j6l5vjy wrote

This must be a pic from a brand new store opening. The gum at the checkouts is neatly organized and nothing has sold yet.

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Buddhadevine t1_j6l6469 wrote

And you could get a full cart of stuff for $20

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defdog1234 t1_j6m82jc wrote

targets always been expensive. my teacher in early 80s called it Targét

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Crush73 t1_j6l9pi2 wrote

The old guy with the golf magazine is classic enough lol

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funlickr t1_j6la621 wrote

Look at all that shareholder profit wasted on hiring additional checkout clerks

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therealzabe t1_j6lb3iw wrote

Golf magazine and antifreeze - priorities

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N0085K1LL5 t1_j6le8ko wrote

That was what my walmart looked like growing up. I was born in 92 but I feel like I got the last real taste of freedom in my childhood. I remember riding in the back of the Cadillac going to McDonald's in the morning, or not going to school and getting donuts. Shit was way different back then.

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wdwerker t1_j6li8tz wrote

I went to Target today for the first time in a few years and had to fuss quite a lot to get someone to ring up my purchase. I knew they try to force you to self check a Walmart but that’s my last visit to Target !

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PallandoOrome t1_j6lmg4l wrote

Honestly I didn't think they were around back then. I think the first one I saw was in 2005

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defdog1234 t1_j6m88n0 wrote

1982 around here. targets a minnesota company i believe. id look at colecovisions and commodore 128s.

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PallandoOrome t1_j6n5s5o wrote

I didn't know it was that old at all. What about colecovision and commodore? I used to have one of them

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defdog1234 t1_j6n9d15 wrote

Target was the best store that sold C64 stuff in 80s. It was the period after Atari 2600s and before Nintendos so it was just a couple shelves. Not a fancy electronics department.

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PallandoOrome t1_j6nb4d0 wrote

Makes sense that they would sold them at the time, yeah, neat

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SaintsBruv t1_j6lnqe7 wrote

Last time I went to America and went to a Target was in 1997 (after years of going almost every weekend), and this is exactly how I still remember them. So crazy to think it's been decades despite remembering it as if I just went there yesterday.

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KhaosElement t1_j6lr7w7 wrote

Christ I wish literally any store in my town had more than one checklane open.

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Ordinary_Ad6936 t1_j6mlzdh wrote

As you can see paper bags were used a lot. That’s all I remember using then these plastic things showed up.don’t know why, handles? Strength? I’d still prefer the paper bag.

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tetrisphere t1_j6mylc9 wrote

Also, how are you going to use a plastic bag as a book cover?

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shitsniffer712 t1_j6o95rr wrote

mine had this until they remodeled a couple years ago or so, place is totally unrecognizable and lifeless. all the red is gone and has been replaced with piss tinted grey and fake wood paneling. the cafe was replaced with a starbucks

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Adamaz1ng t1_j6i8pzz wrote

Back when you could put your kid through college working the checkout…

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KnavishBoot t1_j6ihplj wrote

Nope, not even close……you might be able to pay for the books for a semester while working full time & going to class but you ain’t putting anyone through school. Clueless.

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Adamaz1ng t1_j6ijs12 wrote

Not sure what you are getting at, the parent would not be going to class, just the child…

Minimum wage in 1995: $4:25 Yearly: $8,840 Average cost year of college (w/ room and board): $8,800

In the case that there are two parents, both which are working. The sole parent making minimum wage would be able to completely pay for tuition, room, and board.

And that’s also assuming Target only paid minimum wage, the college was not on the cheaper side of average, and the student is living on campus, not commuting/received zero tuition assistance.

It could absolutely be done then, it could not be done today.

Edit: wording.

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TonofSoil t1_j6k150y wrote

OK, what's the annual wage after taxes and things like, you know, food.

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resuwreckoning t1_j6lh0bl wrote

In the 90’s utopia, people didn’t need to eat or have shelter.

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dubiousadvocate t1_j6jccux wrote

Ah yes, another There Once Was A Golden Age! post. Everything was better!

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Adamaz1ng t1_j6jdbco wrote

Not what I am saying at all. I am only comparing the difference between wages and the affordability of college tuition between the 1990’s and today.

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