So, apparently, it is perfect that I am moving to New York where lines at grocery stores can be epic.But wait! An article in the NYTimes today details how the wildly popular Whole Foods has so cleverly managed to address this problem. It is all very interesting, but of course also very silly. I didn't do so well in Operations, and I'm pretty sure all I really needed to know was that Little's Law is I=RT (but I don't know what I, R, or T is), but one thing I do remember is queuing theory, which is all Whole Foods is using.
As the article points out, banks have long used a single queue with multiple teller-windows to ensure no one gets stuck in a long, slow moving line, and that generally every customer is helped in the shortest time possible. It would have been nice if the article had also given props to Best Buy, since they have been using this same system, first at busy times like Christmas, but I believe now all the time - at least in their Midwest stores. So while the article is right to mention the fear of customers abandoning a queue when it looks too long to them, Best Buy could be pointed to as a fellow retailer who has made this work.
Also interesting was their use of first people, now electronic signage, to reveal the expected wait time. Again, great application. Let's give it up for Cedar Point though! How many times have we raced to the Gemini or Magnum XL, not been able to see the whole line, but seen that sign that says, "The expected wait from this point is: 1/4 hours" and then kept on running!
So basically what this article teaches us is that Whole Foods execs are using their fat bonus checks from the ridiculous popularity of their stores to, a) buy new plasma TVs, Wii's, and to pre-order the iPhone and b) take weekend trips to Sandusky, OH to kick the sky on the Raptor. Nice.
