Older shoppers have fired back at “spoiled brats” young Aussies after one of them demanded supermarkets limit customers who wait too long at checkouts to a “boomer hour”.
The shopper, from Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, southeast of Melbourne, claimed older shoppers should be “more considerate of time-poor workers and busy parents” in a post shared on Facebook.
They added that older customers took up too much space in the aisles to stop and chat, making it difficult for other rushing customers.
Boomers on social media branded the idea “brainless” and lashed out at young Aussies for being “entitled” and “self-centered.”
Older shoppers have fired back at young Aussies after one of them demanded supermarkets restrict customers to a ‘boomer hour’ because it takes too long in the aisles and at the checkout (Photo: Older woman shopping at Woolworths in Melbourne)
“What a bunch of disrespectful, spoiled brats… they still have a lot to learn about life… they can get their fill,” one person wrote.
‘What a brainless idea. Stuff like that, bowing to the selfish or the impatient,” another commented.
One boomer wrote that ‘young idiots’ should feel ‘stuffed’, while another suggested their own solution: ‘Here’s an idea, f*** off you little turds’.
Other boomers say they will shop whenever they want, with many claiming they will now consciously take longer in the supermarket aisles and at the checkout.
‘Omg, after that they want euthanasia (sic) above the age of fifty. What’s wrong with these self-righteous, self-centered, spoiled brats? They drive like they’re grocery shopping, “get out of my way, get off the road, get out of my grocery store,” one person wrote.
‘Everything about my generation. Me, me, me, I gotta make my voice heard, I gotta make every situation about me because the world revolves around me,” another commented.
One boomer advised young Aussies who complain about slow shoppers to remember that they too will grow old one day.
“I think some of you who complain about slow elders are forgetting that if you are lucky enough to reach that age, you will also be slower in the future,” they wrote.
‘If you don’t want to wait, use the self-service machines that most supermarkets have these days or shop online, your problem is solved.’
Consumer behavior analyst Barry Urquhart (pictured) slammed the idea, claiming it is ‘ageism personified’
Consumer behavior analyst Barry Urquhart labeled the idea as “ageism personified.”
“It won’t work because they are the main driver of the market right now,” he told 7News.
“At a time when the cost of living and doing business is acute, you cannot turn around and marginalize any consumer group.
“The Australians who have the money and are spending it are 50 and over, they are very attractive to retail businesses in general.”
Mr Urquhart explained that Australia, with the exception of Sweden, has the highest personal debt in the world and that at a time when people are therefore looking to curb spending, all customers should be encouraged.
Mr Urquhart said older Australians have the money to spend and are a key driver of the market (pictured, elderly customer at a Woolworths checkout)
‘This is ageism personified. People want to say ‘let’s marginalize the elderly, let’s make them invisible’ and they say ‘no, we’re asserting ourselves in tourism, hospitality and flight purchasing in general,’ he said.
“Follow the money and money in Australia is currently aimed at people aged 50 and over as they have less mortgages, make and spend more discretionary purchases.”
During the height of the Covid pandemic, Woolworths and Coles introduced priority access for the elderly so they didn’t miss out on scarce essential items.
Both stores opened between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. for seniors and people with disabilities so they could do their shopping without being turned away by aggressive panic buyers.