Push or pull the shopping cart? Why? [Archive]

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herbgeek

9-23-11, 12:41pm

I've noticed 3 different ways people handle shopping carts: 1) push from the front 2) pull from the back end and 3) pull by holding the side.

I'm a pusher. I can see where I'm going, and navigate around other people better.

I understand the pull from the back end way (ie you aren't pushing the cart into traffic when you can't see if anyone is there), but the pull from the side one baffles me. When someone is holding the cart on the side and pulling it, they take up the entire aisle so that no one else can get through. And I would think it would be harder to make the cart do corners in this position (maybe I'm wrong).

Which way do you handle the shopping cart and why? Particularly interested in hearing those who do #3 so I understand it better, and then I won't get quite so aggravated.

bekkilyn

9-23-11, 1:05pm

Weird...I've never seen anyone use the holding the side method. Usually I see people not doing anything with their carts and just leaving them in the middle of the aisle while they and their 50 bajillion family members stand idly all around it blocking the aisle completely, and who then just stare at you when you say "excuse me" in order to attempt to pass.

I usually push, though sometimes when running into the above (sadly, not literally), I've had occasions where it was just easier to pull the cart to get back out of the aisle than to deal with trying to push through. I'd find it awkward to pull the cart the whole time though. The wheels going all different directions wouldn't cooperate.

razz

9-23-11, 3:28pm

Funny question to think about but I push the cart.

Not to derail the thread but what is challenging is having a toddler sitting in a cart that is blocking the aisle with the supervising adult some distance away and preoccupied while I am trying to pass through or seeing a woman's purse lying on top of a cart with no idea to whom it belongs and trying to move the cart to get by without anyone questioning my motives.

redfox

9-23-11, 4:33pm

I try to practice standing upright with really good posture, just resting my hands on the cart handle. I noticed one day that I was seriously slumping over the handles... Bad for my back!

rodeosweetheart

9-23-11, 9:00pm

Now if you were down South, you would call it a buggy.

Mrs-M

9-23-11, 11:13pm

I've witnessed all three ways in my day! I'm a pusher (all the way)! But, (heavy on the but), you know those nifty little wire carts? The ones with four wheels? Like this.
http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS90202NoCLHXPS2eg8D46VCptyJyQbL YutVoY1-Pr3JpDU_24U

I think (if I used one) I would alternate between pushing and pulling. (Would most likely pull more). However, IMO, pulling an actual full-sized shopping cart by the front is about as backwards as pulling a baby stroller backwards!

Nevertheless, to answer the "why" as to all of this, pushing IMO seems like the most logical and easiest method. When shopping, one is constantly moving ahead (forward), so it makes the most sense to me to push your cart forward while standing behind it. Easy to see ahead of you, easy to navigate, and everything you've selected (or forgot to select) is right in front of you all the time.

Plus, when my kids were little (babies), I could keep an eye on them all the time, as opposed to having said chicken-legged kid at the opposite end of the cart, grabbing and glomming onto everything they set their eyes on.

sweetana3

9-24-11, 5:45am

The older I get and the more painful my knee, the more I appreciate a nice shopping cart to act like a cane and save me from hauling loads of stuff around a store.

Mrs. Hermit

9-24-11, 9:38am

I guess I do all 3! Most times, if I know the store and what I want, I push the cart. If I am traveling slowly looking for something, or in an unfamiliar store, I pull the cart. That lets me be close to the shelves without leaving the cart in the middle of the aisle. If I am managing 2 carts, I push one and pull the other along side. I find the 2nd cart easier to steer from the side. When all my children were small, I would put them in the cart I was pushing, and the groceries went in the cart I was pulling from the side. That way I could keep an eye on the kids, and still get my shopping done.

Float On

9-24-11, 9:58am

I'm a 'push'er who likes to keep the cart in motion. I hate grocery shopping so go with my list and attack! When my 2 regular stores change their layouts or move products around it will ruin my mood for the rest of the day.

Mrs-M

9-24-11, 10:57pm

Now, who's ready to talk shopping cart design with me?

Here's one idea I have for a better designed shopping cart best suited for moms. How about a sit down and pedal version? Let's hear it for good-ol' exercise! Anyhow, my cart would consist of two separate carts joined together, with the drivers area smack dab in the middle of the two. The rear cart (compartment) would be for rugrats, equipped with double height side and end walls to keep wandering hands at bay and kids safely inside (identical steel basket grate style), while the front would be for groceries.

goldensmom

9-25-11, 6:46am

H-work

9-25-11, 10:46am

I do all 3. The side way is faster when there are kids in the cart. My daughter is always hanging on the end, the big heavy carts won't tip. I also have to keep the cart from being too close to the shelves, otherwise baby starts helping. I don't know how many times I came home with odd things in my bags. When there are odd sized items in the cart, like a long shelf, a rubbermaid bin, a big bag of dog food or cat litter, it's easier to maneuver when pulling.

AnneM

9-25-11, 5:13pm

I'm pusher. I never thought about it until this thread so last night at the grocery store I specifically noticed different 'cart styles and etiquette'.

1. Many, many pushers.
2. No pullers.
3. A large man standing at the side pushing a smaller sized cart, taking up most of the aisle.
4. The stationary cart in the middle of the aisle with small boy hanging off the back, don't know why the cart didn't flip over.
5. The single adult with 7-8 kids surrounding the cart (they were walking around the cart so I couldn't get and exact count), couldn't see how the cart moved but it was taking up the entire aisle.
6. The pusher weaving in and out of cart traffic, going the 'wrong' way down the aisle.
7. The pusher who comes to the end of the aisle, looks left and turns right.
8. The Amiga shopping cart whose driver mistook reverse for forward.
9. And more

It was a busy Saturday night, perfect for cart watching. Cheap entertainment and educational. I think I've found a new hobby.

LMAO!

You forgot to mention the cart pusher mom with two teenage children, walking on either side of the cart down the center of the aisle, who don't seem to have enough awareness of their surroundings to get into single file when someone is coming from the opposite direction.

Then there's the two parent, two small children combo where one parent pushes the two small children in the huge shopping cart that looks like a car. It has the same space for items as the regular shopping cart, but apparently the parents don't know that, because the second parent is pulling the regular shopping cart behind the race car and putting all the items in in. This way the parents get to be next to each other and can talk. This combination takes up most of the width of an aisle.

Tiam

9-25-11, 10:25pm

I think I really hate the logistics of shopping. I don't like crowded stores. I don't understand why people won't move when they see you coming or stopped for them. I don't understand how said people will just continue to stay and make long slow selections without a glance at your waiting presence. I know there isn't always a choice, people have to bring their children, but I don't like children in stores.

Do you say excuse me when you push your cart past someone who is standing and looking at the shelves?

herbgeek

9-26-11, 6:10am

I find that people pulling the cart, either from the end or the side, to be more absorbed in their own little world than pushers (but perhaps I'm just biased ;)). I find that those people are not only more frequently blocking the aisle, but when I say excuse me to get by, they don't seem to hear me, or they seem insulted that I've said that and glare at me. I see a lot of people who don't seem to be at all aware that there are others around them. I see people swinging their carts around 180 degrees to change direction without first checking to see if anyone is in their path. I see the people looking in one direction and moving in the other.

This is why I prefer to shop at odd hours when at all possible. LOL.

Mrs-M

9-26-11, 9:03am

So many good solid valid points made thus far, points I never gave so much as a second thought to before the start of this thread.

Goldensmom. I am appointing you Official Chief Field Researcher of Shopping Cart Etiquette! Love it!

H-work. Excellent point Re: shopping carts loaded with heavier/bulky weight easier to maneuver by pulling.

Anne-M. Super additions! Exactly what I have observed.

Tiam. I am totally with you. Lately I've been ever so subtly making contact with "in my way" shopping carts and when the operators look at me all surprised like, as if they were under the impression that they were the only ones shopping in the 80,000 sq ft supermarket and "where in the world did this other person with a shopping cart come from" sort of attitude, I give them a sour, hard-pressed half-smile as I pass them, seldom responding to their "oh, am I in your way" response. Few things grate on me, but I hate pretenders.

P.S. Re: children and stores, I do get a charge out of toddlers pushing their very own miniature shopping carts (with safety flags) around the store with their moms! So cute! And yes, they are always in other peoples way, but the cute factor really does win over. As far as expressing a simple "excuse me" when passing in front of, or close to others while I'm out, absolutely. Always. Would be nice to see others extend the same.

Herbgeek. Yes! I find the older I get, the less tolerant I am of others, particularly when related to obvious things. No-brainer things.

goldensmom

9-26-11, 10:38am

Goldensmom. I am appointing you Official Chief Field Researcher of Shopping Cart Etiquette! Love it!

P.S. Re: children and stores, I do get a charge out of toddlers pushing their very own miniature shopping carts

Thanks for the appointment, Mrs. M.. I think I will be a good researcher as I am a proficient people watcher.

I like those children’s carts too. I was ahead of a dad in the checkout line whose groceries were all in his daughter’s little cart. The dad said ‘I don’t know how she is going to pay for all that food, she doesn’t have any money’. The little girl looked up with big eyes and the most surprised look on her face. Made me laugh.

And by the way, AnneM, I did see one of those car/carts being pushed by a dad who had 2 small children with him. The cart was full, the car part was empty and the children walked beside the cart. The dad got the car/cart stuck negotiating a corner in the smaller aisle clothing section of the store. He had to lift the car end and maneuver the cart around the corner. He looked very frustrated.

H-work

9-26-11, 12:02pm

Those car carts are so hard to steer, ugh.

I don't get out much, so I actually enjoy my time in the grocery store, even when I have the kids with me. I seem to have conversations with different people in the aisles, either helping them find something or getting help finding something, lol. I can see how many get lost in their own little world. The store is actually designed to be overwhelming and to put customers in a shoppers trance. Add having to read labels and compare unit prices plus a couple bored family members and you have instant blocked aisles. But some people are just lacking consideration for others and manners. Maybe their moms didn't take them grocery shopping and teach them those basic skills, lol.