Monroe, NY – Following a request from a prominent community member, an upstate Walmart is now offering a magazine free checkout aisle, a move that is both a sign of respect for its Jewish customers as well as an opportunity to attract a larger clientele to the superstore.
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The Monroe Walmart Supercenter is located approximately three miles from the heart of Kiryas Joel and while many community members flock to Walmart for bargains, the assortment of magazines at the checkout aisle prevented many others from patronizing the store.
“People can be waiting on line in the checkout aisle for a long time and the magazines displayed there were extremely offensive,” Rabbi Eliyahu Shlomo Kohn, principal of the Bais Rochel Girls School in the village, told VIN News.
Several months ago, Rabbi Kohn contacted Walmart managers in the densely Orthodox communities of Monroe, Monsey and Lakewood and asked them to find some way of eliminating the problem, either by using a plastic cover to hide the magazine covers or by offering checkout aisles that did not sell magazines.
“The Monsey Pathmark had certain aisles where the magazines were kept covered for years, with only the titles visible in order to accommodate Jewish residents,” explained Rabbi Kohn. “While the store is no longer in business, the store manager had told me that covering the magazines in certain aisles did not hurt magazine sales in any way.”
Scott Satterfield, manager of the Monroe Walmart, was more than happy to comply with Rabbi Kohn’s request, setting up one checkout aisle with three cash registers for those customers who prefer to avoid the magazines.
“I made sure to set aside an aisle that had both regular cashier checkouts as well as a self serve checkout in order to best accommodate our Kiryas Joel customers,” said Satterfield.
Signs hanging above the registers clearly inform shoppers that no magazines are sold in that particular aisle.
Hoping to further cater to local residents, Satterfield looked into the possibility of replacing the regular magazines with those that would be amenable to the Jewish community, but so far that idea has not come to fruition.
Rabbi Kohn says he hopes to approach both the Monroe Shop Rite and Target stores, as well as the Monticello Walmart Supercenter and ask them to designate magazine free aisles for their Orthodox clientele as well and was quick to point out that while everyone tries their best to patronize locally owned businesses, sometimes a trip to Walmart is unavoidable.
“When the baby is crying at two o’clock in the morning and you are out of diapers, where are you going to go if not Walmart?” asked Rabbi Kohn.
Nothing new. The former Monsey Pathmark did it for years before closing.
kudosh to Rabbi Eliyahu Shlomo Kohn..
If this story would take place in israel
I wonder what the responce would be
Putting up walls is not the answer. If you’re not supposed to look at the magazines, then just don’t – period. When you put up walls, then they dafka want to look to see what they’re missing.
#3 the responce would be BAD vs. the response would be positive.
While such an idea sounds great, it must be throught through totally.
Whats going to be if there are 5 customers on the no magazine aisle with three price checks in toys and Yoelish needs pampers for his shvigger while his large family kn”h is all packed in the Odyseey in the parking lot waiting to go to Brooklyn on Erev Yom Tov? He is going to go to the full magazine line to get out faster while all the time being careful of shmiras haynayim as always. Will this be a chillul Hashem? On whose part? Who is going to take cheshbon for such a chillul Hashem??
Why is this an improvement for the current system of shmiras ha’ayim??
Very nicely written letter to Walmart.
Rabbi Kohn is an honorable selfless man. (for many other reasons as well), and deserves a round of applause.
Applauding now…
Shop Rite in Monticello has this during the summer as well. They have a sign “heimishe aisle”. I am certain that religious Christians and Muslims also appreciate this – it is not only for Jews but pious people of any faith that treasures modesty
While I do not mind shopping in a store that has magazines by the check out counter, I do appreciate the sensitivity that the KJ community has with regards to the magazines and with regards to the way they approached handling the situation.
Seven or eight years ago, the men of my community approached the managers of the two large supermarkets in Jewish areas of Baltimore, and the managers readily agreed to create magazine-free check-out aisles. The supermarkets are goyim-owned (at least in one of them you are allowed to buy chametz on motzaei Pesach) and the mangers are goyim.
It is very instructive just how much more cooperative the goyim so often prove to be on sensitive issues like this one than the frei or modern self-identified orthodox jews.
It is not only the Orthodox which find those magazines objectionable, but also family oriented individuals of all faiths. It is really a shanda that young children also have to be exposed to those smutty magazines, while waiting on the check out lines with their parents.
I can’t believe how many holier than thou folks we have here. What’s wrong with asking the company if they could do something about the issue & they do? Kudos to Walmart. Covering the magazines is a very nice thing for them to do.
You people who are upset at this and you want to see the shmutz, you could pick up the covers and get your jollies but anyone normal wouldn’t complain about having the magazine covered.
As the world becomes more electronic and visual information flows everywhere, its no longer feasible to keep trying to physically “isolate the schmutz”. Maybe its time to focus on the problem of individuals and put the responsibility on them to filter out the objectionable stuff and learn to discipline their yetzer horah.
Look at the picture! There are cigarettes in the aisle.
Which do you prefer, toxic substances for the lungs or toxic substances for the brain?
I applaud the Non- Jewish Walmart managers. You are decent , good neighbors. The almighty should bestow on you health, wealth and all the other good perks in life. And to all of you self hating Jews I have 3 words: SHAME ON YOU! Nobody forced the store to do anything. They asked politely. And the store obliged. There is nothing wrong in trying to keep your eyes from seeing all the covers of these filthy mags.
Job well done!
This is a business decision for Walmart, not some display of altruistic sensitivity. Like any successful business, they weigh the costs and benefits of any proposals, and do what they need to do to generate greater profits. In this situation a local Walmart decided that this change would encourage a specific demographic to continue (or increase) their spending, and so they made the appropriate business decision. If the change would cost more than it would generate they’d not implement it. This is good sound solid business reasoning.
Why don’t you get your own store. Stop forcing your will on other people. Let’s see if you willing to post this one.