B&Q used to be my 'natural' port of call for DIY materials. Sadly, no longer. Today, at my local store I went to pay at the only manned ckeckout - but I was prevented from doing so. Another member of staff collared me, asked if I wanted to pay by cash or card, and when I said 'card', told me I would have to use a self-serve checkout. This is now corporate policy, it seems. So we now have two staff instead of one, neither of whom are allowed to serve you unless you specifically request help - in which case you still can't use the manned checkout, where a bored-looking and glum member of staff is twiddling her thumbs. On my previous visit, on a Saturday, it was even worse. My local store seemed to be manned almost entirely by schoolgirls, looking even more bored and very fed up. I tried to speak to one girl, but she just walked past, ignoring us, with her earbuds in. This time there were no manned checkouts open at all, and another bored schoolgirl just stood by as my wife and I gently struggled to pay for what we'd bought. Well, good luck with your attempts to make things less friendly for customers, with reforms that even your staff can't justify. Me? I shall head across the road to Wickes, now, where there is still a semblance of respect for their customers. I don't have enough of a masochistic streak to persevere with B&Q any longer, except possibly as a last resort. Isn't there some quote in the bible, about the first becoming last? Well, yea verily, it has come to pass where B&Q is concerned. Such a shame!