Albert Heijn Opens Museum of Empty Shelves as IT Incident Enters Third Day
Dutch supermarket chain Albert Heijn has converted its frozen food aisle into a memorial to the online orders it can no longer deliver, while staff hand out paper maps to shoppers navigating the outage.
Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall have converted every closed checkout lane into a permanent exhibition titled «The Great Unavailability», complete with velvet ropes and a guided audio tour narrated by a former customer service representative who now works as a full-time museum docent.
The company announced that all 1,200 delivery vans will drive in a continuous loop around the Netherlands until the IT incident is resolved, carrying nothing but empty crates and a single laminated sign reading «Your groceries are on their way, spiritually».
Shoppers who arrive at physical stores are now issued hand-drawn maps showing the location of the last known working self-checkout, which has been roped off and guarded by two employees in period costume representing «the before times».
A spokesperson said the museum has already welcomed 40,000 visitors, none of whom could buy anything, and that a second wing dedicated to the Gall & Gall wine section will open as soon as someone remembers the password to the inventory system.
By Thursday, the chain plans to replace all price tags with QR codes that lead to a page explaining that the price is currently unavailable, and that this too is part of the exhibit.
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