My favorite local grocery store just opened up new two minutes from my house. I am loyal. So loyal, that before the new one opened, I would drive 20 or 30 minutes depending on traffic, to go to the old store and in the process, pass by three other grocery stores. LOYAL. Not only am I loyal, but I spend a LOT of money at my favorite grocery store.
So, the new one opened. It is big. It is beautiful. It has everything my heart (and belly) desire and all in a user-friendly set up throughout the store. The only problem is the grocery sackers. They just need to learn to keep their comments to themselves and their mouths shut.
Just before Christmas, Geoff and I did a "big" shop. Granted, it was for Christmas and Christmas Eve meals, company was coming, and there may have been some items put in the cart to help Santa with the stockings. So, we had two carts loaded. (I remember growing up, this was a normal Saturday shopping trip with my parents - I wonder if my mom got the same hassle?)
As we are checking out, the sackers (there were three of them to help with our 'load') are literally complaining out loud about how much food we were buying! "I should go to your house.", one said. "You all must be rich.", another said. They were huffing and sighing and all annoyed that we were making them do their job. Then as we paid, one of them had the nerve to watch and say to the other: "Man, they paid cash! They must be rich." It was a record bill for us, but still, keep your mouth shut. So, as we pulled our now three (I don't know how it multiplied) shopping carts out of the store (why did none of the three sackers offer to help?) we said, "we're not rich because we spend all our money on groceries." I wonder if they watched to confirm the non-rich status as we piled three shopping carts into a Toyota Corolla (we should have brought the van.....).
The other day, I went in just for the necessities. I got four gallons of milk, some bread and a few other things. As the guy/boy is bagging it, he says: "That sure is a lot of milk!" I rolled my eyes. "Let me guess," he says, "a couple kids at home?" I gave him a snotty smile and said "a few kids."
IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!!!!
Another thing I'm annoyed with is that the checkers are apparently having some sort of contest about their IPM's. IPM's, I've learned means Items Per Minute (scanned). So, they won't start scanning until I've loaded my entire cart onto the conveyor belt. So, she stands there waiting and finally the belt is full and I have my produce still to load. She says, "You can hand that to me and then I'll start." I said, "Or you can start so that I can put them on the belt." And she puts her hands out, so I hand her all my produce and not until the final item is on the belt, does she start scanning them.
Okay, fine. Have your incentive contests, this is alright. I understand. However, the problem with this is that now the checker is so quickly scanning my groceries through that the sacker is literally throwing stuff into bags and tossing the bags into the cart in order to keep up with her. So, bread is under milk, cereal bags are under canned goods. It is a mess.
My point is: I spend so much money at that store and am so loyal, that I think I deserve a little better customer service!
So, yes, I am going to write a strongly-worded letter. Except now that I blogged it out, chances are that I will be too lazy to hash it out again. So I will continue to get my bread smashed and hassled about how much milk I buy.
Ho hum.
11 comments:
You should!!! Write a nasty one. The checkers and baggers are supposed to keep the comments to themselves, making only polite conversation. That's just ridiculous. And apparently they want you to be there all day if they can't start checking until the belt is full. We have the opposite problem, I'm a tad anal about how my groceries are bagged so I like the produce to be together, the cold stuff, the non-foods, etc. and if they start scanning from the first second I set something up there, I can't get it all in order. Or worse, the baggers will help unload the cart and get it all out of order. yeah, I'd complain. My dh grew up working in a grocery store where customer service was (and still is) it's main priority. They'd flip over this one. LOL
Well, you are kind of rich!
IPM contests, I had no idea! It makes sense why yesterday the checker wouldn't move the stinkin belt so I had more room. I can't squeeze between the cart and belt, I have to load from the back of the check out lane so if they don't move the conveyor, there is a whole lot of extra room up by the scanner!
Totally write a letter, for sure about the sackers.
ok so if the belt is full do they really think people are so much clower at loading the belt than the checkers are at checking. Really a full belt as it moves leaves you room at the end for more stuff. That the beauty of the belt. So you in your letter should tell them thet you have sent out their horrible stories to the internet and they had better shape up.
You know, I always talk big about how I'm gonna tell off the manager about bad service or whatever, but when it comes right down to it, I chicken out. The one time I did confront the manager/owner of a restaurant with the WORST service I'd ever had in my life, he just kind of stood there looking at me. Uh...I didn't know what else to say, so I just left, lol. Not very effective.
Anyway, since I can talk big while you do the dirty work, YES you should write a letter! Because seriously, that is completely out of line. I have had checkers make personal comments about something I'm buying, which bugs me, but I've never had the baggers comment on my personal financial status. WTH?
One time I was buying a pregnancy test and the girl at the counter asked me "is this a good thing or a bad thing?" as she ran in through. Talk about clueless. =s
How utterly annoying!! I would go voice my opinions to a manager. That is ridiculous, Nic!
I am mad about the scanning thing, too...
Thanks for your congrats on my blog. I belly laughed about holding my pee pee sticks.
The other day I was at the pharmacy and a woman was buying a pregnancy test for her married daughter...the stupid clerk said, "Oh, were you trying?" The mother looked to be in her fifties...and she answered that it was for her daughter...then the blockhead behind the counter asked her why she looked upset, she said, "Oh...is she too young?" I said to the mother checking out, "Getting a little personal aren't ya honey?" She smiled weakly at me.
Send a link to your blog to their corporate website! If you post the store name they'll come looking..retailers pay people to search blogs & see what people are saying.
We tried a new burger joint today. It was greasy terrible food. They had teenagers busing the tables..and they wouldn't stop coming to the table..How's your food?(Terrible) What did you order? (You only sell burgers)Non stop happy chatter. UGH!
Nic, I had a bagger smash my very expensive fresh peaches once, I took them back to the store and complained and made them give me new ones. Get a new loaf of bread!
Love you
Just print out your blog and address it to them. Yeah, like someone else commented, say what store it is on your blog! Maybe they'll shape up. Ridiculous that they have stupid contests that actually make things worse! It sloes the process down. Dumb! Anyway, you go girl!
did you write your letter yet???
Where oh where has Ni-Cole gone? oh where oh where can she be? she left her blog and is just gone, where oh where can she be?
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