Post a pet peeve.

[BruTak]

Yep yep, preach the word.

It's all very well for those in authority to say "Shop Local", but I bet they don't have to deal with the blank looks from store assistants when you ask about a specific item, and they look at you as if you've suddenly started talking in Klingon.

[Gatefan1976]

Have either of you two worked in a large retail store?
Cause a pet peeve of mine is people who never have getting pissy at shop clerks. Would you want to help someone who has no idea what they are talking about and packs an attitude?
Now imagine dealing with that on a daily basis and getting paid a pittance to put up with it.

[Annoyed]

Have either of you two worked in a large retail store?
Cause a pet peeve of mine is people who never have getting pissy at shop clerks. Would you want to help someone who has no idea what they are talking about and packs an attitude?
Now imagine dealing with that on a daily basis and getting paid a pittance to put up with it.

Yes, I have. Like most people my age, I worked in a grocery store (a large one) in school. And the working conditions were far harsher than they are today, particularly for male employees, who were expected to do all the heavy, unpleasant "grunt work".

Been there, done that.

And "I'd like to order a few cases of cat food" with a detailed list including the store chain's own product/stock numbers and such should not put the intelligence of any human able to walk upright to much of a test. The only possible explanation was either the store put some brainless twit in on a weekend day or the employee herself just didn't give a crap, just there to fill space and collect her paycheck. Either way, it's the store management's fault, for either putting a poorly trained employee behind the counter, or tolerating her as an employee.

And this doesn't even touch on the larger problem; lack of stock. In the past week, I've gone to local retailers to get tools for spreading fiberglass, a couple of specific light bulbs, a memory card, and some rosin-core solder (I have multiple projects underway). In each case, I consulted the company's web site to determine stock before subjecting myself to the frustration of dealing with the traffic to get to these stores, and in each case the store was in fact out of the item.

This is nothing but bad management on the part of the store. Also, in all cases, I was able to order the required item, usually at lower cost and one or two day delivery from internet vendors. The SD card I wanted Saturday arrived via Amazon Prime today. (sunday) Cost was $5 bucks lower.

Why in the name of all that is unholy should I even consider buying from local stores? I've long had a preference for purchasing locally; a hangover from days long past when "mail order" usually meant overpriced scam. (Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery, if ever.) But I'm fed up with the BS, and more and more looking to buy online first.

Yes, I understand jobs in stores can be miserable. But there is absolutely no excuse for stores to expect customers to put up with this crap.

[Gatefan1976]

Yes, I have. Like most people my age, I worked in a grocery store (a large one) in school. And the working conditions were far harsher than they are today, particularly for male employees, who were expected to do all the heavy, unpleasant "grunt work".

Been there, done that.

Guess what.
That has not changed, so don't give me that crap.

And "I'd like to order a few cases of cat food" with a detailed list including the store chain's own product/stock numbers and such should not put the intelligence of any human able to walk upright to much of a test. The only possible explanation was either the store put some brainless twit in on a weekend day or the employee herself just didn't give a crap, just there to fill space and collect her paycheck. EIther way, it's the store management's fault, for either putting a poorly trained employee behind the counter, or tolerating her as an employee.

The "floor staff" have NO ABILITY to do what you want. Ordering is automated unless the manager over-rides it. The person saying "I'll get the manager" was doing exactly the right thing, yet you want to bitch about them.
Yeah, thats why we respect customers........

And this doesn't even touch on the larger problem; lack of stock.

Yeah, cause the floor staff do the ordering, don't they......

In the past week, I've gone to local retailers to get tools for spreading fiberglass, a couple of specific light bulbs, a memory card, and some rosin-core solder (I have multiple projects underway). In each case, I consulted the company's web site to determine stock before subjecting myself to the frustration of dealing with the traffic to get to these stores, and in each case the store was in fact out of the item.

Have you considered that the stock count is wrong?
Have you rang the store and ask them to hold your product?
I'm guessing no, because customers like you have no clue how things work, or more correctly, don't work.
Just blame the person who gets paid peanuts.

This is nothing but bad management on the part of the store.

So, not the person you are getting mad at?
Clerks don't manage the store, but you Yahoo's take out your anger on them.
Yeah, their is a reason why staff see customers as morons, and you just proved why they do.

Also, in all cases, I was able to order the required item, usually at lower cost and one or two day delivery from internet vendors. The SD card I wanted Saturday arrived via Amazon Prime today. (sunday)

Feel free to use the net for your ordering, I'm sure clerks would rather not deal with the attitude.

Why in the name of all that is unholy should I even consider buying from local stores? I've long had a preference for purchasing locally; a hangover from days long past when "mail order" usually meant overpriced scam. But I'm fed up with the BS, and more and more looking to buy online first.

If you don't know the answer to this, I don't know if I can help you.

Yes, I understand jobs in stores can be miserable. But there is absolutely no excuse for stores to expect customers to put up with this crap.

So why should the people with no power and no control put up with your crap?
Direct your anger to the people who deserve it, not the person who happens to be in front of you.

[Gatefan1976]

Just as an aside to the mods.
This is not a dig at Annoyed or Brutak, it is a dig at the attitude of customers. In the relatively small grocery store I currently work in, we still have literally thousands of lines of stock and expecting the staff to know every single one of them and where they are located is just stupid. Most people cant find something in their own house, let alone a shop that is by degree larger.
Yes, the staff should be able to point you in the right direction, or even find what you are looking for, but we really don't know where everything is "off hand".
As for Cashiers...……
They know how to work a till, they are not asked, or required to know the layout of a store, or what we stock. When that comes up, they should call for help, not because they are dumb, but because it's not in their field.
I don't ask a mechanic to fix the computer problems in my car, nor do I complain when the mechanic cannot do it either, they are not trained to do it.

[mad_gater]

Just as an aside to the mods.
This is not a dig at Annoyed or Brutak, it is a dig at the attitude of customers. In the relatively small grocery store I currently work in, we still have literally thousands of lines of stock and expecting the staff to know every single one of them and where they are located is just stupid. Most people cant find something in their own house, let alone a shop that is by degree larger.
Yes, the staff should be able to point you in the right direction, or even find what you are looking for, but we really don't know where everything is "off hand".
As for Cashiers...……
They know how to work a till, they are not asked, or required to know the layout of a store, or what we stock. When that comes up, they should call for help, not because they are dumb, but because it's not in their field.
I don't ask a mechanic to fix the computer problems in my car, nor do I complain when the mechanic cannot do it either, they are not trained to do it.

Even though I'm just a cashier assistant, I do wind up all over the store so I can usually help a customer locate where on the floor the product they're looking for might be....now if there's none of the product on the shelf and they ask if there's any more in back then I gotta go look for whoever is working that dept. because only they're gonna know something like that...but yeah special orders like multiple cases of something aren't usually placed by the cashier or customer service front end....they usually get referred to the proper dept. (for example if ordering multiple cases of canned beans that would be the purview of whoever's working in the Grocery dept.)

you do have to remember though that the way grocery stores are run down under might not necessarily be the same as the way they're run here in the US

and due to Aussie/US differences your mechanic analogy might not necessarily pan out either....here in the US since computerized components are so ubiquitous in modern cars it means that yes our mechanics likely ARE getting trained in how to deal with them when electronics in a car go haywire

you kidding? if they were hiring Bill Gates types to deal with the computerized components in modern cars you know how high the repair bill would be? ( (hint: computer scientists don't come cheap )

of course here in the US multi-tasking is a bigger thing too...which means that we often DO get asked to step outside our little boxes in order to be as helpful to the customer as we can be

[Princess Awinita]

In short: people not wearing their masks in public buildings where iT IS WRITTEN ON THE DOOR TO WEAR ONE.....

In long: I wear my mask, there's a mask order in effect, it just got extended until 14 September, if these people who are not wearing their masks had worn them inirtally, the mask order would have ended on the 14th august.

So I am wearing my mask, into church {once seated I am allowed to remove it}. in the gas station, at mcdonalds, taco bell, the bookstore, target, walmart, best buy. etc.

I wear my mask not because I am keeping quiet and not complaining. if you could hear my mental abilities all you'd hear is "WEAR THE FREAKING THING SO THESE ORDERS CAN END!! {and a whole buncha Chinese swear words right out of firefly}" I am wearing my mask because I want more people to wear the things so these bleedin' orders can just friggin expire and not be needed anymore.

But nooooo some people still arent wearing their mask in the library, in the church, in walmart, etc. It is because of those people that the mask orders keep getting longer. if everyone had worn their masks, these mask orders wouldnt be needed to begin with

*Shuts up*

[Annoyed]

Guess what.
That has not changed, so don't give me that crap.


The "floor staff" have NO ABILITY to do what you want. Ordering is automated unless the manager over-rides it. The person saying "I'll get the manager" was doing exactly the right thing, yet you want to bitch about them.
Yeah, thats why we respect customers........

Yeah, cause the floor staff do the ordering, don't they......

Have you considered that the stock count is wrong?
Have you rang the store and ask them to hold your product?
I'm guessing no, because customers like you have no clue how things work, or more correctly, don't work.
Just blame the person who gets paid peanuts.

So, not the person you are getting mad at?
Clerks don't manage the store, but you Yahoo's take out your anger on them.
Yeah, their is a reason why staff see customers as morons, and you just proved why they do.

Feel free to use the net for your ordering, I'm sure clerks would rather not deal with the attitude.

If you don't know the answer to this, I don't know if I can help you.

So why should the people with no power and no control put up with your crap?
Direct your anger to the people who deserve it, not the person who happens to be in front of you.

Did I not place the blame for these issues squarely on store management? The only thing I said to any employee was "I'll come back Monday". I didn't lay into her or anything. It would have been a useless waste of effort.

Calling a store ahead get you this: Store employee picks up phone, listens to my request, sets the phone down to make me think they're checking, waits on another customer or two and comes back and says they have it whether they do or not. I've been down that road.
That's if you get to a person, rather than endless conversations with a machine which is designed to prevent customers from reaching employees.

That's right, the cat food has to be ordered by the grocery manager. So the normal routine is to give the list to the Cust. service desk people, who pass it the the G.M., who orders it. I get a call 4-5 days later that it's in, I pick it up and pay for it, game over. This is not the first time I've done this. I've had those cats a number of years now. Works like a charm when I do it during the week when the regular staff is working.

I dunno, maybe stores operate differently in your neck of the woods. But in this neck of the woods, Stores appear to be doing everything they possibly can to make shopping as miserable an experience as possible.

PS: Oh, and I realized after the last post... you had asked if I ever worked in a retail environment, and I said yes.
That job I had back in the early 70's was at the very same grocery store that this tale describes.

[BruTak]

Perhaps I should've been more specific?

I've never had any trouble with the staff at my local supermarkets. They do a grand job, especially in these difficult times.

The specific instance of blank looks I was referring to happened in a branch of Waterstones (a UK based chain of bookshops) in Glasgow some years ago.

I'd pre-ordered a book and opted for the "click and collect" option on the website since I'd be in Glasgow anyway on the day of release.

So, called up the relevant email on my phone, got to the cashiers desk, gave all the relevant details - cashier looks at me like I've sprouted another head, taps away on his computer keyboard for a few moments.

Him: "Oh, I think you've made a mistake. The computer says it's not out until October next year."
Me: "That would be the paperback edition. It's the hardback I'm after."
Him: "Oh, right."

He turns and roots around in the cupboard behind him. To no avail.
By this time, I'm getting a bit annoyed.
He phones upstairs to the stockroom. Nothing.

I'm about to leave empty handed, when a second - more senior - member of staff shows up, and has the situation explained to him.
He tuts, rolls his eyes at the stupidity of his colleague, goes over to the shelves by the door marked Hardback New Releases, picks up a copy of the relevant book and returns.
I pay, he apologises, I leave.

I'm a fairly regular customer of that particular branch, and funnily enough I never saw the first guy again...

[Falcon Horus]

Facemask peeve: people who wear one but leave their nose exposed.

FOR CRYING OUT LOUD PEOPLE!! Do you wear your penis out of your underwear too like that?!? If you have one that is... and/or wear underpants.

Nose goes behind the mask too!!

[Annoyed]

Facemask peeve: people who wear one but leave their nose exposed.

FOR CRYING OUT LOUD PEOPLE!! Do you wear your penis out of your underwear too like that?!? If you have one that is... and/or wear underpants.

Nose goes behind the mask too!!

Depends upon the temperature and humidity level of the environment. If either is too high, exhaust blowby from the mask fogs my glasses instantly, requiring me to drop the mask in order to see.

Now, riddle me this, Batman... If the mask allows that much blowby, how much good is it really doing anyway?

[BruTak]

I'm told that if you put a small piece of paper tissue on the bridge of your nose under the mask, that solves the "glasses fogging up" issue.

[mad_gater]

Did I not place the blame for these issues squarely on store management? The only thing I said to any employee was "I'll come back Monday". I didn't lay into her or anything. It would have been a useless waste of effort.

Calling a store ahead get you this: Store employee picks up phone, listens to my request, sets the phone down to make me think they're checking, waits on another customer or two and comes back and says they have it whether they do or not. I've been down that road.
That's if you get to a person, rather than endless conversations with a machine which is designed to prevent customers from reaching employees.

That's right, the cat food has to be ordered by the grocery manager. So the normal routine is to give the list to the Cust. service desk people, who pass it the the G.M., who orders it. I get a call 4-5 days later that it's in, I pick it up and pay for it, game over. This is not the first time I've done this. I've had those cats a number of years now. Works like a charm when I do it during the week when the regular staff is working.

I dunno, maybe stores operate differently in your neck of the woods. But in this neck of the woods, Stores appear to be doing everything they possibly can to make shopping as miserable an experience as possible.

PS: Oh, and I realized after the last post... you had asked if I ever worked in a retail environment, and I said yes.
That job I had back in the early 70's was at the very same grocery store that this tale describes.

heh...speaking of grocery stores there used to be one in my neighborhood called Bell's Park Edge....anyhow it's not there anymore but in the same plaza is where our county Auto Bureau is where you can get or renew your driver's license but it used to be in the plaza across the street and up the street a little ways where the Whole Foods I work at is and so I get people occasionally asking me where the auto bureau is and I describe to the best of my ability where the plaza where Bell's used to be located is...anyhow I'll be like "it's the same plaza Bell's used to be located in" and most of the time I get blank looks which makes me feel really old

yesterday though I told a person that it was in that plaza and he was like "oh where Park Edge used to be?" and I'm like "FINALLY someone else who remembers Bell's Park Edge!".....of course they were senior citizens and had probably lived here more or less their whole lives and so of course they'd remember Bell's

[Annoyed]

heh...speaking of grocery stores there used to be one in my neighborhood called Bell's Park Edge....anyhow it's not there anymore but in the same plaza is where our county Auto Bureau is where you can get or renew your driver's license but it used to be in the plaza across the street and up the street a little ways where the Whole Foods I work at is and so I get people occasionally asking me where the auto bureau is and I describe to the best of my ability where the plaza where Bell's used to be located is...anyhow I'll be like "it's the same plaza Bell's used to be located in" and most of the time I get blank looks which makes me feel really old

yesterday though I told a person that it was in that plaza and he was like "oh where Park Edge used to be?" and I'm like "FINALLY someone else who remembers Bell's Park Edge!".....of course they were senior citizens and had probably lived here more or less their whole lives and so of course they'd remember Bell's

Going back even farther, in addition to Bells & Park Edge, which used to be separate entities, we had Loblaws, Star Markets, and a few other players. All of which are long gone now, victims of Wegmans' empire.

[BruTak]

And that's Glasgow gone back into lockdown.