Customers are getting fed up over wait times at retail outlets

[J pold]

And it’s only going to get worse as the student workforce goes back to school. I have worked in retail so I understand what a lot of these people have to go through too accommodate a cranky customer. But there are sometimes when wait times are just ridiculous, and I have bailed.

[Boblobla]

I worked retail for 5 years and I hate lineups more than anything. That is why I do all my Christmas shopping on the 24th of December.

I have REALLY noticed the shortage when I go to nicer restaurants. There is nothing worse than getting terrible service at a nice place. It completely ruins the evening.

[fredr123]

The study must've been commissioned by Jolinar.

I've walked out of three coffee shops in the last week alone. Only once was I bitter about it. Seems I've come to terms with this lineup problem. Either that or it's sufficiently crushed my resolve such that I don't have it in me to complain anymore.

But there are still places with great service out there. I've been in a Starbucks where the wait was a little over 5 minutes or so. The manager began handing out coupons for free drinks after you picked up your order and apologized profusely. That's the kind of thing that will cause me to give them the benefit of the doubt and return notwithstanding the poor initial experience.

A friend of ours was out with her hubby at Joey Tomatoe's. She had a salad and found a piece of plastic in it (probably from the bag the lettuce came in). Not a huge deal, everything else was good. When they got home they phoned the 800 number on their receipt to voice their concerns. The next day the manager of the store called her personally to apologize and offered a free meal for her and her husband any time on the house. The corporate office also called and provided over $100 in gift certificates. When they finally took up the restaurant on their offer, the manager and the chef came out to apologize. Everything and anything on the menu (drinks and dessert included) were up for grabs.

I guess the lesson is (even if you don't like JT's or Starbucks) that you can make people happy and keep customers coming back even if there is a labour shortage and service sucks.

[CaptainCrunch]

Yeah, I was at this brothel the other night and I had to wait for hours and the selection was terrible. There wasn't even a complimentary bowl of blow available because their normal dealer was short staffed on the delivery side.

It was a horrible experience, and the only girl that was available was one eyed stumpy the legless phenom.

I'm taking my business elsewhere.

[FireFly]

It's a double edged sword though. I'm looking at a second job and thinking about where I could make some extra cash. I like working retail for the clothing discounts, but because they're short staffed, you end up working twice as hard and dealing with more cranky customers... likewise in the restaurant industry. Not enough people are giving credit for GOOD service anymore. Or heck, even adequate service.... If people are swamped, and you recognize that, and your drinks are never empty anyway, give credit where it's due and tip accordingly.

[Boblobla]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

It was a horrible experience, and the only girl that was available was one eyed stumpy the legless phenom.

Was she at least toothless so you could get yourself a nice gummer?

[Dion]

I get pissed at how grocery stores deal with customers. Yesterday i was in Extra Foods with a basket full of milk, bread and a few other items. The 2 tills they had open were 10 deep with customers waiting to pay for thier food items. The head cahsier finally walks up and opens another till. Instead of taking the next person in line she takes those who hadn't been waiting. Well, a couple of ladies with full carts ahead of me walked over to said gal and gave her the gears for not taking those that jad been waiting awhile. She just shrugged her shoulders to say she didn't care. The 2 ladies walked out and left thier full carts.

It's not so much a shortage thing but also having to deal with staff that don't care.

[REDVAN]

Originally Posted by FireFly

It's a double edged sword though. I'm looking at a second job and thinking about where I could make some extra cash. I like working retail for the clothing discounts, but because they're short staffed, you end up working twice as hard and dealing with more cranky customers... likewise in the restaurant industry. Not enough people are giving credit for GOOD service anymore. Or heck, even adequate service.... If people are swamped, and you recognize that, and your drinks are never empty anyway, give credit where it's due and tip accordingly.

It's easy to notice good/bad service when "meh" service is the norm. That said, I will also notice people who try to, or actually do a good job and do what I can to tip. If it's a non-tipping place, I usually give them a big thanks! For bad service, out comes my attitude too...

[kevman]

Hoorah for self check outs!

[habernac]

My reaction depends on the situation. I've been some places where they actually have a sign up asking for customers to please be patient as they are understaffed. But I won't put up with someone in retail being a jerk to me. It's not my fault you have too few people, talk to your management.

[Ironhorse]

When shopping for an iPhone this past weekend, the kid at Fido wouldn't even acknowledge our presence, even though we were the only ones in the store and I was playing with the demo iPhone for 10 minutes.

My wife finally walked up to him and asked him if he had a dictionary so he could look up the word "customer service". After hearing a half-arsed "sorry" and telling him we were considering two high end phones, we walked straight out. The kid's attidude seemed to consist of "Like, dude, I get paid to come here, not care".

[Dion]

Originally Posted by FireFly

It's a double edged sword though. I'm looking at a second job and thinking about where I could make some extra cash. I like working retail for the clothing discounts, but because they're short staffed, you end up working twice as hard and dealing with more cranky customers... likewise in the restaurant industry. Not enough people are giving credit for GOOD service anymore. Or heck, even adequate service.... If people are swamped, and you recognize that, and your drinks are never empty anyway, give credit where it's due and tip accordingly.

The problem with short staffing in the resturant industry is quite often the food arrives cold. The chef is doing his job but the food he has waiting to be served sits cold as the staff try to service all customers. While it's hard to blame the server for cold food you can't blame someone for not tipping. It's got to a point where i don't eat out anymore.

[burn_this_city]

Throw a chair, it works for me!

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by kevman

Hoorah for self check outs!

Self checkouts were line up 20 deep at Superstore Monday.

I think I've given up on Superstore - no bananas, no Coke or Pepsi, half the yogurt on the shelves was within a day of expiry. I still end up going to Co-op or Safeway the get the stuff Superstore is out of stock on. I may as well save the trip to Superstore.

[Tron_fdc]

I walk out of stores all the time....I don't even think twice about it. I'm at the point now where I don't even care either; it's almost second nature for me to walk in, see a gargantuan line, and turn around and walk away. This is one of the main reasons I don't go to Tim Hortons anymore.....I don't care how fast they're going if I see a line out the door I'm outta there. Same with malls; if I see a line that's over 10 deep I walk away before I even KNOW I'm walking away.

The Calgary airport is pretty brutal as well. I'll starve myself before I wait in line for a POS Harvey's burger with 40 other grumpy people.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Ironhorse

When shopping for an iPhone this past weekend, the kid at Fido wouldn't even acknowledge our presence, even though we were the only ones in the store and I was playing with the demo iPhone for 10 minutes.

My wife finally walked up to him and asked him if he had a dictionary so he could look up the word "customer service". After hearing a half-arsed "sorry" and telling him we were considering two high end phones, we walked straight out. The kid's attidude seemed to consist of "Like, dude, I get paid to come here, not care".

That's a sad reality with retail. They are always short staffed that they will take anyone who wants the job. It better times that kid would have been fired or not hired in the first place.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

Self checkouts were line up 20 deep at Superstore Monday.

I think I've given up on Superstore - no bananas, no Coke or Pepsi, half the yogurt on the shelves was within a day of expiry. I still end up going to Co-op or Safeway the get the stuff Superstore is out of stock on. I may as well save the trip to Superstore.

While in Extra Foods yesterday afternoon their meat counter was almost empty. Not a steak to be found for the BBQ. Staff member just shrugged his shoulders and said that's all we have. Not a good way to run a grocey store.

[burn_this_city]

Originally Posted by fotze

Then you go into futureshop and there are about 7 million commission seeking vultures in there.

Corrected..

[Pagal4321]

I've given up on Superstore all together. Is saving 5 bucks per trip really worth the lineups and lack of selection?
I just go to CO-OP where the selection is full all the time, and the staff are friendly and helpful. And the self checkout rarely has a line.
And if I want to buy things in bulk, I'll go to Costco and deal with the lineups there...

[Tron_fdc]

You guys should go to Safeway for lunch. They have a deli counter, make great sandwiches, and I do most of my grocery shopping at the same time. I go there 3 times a week, and there's hardly ever lineups.