Last night I had the experience from Hell at Walmart. Here is my open letter to them, also submitted on their website. Feel free to share via email, Facebook, Twitter, etc. I am trying to get the word out because I'm pretty pissed and it's time for Walmart to shape up.
To whom it may concern:
I am writing to express my horrible experience at store 4436. I was in the store last night with my partner, and since we were already there, I decided to take advantage of the price matching guarantee instead of making an extra stop at Publix. I was price matching dog food, and picked up a few other things as well. I had little difficulty finding the items I needed, but the trip turned for the worst at checkout.
The cashier was very unfriendly, and uncooperative in price matching. When presented with the ad, she retrieved her supervisor, who told me that since the price was not listed in the ad, they couldn't price match it. Keep in mind, I pointed out the printed price in the ad at least five times. I was told that they could not count on that being the price, and that I would need to know the exact price of the item at the local Publix. I told them that I have bought this product from Publix many times, and could guarantee that it was the correct price. I was then told that they would price match, but only as a "courtesy" and not to let it happen again. Then I handed over my coupons to be scanned. Yes, I'm a couponer, but I don't label myself as an extreme couponer, I use my coupons correctly. I was told that my coupons wouldn't be accepted because they had "already done me the favor of price matching." I spoke with the cashier, her supervisor, and someone else called over that I presume was the manager on duty. He however, did not identify himself. I was told again that they were already doing me a favor by allowing the price match, especially since the Walmart price on the dog food was 2¢ less than the Publix price. I even offered to reimburse them the 2¢ per bag difference (26¢). I had a copy of the coupon policy thrust in my face like a criminal, although I showed them a copy of said policy, which I keep in my coupon binder. I reminded them that my coupons were actually making them money, as they were refunded the value plus 8¢ .
After debating for 20 minutes, I asked if I should take my business to Publix, and they immediately said yes and voided the transaction. I walked away leaving a cart of merchandise worth $150. Keep in mind this was a light shopping trip for me, yet still totaled $150.
I understand the concerns of coupon fraud due to the recent coupon craze. However, I did nothing wrong. I use my coupons correctly per the verbage on each coupon and in compliance with each store's coupon policy. I teach people to coupon and write a couponing blog, and have always sang the praises of Walmart's low prices and price matching. That will end as I have no interest in promoting this type of behavior. I have no intentions of spending a day's worth of pay at your establishment to be treated as a subpar person. Yes, my salary averages out daily to what I was trying to spend in your store last night. I won't be returning. It is unfortunate that your staff is either not properly educated on the coupon policy, or are too incompetent to comprehend it. If your stores can't grasp the coupon policy or price matching guarantee, then it shouldn't be offered. I understand that you are a huge retailer, and I am just a drop in the bucket of customers. I do intend to share my experience through blogging and social media to prevent this from happening to anyone else. I hope this can be rectified so that no other customer has to go through the embarrassment of trying to save money in this economy. I would rather pay more for my purchases elsewhere, where I am treated with common courtesy and respect as a human being.
Not a Valued Customer,
Lea F.
http://thoushaltnotpayretail.blogspot.com ”
Note to readers: due the my public boycott of Walmart, they will no longer be mentioned in this blog as I will not support mistreatment of "Valued Customers." The weekly Walmart ad will be replaced with Meijer for our northern friends.
I use to be a csm at Wal-Mart and I while I can not say 100% that I would have done as you wish as I have not seen the ad and coupons in question, I think in all likely hood I would have done what you needed with no complaint or hassle had I been checking you out or had I been called over by a cashier having trouble with it. This being said other CSMs I worked with may not have and in truth this would have been caused by constantly shifting behind the scene policies and misdirection given to us by our Zms and managers. I know or at least knew when I was a csm the rules of the company but everyweek the zms would tell us we could do this but not that and we can do that but not this and from what I gather she was handed these conflicting rules from different members of management and it was all a confusing mess that trickled down from angry power plays and lack of understanding. I more or less played it like how I knew it was suppose to be done and hoped I wouldn't be caught for doing things the right way. You see those cashiers you talked to, maybe even that csm might have been previously disciplined or chewed out for doing what they were suppose to be doing to help the customer. I was done this once for honoring a price mistake very clearly indicated on the shelf, someone made a big boo boo but we are suppose to honor that and it was only a matter of 50 cents and I removed the wrong tag when I price checked and the manager of the store put the wrong tag back up and a few days later it was still there and wrong. Had they not taken my numbers on the telson away to change that price when I made csm, it would have been corrected, it takes a few seconds. Another scenario I was wrongly chastised was in a return situation where a manager found me on the floor and told me to handle this persons return immediately and personally 5 minutes after I was suppose to get off and in doing so I had to skip him in front of everyone else in line on another register in returns which I felt bad about doing then as everyone was angry I took all of their returns and later was chastised for my actions done under his orders. The place is poorly run and operated and the hardest workers sometimes get squashed and bruised in all of the bs that goes on there. I am sorry for your experience, I did a lot of apologizing as a csm. Our policies are crystal clear on pricematching but some people like to complicate it and make it a miserable experience for both the shopper and the cashiers. Those people were following orders that conflicted with how they were suppose to do it and they get different orders almost every hour; everytime something comes up. Sam Walton would be ashamed of this business right now.
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