In the name of fairness and to keep the peace in the family, it is important that all members of the household share a bit of the domestic workload; or at least that's what my wife tells me.
At our house, I have as one my chores the all important responsibility of returning the recyclables such as the empty pop cans and the like.
It's not a bad job really. It gets me out of the house and I can either pocket the proceeds, or use them to buy those necessities like ice cream, cookies and potato chips which are all to often 'forgotten' by she who does most of the grocery shopping.
One day, while returning a rather large quantity of empties (I save them up not out of laziness, but rather in the name of efficiency) to a big box store I not so affectionately call 'The Stupid Store', I was 'greeted' at the 'Customer Service' counter by a rather surly clerk who bluntly advised me I could only return 24 cans on any given day.
"You have got to be kidding me!" I replied "No one told me that when I bought several cases of pop a few weeks back."
"Well that's our policy." she said as if that explained everything.
Being a dedicated student of human behaviour, I quickly sensed there was no winning with this 'lady' so I resisted the urge to further protest, diligently counted out 24cans and placed them on the counter. She then selected two of those cans, handed them back and said "We don't sell this brand here, you'll have to take them back where you got them."
While tempted to ask "What difference does it make, don't they all get crushed and go to the same place in the end?" I knew the likelihood of my question yielding any reasonable explanation was just about on par with the likelihood of me getting a genuine smile out of this field hardened battle axe, so I obediently replaced the two cans in question with ones bearing their store brand.
Then something happened that totally blew me away. Before relinquishing my meager proceeds, the clerk, hereafter know as 'Attila the Hen', produced a rather unofficial looking form, filled in the date and asked me for my name, phone number and signature.
"What in the world do you need all that for?" I replied "Are you afraid I might sneak back into the store later in the day and try to return another 24 cans... or are you thinking that perhaps some of my cans could be counterfeit?
"Oh no" She said in a tone that implied I was something short of an imbecile, "We ask for this information not because we don't trust our customers, (I'm not convinced) but because we don't trust our employees. After all, they could simply take money from the till and claim it was paid out for returned recyclables."
At this point, I found myself uncharacteristically at a loss for words: which was probably just as well, but what was I to do?
I had no intention of sticking around to hear any more of this nonsense and pushing a shopping cart still half full of cans around the store in search of the previously mentioned necessities had little appeal.
Besides, I certainly didn't want to risk contact with any of the store's other apparently untrustworthy employees. So I left, without spending a dime, in search of a more accommodating grocer. After all, I still had the two cans that had been rejected, and returning home with them, not to mention without the ice cream, would surely signal that I had been negligent in my domestic duties.
To put this little story in perspective and give it meaning in context of the importance of a positive customer experience - I shudder to think how much our family spends in groceries over the course of a week, let alone a month, a year, or a lifetime... and yet, for the sake of a dime (the refund value of two cans) and some very, very stupid rules, this store intentionally choose to send me and my money, directly into the welcoming arms of one of their competitors.
Go Figure?
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Jim, haven't you just found your next client?
ReplyDeleteHi Jim,
ReplyDeleteThanks for this one.
I am equally dismayed at the "didn't buy here so can't return here" policy. Maybe they fear that without that policy they will be targetted by a competitor who will send an army of people with millions of cans to receive a few dollars refund and thereby destroy their cash flow and bring them to their knees.
So they only take back what they sell.
Funny thing is that you can return cans of items which they do sell but which you did not actually happen to buy at their store. So the logic defies me on that one.
I also try to return large amounts in the name of efficiency but am thwarted by the 24 can limit in stores (you can return unlimited amounts at the Return-It depots by the way)- I had this one explained to me as being a way to keep out the "riff-raff" - i.e those people who perform a very worthwhile service by collecting what ignorant people throw out in the garbage but they are willing to pick up in order to earn a few dollars. (Some people deliberately leave their recyclables available for them to pick it up and that's fine - the ignorant ones I mention are those that do chuck the recyclables in the general garbage).
And that form you have to sign to protect THEM against employee theft is a winner! You've got to laugh....otherwise you'd cry.
Thanks
Justin
Jim,
ReplyDeleteExcellent story of what I call a "Dumb Rule" Good stuff. Lets talk soon.
Roy
Hi, Jim,
ReplyDeleteI've encountered just this same mentality at other grocery stores. When trying to return a non-perishable, worth approx. $3, with a receipt that was over a month old, I was given a big hassle. I finally broke down in frustration and said, "My family spends hundreds of dollars here every month--can we please keep things in perspective?" They did give me the refund, in the end.
Perspective--that's what these employees lack. And I've found poor judgment in other settings as well. The only possible explanation is that perhaps if that person did have the perspective and judgment to handle these situations sensitively, then they wouldn't be working in a grocery store/coffee shop/daycare (!), etc. The explanation as to why the management don't possess those skills--that I don't have. I guess the management is drawn from the pool of employees.
Susanna
Jim EXACTLY! Business policies set in place for attempts at short-term effectiveness often cut short long-term relationship potential.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I had a similar experience when we dropped into a Sushi restaurant near our car dealership a while ago. We had just successfully survived a flat tire and towing from quite a distance to arrive after the auto service dept had closed. We left the car there for the experts to handle on the morrow and started the long walk home carrying stuff from the car. We dropped in to a very busy restaurant closeby to use the rest room and were literally chased out on to the sidewalk by the waitress informing us that their restrooms were only for eating customers, even though we had a sad story (as many do apparently).
She and the concerned owner do not need to worry, as we will not return to that restaurant to eat even when our circumstances are not as desperate as they were that day. Nor will we recommend it to any of our friends. Of course, it makes for a good story about poor customer service....
Thanks for helping shift our perspective, Jim,
Anne Marie
However good job they were open, last time I went to Save On , I noticed that they had cut back on staffing the bottle returns dept "Changes " so now they only have one staff to handle essentialy three return stations and she needed a well earned smoke break , so proceeded to shut the door and told us she would be back in 15 minutes whereupon she took her position in the parking lot and had her smoke , a few chats on her cell phone and after approx 20 minutes returned to a rather large lineup that she watched build up. !! I had repacked the returns in the trunk and came home without my ice cream etc that I was to buy with the proceeds, I went back the next day and was able to judge her opening hours OK, Jim
ReplyDelete'Twas ever thus', Jim.
ReplyDeleteFew employees in this example are taught/coached to consider the business as their own. In many respects, this is a learned behaviour and the company leadership is primarily at fault.
Good one Jim. Happens all the time...stupid stuff that clearly indicates customer impact has not been considered at all. My latest was Starbucks (of which I am quite a loyal customer) who make it extremely difficult to use wifi in their stores. Register, user name, pswrd, name, address, etc, etc. Then it all expired in 30 days if not used. So I told them that while on an extended trip thru the US, I went instead to local competitor shops who often didnt even require a signon pswd. They say they have now reversed that policy.....I don't know for sure as I haven't since been to one of their stores with my pc!
ReplyDeletecheers
jeff