It seems like every time I go to our Walmart the people who work there are less friendly ::)

Even some of the greeters there act like I am not there :o

And when I pass a Walmart associate they don't ask if I need help looking for something or even say hi :o


One time I was looking at a computer software prgram and I asked one of the guys who happened to be in the area about it.  His answer was, "I don't know" and just walked away :o  I don't know if he was having a bad morning or what but I thought that was very rude :(  I should have got his name and reported him to the manager.

Most of the checkers are pretty nice but some of them are what I would consider antisocial.  After I put all of our groceries on the belt and get to the checkstand some of them will not say hi, good morning, good afternoon or anything :o

At least when I go to Target they will say hi or may I help you (even though some of their workers are total idiots).


So, is it just our Walmart or does this happen at other Walmarts around the country?

Jerry

Wal*Mart is pretty notorious for crappy service. One of countless reasons why I don't shop there.

If they didn't have the cheapest prices in town I wouldn't go there ::)

My sister works there so every now and then I will have her get me a DVD or something with her discount (shh, that is supposed to be a secret).


But, what get's me is that their little blue vest have this on the back of them:  How may I help you? :o

Jerry

Hmm... I never noticed any rudeness at Walmart, although I don't really care wether or not a stranger says hi to me so if they don't, I never notice.  When I'm out shopping I like to be left alone and when I need assistance I'll ask for it.  My only gripe is someone not being close by when I do, which is why I like those phones at Target.  

What ticks me off more than anything is unattended makeup counters.  I've actually gotten to the point where if I'm left waiting too long, I'll go behind the counter and help myself until someone comes along.

So every time you go in between 8am to 8pm they will say welcome to Walmart and when you leave they say thank you for coming to Walmart even when they are busy?

I have gone in there when I was the only one coming in and nobody says a peep to me :o  I guess I must not look very friendly or something ::)

I guess my main point is that people who work at stores like this should be more customer friendly.  I can understand where they might be having a bad day, tired or overworked but part of their job should be to be nice to customers.  Especially if the customers looks like they are having trouble finding something.


I will never work in a place like Walmart, Target, Kmart or wherever because I am not a people person.    If I was a checker and someone got an attitude with me I would tell them where to stick and I would get fired on the spot :o
I have to hand it to some of them for putting up with rude and crude customers.

Jerry

No, I'm not saying that.  I'm saying that If they're there and they say welcome I respond, but if they don't, I don't care enough to pay attention.  I don't shop at Walmart that much anyway, but I really don't care if stores have greeters or not.

I agree with what you've said about customer service in general.  If I ask a question and someone responded by saying " I don't know" and then walked away or even just left it at that, I would be upset because it's their job to either know or to find out.  

And yeah, if you're working in a customer service type position, you should be customer friendly or else you aren't serving anyone including yourself, because each day at work would have to be horrible.

Now that I think of it, I can recall a time when I needed help at Walmart and the guy was really nice and helpful just like the customer service at most other stores.  I've never had any bad experiences there or else I'm sure I would remember them.

As for Walmart in Canada, I would say there not very freindly in there.  We avoid Walmart as we like Zellers alot better. 8-)

I avoid WallyWorld.  Their business practices irritate me and I won't support them.  I'm sure there are some very nice people who work there and who really need the job, but I'd rather pay a little more and support local businessness.  I am grateful that I can afford to make that decision as I know many cannot.

Hi-five, BB.  8-)

wrote on Jan 23^rd, 2008 at 4:50pm:

Hi-five, BB.  8-)

If only there were enough of us to truely make a difference and force them to change.  :-/

Too true. But most people who do shop there are either unaware of what they're supporting or are so blinded by the lower prices that they don't care what they're really supporting. Both of which are Wal*Mart's strategies.

Not all of us are blind though. I personally don't mind paying a cent or two extra per item when I know that I'm not funding an evil empire with evil practices. Oh yes, and there is the added bonus of not looking like a cheapskate.  ;)

When I first saw a thread titled "Walmart", I thought that their practices was what the thread was going to be about.  I don't agree with their practices either, but I saw a special on China and although we here in America feel that the factory conditions in China are deplorable, over there are actually happy just to have jobs.  

I understand that Walmart is taking away from small business here but even those small business owners have lives that are much better than those of the people working in the Chinese factories.  I'm not saying that we shouldn't support small business, I'm only saying that although I rarely shop at Walmart, I don't feel so bad when I do.

So, what are they supporting that I am blinded by their lower prices that I can't see?


We live in a small town (pop. of about 25,000 unless you count the people who live outside the city limits) so our choices of stores is pretty limited and the other grocery stores are on the spendy side.  Yes, a few cents here and there do not make mcuh of a difference but after a year of grocery shopping the bottom line can make a big difference especially for those of us on a tight budget.

We used to go to a grocery store called County Market but it went out of business so our other choices for groceries are:  Safeway, two Albertson's and Vann's Thriftway all of which are expensive unless they have a sale and then you hve to use their card to get the sales price.

I have heard some of the stories which Walmart is known for but according to my sister who works there they are not as bad as some people think.

But, if it wasn't for Walmart wouldn't there be another big box store to monopolize the masses?

So I guess I am for and against Walmart and if I was filthy rich I would shop at the higher priced stores.

So, if I am a cheapskate, so be it.

Jerry

Jerry wrote on Jan 23^rd, 2008 at 6:21pm:

if I was filthy rich I would shop at the higher priced stores. So, if I am a cheapskate, so be it. Jerry

Thats how I feel.  I mainly only go to Walmart when I'm buying higher ticket items.  I used to buy exercise equipment and appliances for my mother there.  

Also, there was a tv that I wanted for myself that was 100.00 more everywhere else that I looked than what Walmart was charging for it.  To me that isn't small change, and if I have the opportunity to save that much money on already high priced items then I'm going to take advantage of that.

Jerry;
I don't blame you for shopping at Walmart.  The reason you have no other choices for shopping is because Walmart probably caused the closing of all the other stores.  That's how they make their money - eliminate the competition.

They also require their suppliers to provide products at costs with such low profit margins that the suppliers almost make no money and Walmart uses extortion-like techniques to get the low prices.  Walmart has forced many suppliers out of business.  

Walmart also typically pays its employees less, and provides less benefits than most large companies.  They can get away with this since they forced the closing of so many retailers.

Like I said - I don't blame the shoppers that have no choice - either because they cannot afford to go elsewhere or because there are no other options.  You have to shop somewhere.  But I can choose to not shop there.

BB is absolutely right about extortion. How their practices are even legal, I'm not sure.

Not to mention treating their employees like crap, and thus, their customers. I've had far too many bad experiences there personally, have known too many people who have worked for them and gotten royally screwed (and in some cases, extremely sick), and the more I learned about the company itself over time, the more disgusted I became. But I'm not going to write an essay. The info is out there for anyone who bothers to look.

If Wally World works for you, great. I can sympathize (a little) if it truly is the only chain store in the area. However, I live in a small town as well and we have several within minutes of each other. Like BB, I'm grateful that I have other options and can afford to use them.

You can't go into a store like Wal*Mart and expect service like that of Tiffany & Co. In the real world, you get what you pay for.  ::)

Jerry wrote on Jan 21^st, 2008 at 10:51am:

It seems like every time I go to our Walmart the people who work there are less friendly ::) Jerry

I go there once in a great while, maybe once in a month early on a Sunday or at the early AM hours. It's just to frustrating to travel 25 minutes to go 5 miles any other time. Generally, I haven't found them rude at all. Actually, on Sundays there is this gal with long grey hair that's quite classy and always smiling.

I tend to spend more time in Lowes than anywhere. SOmetimes 5 times in a week! It may cost me a quarter more for a can of spray paint, but I don't have to travel rte. 100 and can get there in 7 minutes doing 3 miles.

As far as the extorion and putting others out of business, it's not just Walmart that does it. For anyone old enough to remember using terminals to a mainframe rather than everyone having a PC, WYSE put everybody out business in the early 90's. Flooding the market with cheap crap sold at a loss is as old as doing business. It's cheating but it seems noone willing to do anything about it.

Lowe's is one of our friendliest stores but Home Depot is almost as bad as Wal-Mart at times ::)

But, getting back to Wal-Mart not all of them are rude.  There are a few who are very friendly and helpful, I just wish all of them were that way.

Jerry