At least one good thing with Walmart

I don't know how it is down south of the border, but up here, Walmart is a freaking zoo. It's full of very confused shoppers attempting to get help from very incompetent workers. I avoid that place like there's no tomorrow.

Okay you got me to chime in,
I have read many a post telling of the great sales on models at Wal-Mart, only to find they are not at my WalMart (it isn't MINE, but you get the idea). Why? Because they cannot get models from the warehouse,why? Because a genius called a "buyer" says they will not sell at the store.
So I did call the 800 number. And was told the local manager would contact me. He never did. And I thought I would be getting a gift card for $10 to spend on stuff I didn't want too!
I go to Miejer's or Michael's, they seem to have the stuff I want.

Don

Elfkin,

Since you work for a big chain, you are the person to ask a question I have always wondered.

Why do they build these places with 30 checkout lanes and only staff two?

Those WalMart parking lots are more dangerous than the Daytona Speedway with crazy men (and women) at the wheel!....I think it's rather amusing to watch how cleverly the so called "Sales Associates" avoid the customers. Years ago, the clerks would walk you to the place where your item was located. Now they just look at you blankly and mutter something about, "I dunno, I'm new here." I have a little Mom and Pop hardware store in town where I never, in 30 years, faild to walk out with what I need...and I get a thanks and a smile too! THAT is worth a few cents more, believe me....

QUOTE: i hate the fact half the city crams itself into these super centers all at once i might add. i hate the fact 3/4 of the people in walmart act as thought they are the only ones there shopping by walking down the middle of an aisle browsing through products as though they were on a stroll in the park on a sunny warm day in the springtime and are completely oblivious to the fact they are preventing anyone from getting past them. lets not get started on those who simply walk down aisles as though they dont see you and refuse to move over a little as they walk past you and bump into you and then give YOU a look like YOU are an a-hole and they were simply minding their own business until YOU rammed into them like a jerk.

Our "Biggest " problem was the 600lb bahemoths who would waddle in, climb on a handicaped cart then complain cause it would barely move.

Its got a 1/2 hp electric motor on it, with a wieght limit of 250lbs....
I'm suprised it moves at all, let alone running off screaming when it sees you coming.

Hmmm...scanning through all the Wal-Mart bashing here, it actually seems there are more complaints about the customers than about Wal-Mart itself...what does that say about our society as a whole?
Kind of makes you think...

the only thing i like about walmart is its open 24 hours (for those who have a problem keeping a normal sleeping pattern like regular people) and they have the general use paints like flat and gloss black i use a lot of.

i hate the fact half the city crams itself into these super centers all at once i might add. i hate the fact 3/4 of the people in walmart act as thought they are the only ones there shopping by walking down the middle of an aisle browsing through products as though they were on a stroll in the park on a sunny warm day in the springtime and are completely oblivious to the fact they are preventing anyone from getting past them. lets not get started on those who simply walk down aisles as though they dont see you and refuse to move over a little as they walk past you and bump into you and then give YOU a look like YOU are an a-hole and they were simply minding their own business until YOU rammed into them like a jerk.

shopping is done but the fun doesnt stop there! you only have a few items, a couple bottles of paint, some chips, whatever else. you're in the 20 items or less lane and guess who's in front of you? an ignorant person who has a selective reading problem as evidence by glancing into their basket and seeing it probably has 50 items easily. what compounds the anger is they look at you, they know what you're seeing in their cart and then give you a "what are you gonna do about it?" look and they never look at you again. if its not that its the person who waits until the chasier scans every item and gives them the total THEN they pull out the checkbook and proceed to take five minutes writing a check. this doesnt include the time it takes for the cashier to check their ID write extra information on the check and then waits for it to clear. apparently pulling out your checkbook BEFORE the cashier is done and writing things like walmart and your signature on it is out of the question. in fact it must be a federal law as i have yet to see ANYONE write on the check before the total is given. the punishment for doing so must be steep, like a platoon of marines comes out of no where and guns you down like a mangy rabid dog and leaves your corpse to rot and to serve as a reminder to the next person who dares write on their check before the total is given much less pull out the check book before the total is given.

how about this? the person who decides to buy a item that isnt bought every day, like an electronic item, and it doesnt scan. they punch in the numbers, still isnt working. then they have to call for a manager to help them figure this out. the manager who BTW is helping about 2 or 3 cashiers ahead of you so you get to wait even longer.

QUOTE: Originally posted by Iroc Think shopping there is bad? I worked part time for a Wal-Mart for 2 yrs. They treat thier employees like #'s expect 100% devotion, including getting upset when I wouldn't take time from my 50k a yr job to work for them on an unusually busy day....for $9 hr. They brainwash the employees, and force you to sit thru a film on why Wal-Mart doesn't need Unions...a film that just skirts the law. They make it very clear the word UNION could make life miserable for you at the store. Wal-mart is good for only 2 things as an employer, 1.) training kids on thier 1st job. 2.) Giving seniors a job when no one else will. Don't expect a living wage out of them, you won't get it. All tho they think they are paying you more then you deserve.

I used to be a retail store Manager and from your description you can replace Wal Marts name with just about any other retailer. Your description would still fit.
Retail work is not known for it's high reward. With higher paying manufacturing/tech jobs leaving the country all of the future geberations will be working as grunts in a retail store for minimum wage. Just hope there are some decent spots left to park your van down by the river!

Cheers,
Max Bryant

I think we have one of the worse Wal-Marts out there.
It is open 24 hours also and attracts some real high-class people. Not!
I have heard that Wal-Mart regrets building it here because of the theft, etc.

Mike

I'm not doubting all the various tales of horror that are being posted here, but I just wanted to chime in again to reiterate that the Wal-Mart in Brunswick, Georgia isn't at all like anything I'm reading in these posts.

Sure, it's a huge place, but it's full of good stuff at great prices, the staff are always friendly and helpfull, and the customers are just normal people (with a seemingly normal tooth count).

Again, I'm not rebuffing what is being posted here, but I just want you folks to realize that it's not a horror story everywhere.

I went to apply for a job at wally world and some of the questions they asked were to me some thing else.I did not know that a honesty quiz went with getting a job.I have never thought of stealing or bring my personal problem to my job but I guess you have to so you can work at wal-mart.These pep-rallys started only after Sam died and he would not treat people like they treat there employees now.After seeing what was on t.v. about them,I do not want a job with them.My allegance gos to one and only one person and most of ya'll know how that is.As far as shopping there,like Isaid before cleaning supplys and just a few other things.Digger

At least they speak English there, but at least I can go armed in Arizona as long as it's not concealed.
John
helicopters don't fly, they beat the air into submission

What a relief. I thought I was the only person left who thinks Wally World sucks. After studying their business practices in college, I've learned to detest the way they treat their suppliers. I wonder what kind of beating Revellogram has had to take to get 2 feet of poorly maintained aisle space at my local Wal Mart. And yes, as much as I hate to say it, the clientele locally looks like the casting call for Deliverance.

QUOTE: Originally posted by renarts But hey, walmarts are fun. Now where is that drunk going with a basket full of motor oil, a shotgun, gallon of milk and a box of feminine napkins.....

I laughed myself silly on that one Digger... you must have been at the Wal Mart by my house.. I live out in a rural section of the county and on a given day you might see two rednecks playing with a winch and overhear one remark to the other "now how you figgur we gonna get this here wire round that horses neck?" (in a strikingly similar accent to the guys on "O Brother Where art Thou")

Two aisles over is a biker and his girlfriend both stoned in the bakery section arguing about the relative merits of two different flavors of creme cake...

Kinda reminiscent of a 3rd Rock from the Sun show sometimes...

I've heard that from more than one person. I had a friend who worked there for one day. He started watching that film of which you speak which was interupted by one of the management types that came in to meet the "new recruits." They (the veteran employees) then proceeded with a pep CHANT! Needless to say my friend looked like this......
They did a, "Give me a 'W'........Give me an 'A'," and so on. Once they completed spelling the name Wal-Mart, and finished up with a "and what do we do?........Kick ," everyone was slapped on the back and shown back to their seat to finish watching the rest of "How Johnny Stockroom Got His Thumbs Broken."
My friend quietly slipped out (no kidding) and left his little blue vest on his chair never to return.

That's one of the reasons that Wal Mart scares the hell out of me.

Think shopping there is bad?
I worked part time for a Wal-Mart for 2 yrs.
They treat thier employees like #'s
expect 100% devotion, including getting upset when I wouldn't take time from my 50k a yr job to work for them on an unusually busy day....for $9 hr.

They brainwash the employees, and force you to sit thru a film on why Wal-Mart doesn't need Unions...a film that just skirts the law.
They make it very clear the word UNION could make life miserable for you at the store.

Wal-mart is good for only 2 things as an employer,
1.) training kids on thier 1st job.
2.) Giving seniors a job when no one else will.
Don't expect a living wage out of them, you won't get it.
All tho they think they are paying you more then you deserve.

The Wal-Mart in Amherst NY is a porthole to hell. They should have the greeters handing out blood pressure meds. I'm with most folks here in this one, everytime I'm in Wal-Mart, no matter what mood I go in with, I end up wanting to stomp a mud hole in someone's pooper. And I don't know about the rest of the country, but if there's 200 customers in the my store, you might have 5 complete sets of teeth. Sorry if I offended anyone....it's just.......the place scares me is all.

We know you are human, and feel for you that you must try to manage a store with your hands tied. When I'm at a large retailer, I keep the same philosophy as I do in an airport, that the people working behind the desk have no control over my discomfort, but can really add to it if I take everything out on them. I make an effort to be nice, joke with them, and always smile, it goes a long way and makes their job better and in the long run, I end up being a happier shopper.

I too worked in management for a large food managment firm, and found that they micormanage so much at the corporate and district level, that it is impossible to be attentive to the local markets needs when the ones running the show have no clue what is going on.

Hence why I complain when Walmart puts away all their pesticides in August to put up Holloween and Christmas merchandise. Their corporate thinktank failed to calculate that we still have a lot of bugs in the midwest, and need bugspray more than we need Raindeer flock.

However, I am a minority, for people are defintly stocking up on holiday supplies on August 28th and tolerating the bugs.

Scott

Hi everyone,
As someone who works in retail management may I offer a few words...now I am not catagorically defending WalMart, but as I do work for another retail empire, can I say a few things from us in the trenches:
1. I can empathise with the person who made the comment about 20 associates sorting carts but only two registers were staffed. What may have happened is that the stores were given an inadequete training budget from their District Managers/regional managers etc. In expectation of flat to low percent same store sales, most of us could not hire/train for the crush that came into our stores last week. The previous three weeks gave most of us no hint that the last week would be so busy.
2. It may seem that store management does not listen to customers suggestions, but we actually do. BUT (there is always a but) most retail companies are so centrally controlled we at store level cannot do a whole lot except pass the comment on. A more effective voice for the customer would be to call those 1-800/1-888 tollfree customer service numbers or customer service websites. If it comes from us (store managers) it is filtered through many layers or comes off as us doing the complaining. When you the customer directly make your voice heard, companies will listen. By directing our customers to this resource, we have effectively changed some policies as the company felt that the change would enhance our customers experience.
I hope I did not "blank" anyone off, but gee guys and girls, we are human too....
I do hope everyone has a Happy Holiday and best wishes for the coming New Year.

Typical of large chain outlets of all types, but the apex predator of the food chain.
The only upside to it is the fun you migft have watching the drunks shop on the weekends. Why is it that drunks on thier way home from a hard night's partying decide thats the time to go shopping? The amusement factor is worth the price of admission.

Nope, its the icon of our society these days. Kill the small business, drop property prices, congest the roads, all so we can get motor oil, fishing gear, toilet paper and milk at the same place for a few dollars less and make some rich parasite who would rather swallow nails than have a wal mart in his neighborhood a few more bucks in his stock portfolio. Same problem I have with Home Depot. Sure the prices are great but you get the DIY stuff they sell and the small guy that handled specialty hardware.....he's now flatening boxes behind the home depot in a stupid orange vest. Try and buy a brass, copper or steel rivet at home depot.....

But hey, walmarts are fun. Now where is that drunk going with a basket full of motor oil, a shotgun, gallon of milk and a box of feminine napkins.....

Upon looking at floor to ceiling, wall to wall of oil filters, and they didn't have mine, I told one of the workers there this weekend that they should sell lottery tickets, since I can bet that the one size I need, whether it be an oil filter, furnace filter, or 40 watt light bulb, THEY WON"T HAVE IT!

Yup, Walmart Supercenter DIDN"T HAVE ANY FRICKEN 40 WATT LIGHTBULBS. Two rows of 60, but no 40.

Need furnace filters? Better get them in the Fall, since now they are bringing out their summer stuff, like I really need a stupid swimming pool filter in March.

They went from Sams philosophy to Henry Ford's "You can have any color you want as long as its black".

As far as my wife, both her and her mother are addicted to the place. I can't get her through the forst 10 feet without her zeroing in on the piles of advertised "junk" that tells her that she needs this and that. Oh all the times she goes "this looks good, maybe I'l get it for for we may need it someday".

Then again, HobbyLobby and Home Depot have the same effect on me.