"The Price of Business"

[blueantoidgirl]

First(ish) SC! Hooray?

A regular day at the GreenWall, by any account.

So I get called up to help check customers and get a lady with a child standing in the basket. Big no-no, right? As soon as she gets to my counter, she goes off on the state of our shopping carts:

SC: I just want to let you know I won't be shopping here any more.
Me: I'm sorry to hear that...
SC: The state of your shopping carts is attrocious! Look at this! (proceeds to wobble the cart her little girl is in, nearly toppling her)
Me: I'm sorry ma'am, I'm not entirely sure if there's any repair service we can send them to...
SC: Well, that's just the price of business. I know it's not your problem (insert snobby voice here) but you should let your manager know I won't be shopping here any more.
Me: Well, (trying to calm her down, converse while I try to finish her purchase) our carts get left out in the rain and snow all the time, I'm not surprised...
SC: (cutting me off) That's just the price of business. My daughter has a brace on her leg, and I can't have her in a wobbly cart. (shakes it again) See? Terrible.
Me: I'm sorry, ma'am, I'll be sure to let the manager know...
SC: Well, see that you do. Keeping the carts stable is part of the cost of business.
Me: Yes Ma'am. You have a nice day.
SC: I will, now that I won't be coming here any more.

Now I just have to point out there were at least a half-dozen more carts up front by the regesters, and most of them were'nt wobbly at all. Guess she just couldn't be bothered to pick a better one. Obviously our fault for not keeping up with shopping cart repairs.

Anyway, later on I tell manager J about her

Me: Oh, I forgot to tell you, a customer wanted me to let you know she won't shop here any more.
J: (looks confused) Ok.... Why?
Me: Well, the state of our shopping carts is just atrocious!
J: (laughs) Oh no, whatever will we do without her?

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

So pick out a cart that is sufficiently un-wobbly for the kid to be in!

Problem--solution!

FWIW, my company has a contractor who comes in and fixes our broken carts whenever we have a lot of them. The contractor came by just a few weeks ago and I expect them to stop by again in November or so.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Whenever I get someone who gripes about the wobbly wheels on a cart, or one of the carts where the wheels want to send the cart veering off to one side, or are missing a wheel, etc. etc., I have a stock response.

Customer: "Why's this cart all wobbly?"
J2K: "It means our crack Wheel Mis-Alignment Team is doing its job."
Customer: "What?"
J2K: "Yeah. Before we put any cart into service, we take them out back, turn them over, and bang one of the wheels out of alignment."

9 times out of 10 it gets a laugh, and defuses the situation. And that one time it doesn't, we get the following:

Customer: "Well, you should take this one out of service."
J2K: "We try, believe me, we try. The really bad carts -- the ones missing wheels or with wheels about ready to fall off -- we try to pull aside and leave a note on them stating they're not to be used."
Customer: "Does it work?"
J2K: "Not really. Some customers get impatient not being able to find a cart, and they'll take one of the bad ones anyway, or our overnight crew uses them and then puts them back with the regular carts."

And they usually leave it at that.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

In my store's case, we have the crack Handle Breakage team.

The handles on our carts are the part most likely to break. There's a metal rod that goes through the handle and it attaches the handle to the basket, and plastic caps that go on the sides to hold the rod in place.

Those caps just love to come out and the rod goes right with 'em. Then you can pull the handle away from the basket. Kind of dangerous if you're putting a child in the seat.

[PizzaDrone]

I love how the lady is so outraged by "having" to put her child with a leg brace on in a wobbly cart that she has no choice but to consistently shake the poor child around to make a point.

[blueantoidgirl]

FWIW, my company has a contractor who comes in and fixes our broken carts whenever we have a lot of them. The contractor came by just a few weeks ago and I expect them to stop by again in November or so.

I've been at the store for over a year and a half now, and as far as I know we don't have anyone like that. Never even heard anyone mention a company like that. Be nice if we did though, we have a huge stack of rusted-out carts behind the store that need to be carted away.

[BookstoreEscapee]

So pick out a cart that is sufficiently un-wobbly for the kid to be in!

Or, ya know, make the kid sit her little ass down!

[PepperElf]

My daughter has a brace on her leg, and I can't have her in a wobbly cart. (shakes it again) See? Terrible.

then don't put her in the cart? There is more than one available. But then you couldn't make a scene about it ....

[RetailWorkhorse]

I don't have a problem with my carts being wobbly. I have a problem with only having 3 of them. Corporate won't get us any more of them and i have people complaining at me about the lack of carts (I just tell them to use a Wal-Mart cart, as our aisles are wide enough for them, and these people get this look on their face like they never thought of it).

[Jay 2K Winger]

I don't have a problem with my carts being wobbly. I have a problem with only having 3 of them. Corporate won't get us any more of them and i have people complaining at me about the lack of carts (I just tell them to use a Wal-Mart cart, as our aisles are wide enough for them, and these people get this look on their face like they never thought of it).

We have the opposite problem at my store. We have plenty of shopping carts. I know this because I have been, on many an occasion asked (read: ordered) to bring in carts for the inside stockpile. But due to pressures of payroll and lack of available employees, we don't have a cart retriever on staff at all times while we're open. We have them in the late afternoon/evening during the week, and early afternoon until closing on the weekends.

And depending on which cart guy is scheduled, they may or may not be doing a great job.

I won't threadjack about the cart guys, as I can give a whole post about that myself.

Anyway, on weekends, when we're ALWAYS busy, the initial stockpile of carts we have outside is depleted very quickly. And I ALWAYS get people telling me "You don't have any carts" or "Where are all your carts?" And I have to tell them, "They're out in the parking lot." "I didn't see anyway." "Well, they're either outside or in use."

And the thing is, I've seen these people walk RIGHT PAST the corrals where we have TOO MANY carts, come up to the store, see no carts stocked along the front wall, and no carts available inside, and tell me "You don't have any carts."