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This happened over a week ago, but as I was not a direct participant, I haven't felt that motivated to post it. 
This woman comes in looking to pick up a chair mat she had special ordered. Now, let me point out right off the bat that she'd ordered one of the thinnest, cheapest, crappiest chair mats we carry. We stopped carrying them in-store almost two years ago because they just suck. Why? Because they crack under the weight of a feather. Even if you're one of the few people whose carpet isn't too deep for these mats, they still crack. They got returned left and right, causing us to lose a boatload of money. And since they were Staples-brand, they were "100% satisfaction guaranteed" so we couldn't turn the returns away.
So to cut their losses, they stopped stocking those chair mats and switched to thicker mats using higher-quality plastics that ACTUALLY LAST. The trouble is, they are MUCH more expensive. To walk out of my store with a chair mat will set you back $40 minimum, and that's for a smooth-bottomed hard-wood floor mat. Mats for carpet will set you back more than that. This made the cheapskates and idiots very unhappy, so they kept the cheap, crappy mats available for special order, only this time they are Rubbermaid, not Staples-brand, so they fall under the 14-day furniture return policy.
So anyway, this woman had ordered said crappy mat. The most expedient way to ship such a mat is to roll it up into a tube (which is only possible with the thinner ones; the high quality mats are virtually impossible to roll up). This means that the thing will bounce around in the UPS truck a bit and possibly show up dusty and with some light scratches.
Well this woman didn't like that. Not. One. Bit. She immediately flipped out on our poor CSL.
SC: This thing is dirty and covered with scratches!!!!!!! Is it used??!?!
CSL: It's new, ma'am. We don't sell used product.
SC: Why did you sell me a used one?! I ordered a NEW one!!!eleventy!! *she's quite irate already*
CSL: Ma'am, I assure you, this is a new mat. It came straight from our warehouse. It just picked up some dust in transit. You know, I'll even wipe it off for you *reaches for some paper towels*
SC: WEll are you going to fix the scratches?
CSL: I can't fix the scratches.
SC: If it's new, why isn't in a box?! I've ordered these before and they ALWAYS come in a box!!!!
Side note: Only if you ordered them in bulk. These things come in boxes of - I think - 5, so if you order that many they just ship the box out, since that ends up using less space than five rolled up individual mats. If you are lucky, and there's an opened box with X number left and that's how many you ordered, then you might get a box also, but for single mats, they do NOT come boxed. Hell, even the really expensive ones don't come in a box when ordered individually.
CSL: *explains all of the above*
SC: NO!!! They ALWAYS come in a box. This has no box because it's USED!!!!!!
CSL *staring to lose his patience*: Ma'am, I'm telling you right now, this is new.
SC:..............
CSL:..............
SC:.....................I just don't understand why you'd send me a used mat! Who would want a dirty, scratched chair mat?!?!
Hold on, time out. Let's think about this one, shall we. We're talking about a CHAIR MAT. These are designed to allow your chair to roll more easily and to PROTECT YOUR FLOOR. In other words, you scratch up the mat as opposed to wearing away your carpet or scratching your hard-wood flooring. Chair mats are designed to be self-sacrificial. Just like a desk blotter, a screen protector, automotive wax, your iPod case, body armor, etc. The moment you start rolling a chair around on it, IT WILL GET SCRATCHED!!!!! And it WILL get dirty as well, seeing as it goes on the FLOOR!!!!
SO WHO THE HELL CARES IF IT ARRIVES ALREADY SLIGHTLY SCRATCHED AND DIRTY!?!??!?!?!? Not to mention that she bought the cheapest mat possible. What the hell does she expect, anyway?!
Oh wait, I forgot where I was for a minute there.
Eventually, she demanded a refund, which the CSL gave her. She then left, muttering about how she doesn't understand why we sell used, damaged goods, all the while looking back over her shoulder with an incredulous look on her face, as if she can't believe what just happened.
I can't believe it either.
This woman comes in looking to pick up a chair mat she had special ordered. Now, let me point out right off the bat that she'd ordered one of the thinnest, cheapest, crappiest chair mats we carry. We stopped carrying them in-store almost two years ago because they just suck. Why? Because they crack under the weight of a feather. Even if you're one of the few people whose carpet isn't too deep for these mats, they still crack. They got returned left and right, causing us to lose a boatload of money. And since they were Staples-brand, they were "100% satisfaction guaranteed" so we couldn't turn the returns away.
So to cut their losses, they stopped stocking those chair mats and switched to thicker mats using higher-quality plastics that ACTUALLY LAST. The trouble is, they are MUCH more expensive. To walk out of my store with a chair mat will set you back $40 minimum, and that's for a smooth-bottomed hard-wood floor mat. Mats for carpet will set you back more than that. This made the cheapskates and idiots very unhappy, so they kept the cheap, crappy mats available for special order, only this time they are Rubbermaid, not Staples-brand, so they fall under the 14-day furniture return policy.
So anyway, this woman had ordered said crappy mat. The most expedient way to ship such a mat is to roll it up into a tube (which is only possible with the thinner ones; the high quality mats are virtually impossible to roll up). This means that the thing will bounce around in the UPS truck a bit and possibly show up dusty and with some light scratches.
Well this woman didn't like that. Not. One. Bit. She immediately flipped out on our poor CSL.
SC: This thing is dirty and covered with scratches!!!!!!! Is it used??!?!
CSL: It's new, ma'am. We don't sell used product.
SC: Why did you sell me a used one?! I ordered a NEW one!!!eleventy!! *she's quite irate already*
CSL: Ma'am, I assure you, this is a new mat. It came straight from our warehouse. It just picked up some dust in transit. You know, I'll even wipe it off for you *reaches for some paper towels*
SC: WEll are you going to fix the scratches?
CSL: I can't fix the scratches.
SC: If it's new, why isn't in a box?! I've ordered these before and they ALWAYS come in a box!!!!
Side note: Only if you ordered them in bulk. These things come in boxes of - I think - 5, so if you order that many they just ship the box out, since that ends up using less space than five rolled up individual mats. If you are lucky, and there's an opened box with X number left and that's how many you ordered, then you might get a box also, but for single mats, they do NOT come boxed. Hell, even the really expensive ones don't come in a box when ordered individually.
CSL: *explains all of the above*
SC: NO!!! They ALWAYS come in a box. This has no box because it's USED!!!!!!
CSL *staring to lose his patience*: Ma'am, I'm telling you right now, this is new.
SC:..............
CSL:..............
SC:.....................I just don't understand why you'd send me a used mat! Who would want a dirty, scratched chair mat?!?!
Hold on, time out. Let's think about this one, shall we. We're talking about a CHAIR MAT. These are designed to allow your chair to roll more easily and to PROTECT YOUR FLOOR. In other words, you scratch up the mat as opposed to wearing away your carpet or scratching your hard-wood flooring. Chair mats are designed to be self-sacrificial. Just like a desk blotter, a screen protector, automotive wax, your iPod case, body armor, etc. The moment you start rolling a chair around on it, IT WILL GET SCRATCHED!!!!! And it WILL get dirty as well, seeing as it goes on the FLOOR!!!!
SO WHO THE HELL CARES IF IT ARRIVES ALREADY SLIGHTLY SCRATCHED AND DIRTY!?!??!?!?!? Not to mention that she bought the cheapest mat possible. What the hell does she expect, anyway?!
Oh wait, I forgot where I was for a minute there.
Eventually, she demanded a refund, which the CSL gave her. She then left, muttering about how she doesn't understand why we sell used, damaged goods, all the while looking back over her shoulder with an incredulous look on her face, as if she can't believe what just happened.
I can't believe it either.
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