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Black Friday Debriefing Thread 2011

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  • #61
    I work from home. My job was begging us to skip and holiday festivities with family all of this weekend and work 40hrs in 3 days. All on the hope that we would be among 5 people to win a prize and barring no tech issues (which always happens when they dangle a prize in front of us) a small increase in our hourly wage for those hrs. I decline and choose not to work yesterday or today. T-day because old ladies who don't have anyone decide to call and have a chat because they don't have anyone, and then people who want the amazing black friday deal and today it is one the items I hate the most.
    The angels have the phone box.

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    • #62
      Worked noon-8 and it wasn't bad. We seemed to be pretty well stocked on the stuff on sale and people weren't crabby. Just mostly sleepy from shopping all night and day. As much as the timing sucks with the sales starting on Thanksgiving I like that it was spread out a bit so it wasn't overwhelming nuts.
      I would have a nice day, but I have other things to do.

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      • #63
        I am another Canadian. We were still pretty busy today. We had some sales but nothing spectacular. Lots of people asking if we price match American prices. No, of course. Someone did try asking 3 different employees including the General Manager. All said no.

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        • #64
          Wasn't so bad, but by 9 am I was out of energy. Came home and slept until about 8 pm.
          "Sigh, I'm going to Hell.....but I'm going with a smile on my face." -- Gravekeeper

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          • #65
            Worked 11:30 PM until 6 AM at my store. Believe it or not I feel that opening at midnight has it advantages. For one it seemed like people for the most part we're not nearly as hostile as they normally have been in the past due to not having to wait outside as long. But yeah I still got a few loons that came in my path. One in particular was threatening to tell the "entire world" of how "awful" our store is because she had to wait over an hour and half in line to get to checkout and that our store needs to "improve its Black Friday policies." Uuuhhhh okay ma'am you pretty much just nailed it in the head - its Black Friday so of course there is going to be long lines because MANY people trying to get in on the sale items which means long lines. This isn't like say that annoying Kohl's ad which shows an sparse store with next to no customers in it on the busiest shopping day of the year. Too bad some people actually think stores are like that just because Kohl's depicts that image.

            Outside of that most of the questions was stuff such as people asking if we still has the door busters (which sold out quickly), where is product located, and the like.
            New England Patirots... FIVE TIME SUPER BOWL CHAMPS!
            New England Revolution... Will win MLS Cup one day.

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            • #66
              People who think that there will be no lines on Black Friday are...the same people who were at the grocery store on Wednesday, bitching about the lines.

              "Ma'am, you did see all of the cars in the parking lot when you got here, right?.....could that maybe have tipped you off?..."
              you are = you're. not "your".

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              • #67
                Left 15ish minutes late, didn't get any closing stuff done (I'm slime, I know).

                Only SC was a woman who wanted to see if a coupon worked on something ( Marquis by Waterford wineglasses. coupons never work on Waterford, but do on Marquis.) by bringing one up, then telling me she wanted two. I stood there for a bit until I realized she meant she wanted me to go get it.
                What if Humans are just Dire Halflings?

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                • #68
                  Quoth PentUpRage View Post
                  My 17 year old is facing his first day on the job, first ever working retail and they start him at midnight tonight until 4am. I know, only 4 hours, mostly I dread going in to get him at that hour more than anything.
                  OMG, talk about being thrown in at the deep end Poor thing, let us know how he managed.

                  Having to deal with black Friday crowds and not being old enough to have a drink after is a terrible situation to be in.

                  Madness takes it's toll....
                  Please have exact change ready.

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                  • #69
                    Couple moar stories:

                    1. Remember when I mentioned the guy who told me "There might be a trampling back there"? Turns out he was closer than I knew. As an experiment, store manager decided to leave about 40 shopping carts outside for people to grab before entering the store. Normally they all would be inside the store, lined up down the main aisles.

                    Apparently some people grabbed carts and were using them like battering rams to budge in line and push their way into the store. They managed to knock at least one person to the ground. Apparently there were no serious injuries. There was a page made for a code red, which I did not hear. Code red means "assist LP." I don't know if it was because of this incident or another one.

                    There were other reports of people pushing and shoving in the store.

                    2. I truly, madly, deeply want to kill electronics specialist, for apparently lying to a customer to avoid a trip to the backroom and actual work. A woman came in wanting a Nintendo DS bundle we had on our doorbuster ad. Electronics specialist told her we didn't have it, and didn't get any in for the sale. So she went and complained to a manager about it. Well, she didn't complain so much as rip him up one side and down the other.

                    Then she had to come back by us for a carryout. She complained bitterly to the guy loading up her stuff. Some time later, he went into the electronics cage to retrieve something, because electronics specialist wasn't running back himself but instead directing others to fetch him merchandise via walkie talkie, and, lo and behold, he found the Nintendo DS bundles sitting in there.

                    He told the same manager the woman complained to. He got on the walkie talkie and paged electronics specialist to meet him in the backroom. I wonder what the topic of that discussion was.

                    More to come, but I'm tired now.
                    Knowledge is power. Power corrupts. Study hard. Be evil.

                    "I never said I wasn't a horrible person."--Me, almost daily

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                    • #70
                      This is the day of the year I am most grateful not to be working in retail. I mean, I am ALWAYS grateful that I don't work in retail, but this day in particular reminds me of that fact.

                      I had an odd couple of days. For Thanksgiving, we had an extra opening bartender and an extra daytime server on. And while the dining room was decently busy, it wasn't crazy busy. And the bar....well, my coworker and I were bored out of our minds, as we weren't busy at all. Finally, at 3, the manager decided to cut one of us, and I bribed my coworker into letting me by the one to go. After four hours of business, we split a grand total of $70. Whoopee. But at least I got to my friend's Thanksgiving dinner early, rather than late.

                      Amusingly, right after I left, the bar filled up, and my coworker ended up making good money. So everyone was happy.

                      Now yesterday, when they didn't have any extra staff on, I got slammed at the bar. How slammed? Well, I made almost TWICE what my coworker made on Thanksgiving. And stayed until 7 (the latest I ever need to stay), splitting tips the last two hours with the same coworker, who came on at 5. (This is standard for a Friday.) All in all, an exhausting but lucrative Black Friday for me. And only a few douchebags, none of them Black Friday-specific.

                      One amusing incident was this young lady who came in with her brother. She was very attractive, but a little amused that I didn't remember her, as she works on a cruise ship and comes in every few months or so. That's right, a chick who comes in once every 90 days was surprised I didn't remember her. Then, after they paid the bill and left me a whopping six bucks on an almost $60 tab, I remembered why I didn't remember her: she's a cheap wench. (My one manager told me that next time I should say, "Well, I only remember the GOOD tippers. But that just goes against my nature, as funny as it is.)

                      Another amusing one were the guys (who were not douchebags) who joking asked if we had any Black Friday specials. "Lessee, we have Johnnie Walker BLACK Label, BLACK and Tans, Jack Daniel's BLACK Label..." We all laughed about that. And no, we didn't have any Black Friday specials, as we are a BAR, not a STORE.

                      After an exhausting almost ten hour shift, some customers bought me some drinks (YAY THEM!), then I wandered over to the Pretend Sports Bar to watch the first half of the Cal-Arizona State game (I DVR'd it, so figured I'd watch the second half of this late game at home), had a lovely dinner and some drinks, and then on my way home, helped out a girl with a flat tire. No, seriously. As she was parking, she ran over a beer bottle, and from half a block away, I heard the *crunch* and then the very loud hissing as the tire breathed its last. So I did what I could to help her, including discovering what craptastical jacks that year and model of Ford was equipped with.

                      Then I came home and passed out.

                      Now, I do plan on doing some shopping today, but mostly grocery shopping in preparation for an upcoming chili cookoff.

                      Though I do think I will stop in at the local Radio Shack (right next to one of the grocery stores) and see if they have any killer deals on iPods, as I really want one, and have never had one.

                      Quoth Irving Patrick Freleigh View Post
                      And then as people are still streaming in some guy says to me "There might be a trampling back there." Which there obviously wasn't--I'm sure I'd have heard a lot more screaming and hollering. So why try to egg people on?
                      Not necessarily. If someone is getting trampled, they may not be able to make much noise, and whatever noise they made might not be audible over the noise of the crowd itself.

                      Quoth Irving Patrick Freleigh View Post
                      1. Remember when I mentioned the guy who told me "There might be a trampling back there"? Turns out he was closer than I knew.

                      Apparently some people grabbed carts and were using them like battering rams to budge in line and push their way into the store. They managed to knock at least one person to the ground.
                      As I was saying.....

                      But at least no one was actually seriously hurt. That's good.

                      "The Customer Is Always Right...But The Bartender Decides Who Is
                      Still A Customer."

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                      • #71
                        I made my first Black Friday purchase....a They Might Be Giants hoodie. But it was at the show, not in a store, so I'm not really counting it. But I did feel a bit bad spening $ on a day I swore never too....oh well.

                        My bf went to Wally World around 4pm or so yesterday, he said it wasn't bad, and they only had half the registers open.

                        My old retail instinct kicked in..."only half the registers" probably meant hell for the those that were open....and I know I would have had a panic attack in those crowds.

                        I hope everyone here survived Black Friday well, and have the chance to rest soon. The only shopping I plan to do today is food/booze.
                        "Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory." _Ed Viesturs
                        "Love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking, and don't settle" Steve Jobs

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                        • #72
                          I hope Irving's manager clues into the fact that leaving carts outside on Black Friday is NOT a good idea.
                          They say that God only gives us what we can handle. Apparently, God thinks I'm a bad ass.

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                          • #73
                            Because of Mass state law I couldn't punch into work until 12:01 am on Black Friday. We were open and I was working from then until 7 Am.

                            I have a story or two, but strangely enough it was really quiet at the Lot. I only have one sucky customer of repute to report and I'm saving it for my own thread.

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                            • #74
                              Quoth Cat View Post
                              I made my first Black Friday purchase....a They Might Be Giants hoodie. But it was at the show, not in a store, so I'm not really counting it. But I did feel a bit bad spening $ on a day I swore never too....oh well.
                              I approve of this purchase. I love me some TMBG.
                              To right the countless wrongs of our days... We shine this light of true redemption, that this place may become as paradise...Oh, what a wonderful world such would be...

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                              • #75
                                Quoth Cat View Post
                                I made my first Black Friday purchase....a They Might Be Giants hoodie. But it was at the show, not in a store, so I'm not really counting it. But I did feel a bit bad spening $ on a day I swore never too....oh well.
                                Actually, I think spending money on Black Friday at small businesses, concerts & shows, museum shops, craft & holiday fairs (anywhere except the chains & big stores with all the advertising frenzy, ridiculous hours, "door buster" sales, etc) is a better statement against Black Friday than not spending at all. Reward those not buying into the hype.

                                I did my black Friday shopping at local thrift shops Lots of bargains, nice people, and not so crowded. I even got free coffee & spice cake at one.
                                Got some nice items in great condition at a fraction of full price, got items I couldn't have found at a "normal" shop, helped out whatever charity runs the various shops (kitties, homeless & a few others), helped out the planet (thrifting is the ulitimate in recycling, keeps things out of landfills), and the effects on my budget are minimal. And nary a penny to those stores with the horrid Black Friday commercials (which I'm SO glad I won't have to see again this year)

                                Madness takes it's toll....
                                Please have exact change ready.

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