I went out for dinner this evening, found a car wash (you’d never guess that I just hosed down the truck, but at least the salt is off it for sure), and headed to Walmart.
It took 20 minutes to get what I needed and then I spent at least 40 minutes in line waiting to check out. By the time I realised it was going to take that long, it would have been stupid to walk out and lose all that time I just spent shopping and waiting, but all my melted frozen food got left at the cash. I’m not exaggerating, I was there long enough that all the frozen food was mush by the time I got to the front of the line. I had another half hour to get home. I wasn’t going to refreeze that stuff and possibly get sick.
The store was PACKED. Lines literally ran the whole length of the store. How many cashiers did they have on? THREE. Why does Walmart bother having 50 billion lines when it never has more than three cashiers on at a time?!
To add insult, my teller was the customer service MANAGER and she was completely oblivious to how inadequate she was. Instead of noticing the mile-long (and I’m only slightly exaggerating) line of increasingly angry people, she just took her sweet time slowly scanning one item at a time and chatted with her colleagues. I’ve been a cashier. I know that you can process people MUCH more quickly than that. There were no issues with items not scanning or price checks or payment methods not working. She just had no idea how to manage a busy till.
When I saw that the lines were long, I grabbed a big pile of magazines and then staked my spot. It took three magazines for me to get annoyed, six for me to be frustrated, and eleven to start bitching with the other customers. The woman behind me with TWO full carts and about five screaming and crying children finally walked out. Not that Walmart will care.
Now, I love Walmart because of its of policy about overnight RV parking. But, seriously, hire more cashiers. And better train the ones you have.
A long forgoten business rule is NEVER MAKE PEOPLE STAND IN LINE TO GIVE YOU MONEY.
INDEED!
BTW, I found the hash browns and stocked up! Thank you for introducing me to them!
This is why I never go to walmart, it is so terrible. What time of the day was it? The after work 4-6pm, you may as well just forget it.
8PM on a Monday night!
I used to be able to avoid crowds (usually early or late on a week day), but now that there are 24 hour stores, there’s no such thing as down time. *sighs*
The first day of any month is NOT the day to go to Wal*Mart. I avoid going on almost any day but IF I must go I’ll be there very early in the morning.
Geeze, I forget to look at the calendar! You nailed it!
Why does Walmart do this? Because they can. You and all the other people willing to stand in line for that long tells Walmart that they can mistreat you any way they want and you will put up with it. If the majority of people would walk out, then they would change their ways. The handful of us who do walk out don’t make any difference because most put up with it. Their prices aren’t that low.
Mary, I shop at Walmart for the convenience, not the prices. And they’re not the only store like that. In Canada, that kind of ‘service’ is normal.
I’ve been in some crowded Walmarts but never any that bad. Please, tell me which one as I want to be sure not to go there in my travels.
It’s the one at SW Military Drive and Roosevelt in San Antonio. I’ve shopped there a few times and last night was a first! I’m usually in and out of that one!
Times to avoid Wal-Mart:
Wednesdays (social security payments are issued on Wednesdays), the first through the fourth (food stamp days). Best time to go if you must go on those days is after 2 am. Saturday is a no go – families shopping after a long work week. Fridays avoid due to payday.
Hope this helps a bit.
Bast, I really need to start looking at my calendar before I go out. 🙂