First, let me admit that I m the shopper from hell.
I have this quaint concept: Anyone who wants my money has to make it easy for me to give them my money.
For example, today I had a basket full of food at Smart and Final in Escondido, and when I got to the check out lines, there were six or seven full baskets in front of me in each of the three check out lines.
I parked my basket off to the side, tried to tell a checker what I had done so that they could quickly re-stock the items, but she was busy and ignored me — so I left. I went to Von’s, paid more and it cost me a LOT more time, but I had rather do that than reward bad service.
I have left items in computer stores, and Sears among many stores.
Bad service is the reason most people shop on-line. Bad service is more than just annoying, and I will spend both money and time to avoid it.
I see sheep standing in lines, and admit that I wonder why they do it. I believe it is a huge change in our culture — from morning commutes, to broken sidewalks and potholes, to waterline breaks, our forefathers would have tarred and feathered every politician in sight, but we sheep accept things our forefathers would not.
Next time, leave a note on the basket!
Years ago, I wanted to purchase a small, $10 part at Fry’s. The really long line was served by too few registers so I put the part in my pocket and left. The next day I sent them an anonymous note and the $10. To this day, management will open additional registers in response to customer demand.