I went to my local Office Max store to purchase (4) basic bookcases. They were out of stock at my local Office Max store. The salesperson said their in-house order system was a 'pain in the a* and I should go online and do it myself. I left the store and ordered online. The pretax total was $219.96. The main warehouse didn't have stock. The four bookcases took three weeks to arrive, in THREE separate shipments.
A few days later, Office Depot advertised the same bookcases (different packaging, same design, same manufacturer - Sauder Woodworking) for 50% less, $109.96.
When I saw the lower price I called Office Max customer service about their price match. They requested I fax a written request, which I did, including the competitor ad.
Two weeks later, I had not received a reply. I called in. My account had no notes about the call I made. There was no record of receiving the fax.
I was told (after 11:40 minutes on hold) that Office Max's price match guarantee requires the item have the exact same model number. Even though they have no record of my fax and did not have the competitor's ad in front of them, the bookcases are made exclusively for Office Max and therefor there is no possible price match available.
As noted above, the bookcase I purchased are 'private label', they have different model numbers at Office Depot and Office Max, despite being manufactured by the same company, the same materials, dimensions, etc. This exclusion regarding model numbers is NOT listed in the Price Match terms on their website.
When I asked for a direct phone number to Office Max's legal department, I was told they had none.
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