I too attended the early morning electronics sale at my local Wal-Mart. After reading a story on CNBC about Wal-Mart’s plans to control the crowds, and their bragging of those same plans, I just had to write.
Wal-Mart says that the lines for these types of sales are to be supervised by Wal-Mart associates, but when I arrived at my local store and got into what I could only assume was the electronics line (since no associate was “supervising” it), I was told, by the other customers, that yes, this was the laptop line but that I had to find the associate and tell him I wanted one and get on the list. I found the guy and was told, "Yes, we have enough." As I returned to the line with the associate, and saw more people in the line, we were told again, "Yes, we have enough." In fact, that phrase was heard at least half a dozen times. They said that they had 36 laptops, and I ended up number 33. So naturally, as they kept repeating that magic number of 36, and the phrase, "Yes, we have enough" (which was sometimes said to customers, and other times to fellow associates) the excitement built as my end of the line crept nearer and nearer to the registers. I only got "near" a register, never to one because before I ever got to the front of the line the announcement was made, "No more laptops".
I left the store, empty handed and in shock. I did not cause a scene but left quietly, extremely disappointed.By the time I walked to my car I was incensed. I work in retail so I fully understand the fact that each store only gets so many of each item for these types of special sales. I understand and accept that. But hearing that phrase, repeated like a mantra, “Yes, we have enough”, not once, not twice but half a dozen times, only to discover that they did not was more than merely disappointing, it was infuriating.
So I did what any rational person would.instead of causing a scene at the store I went home and e-mailed Wal-Mart using their customer service form to file a complaint. I made it perfectly clear that I was unhappy with the service at their store, and that reason was not that they ran out of laptops but rather the insistence that “Yes, we have enough” when they clearly did not. If the associates had said “We don’t have enough”, “We might not have enough” or even “You can take your chances” I would have understood and left empty handed and disappointed but not angry. It was this insistence that “Yes, we have enough” that fueled my rage. I could not be any clearer in telling them that issue was not that they ran out before we could all be served, but rather this constant reassurance that they did indeed “have enough” was the problem.
Apparently they do not mind losing the 5 to 6,000 dollars I spend a year in groceries and household goods at their store. Wal-Mart’s response was a message left on my voicemail, no name, no return number, but a woman's voice saying that they did their best and that she “really wanted to talk to you” about it. If she really did want to talk to me a name or call-back number would have been nice. She totally missed the point of my complaint. It was not that they ran out but that their associates continued to tell everyone that they did not have enough. But it is fine now, I am sure that their competitors with appreciate the added business since I will not spend another penny at Wal-Mart.
That could have been avoided if their associates had simply said the truth. “We don’t have enough for everyone”, instead of this insistence that “Yes, we have enough”.
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