Matt I.
Yelp
Another terrible experience at Sam's Club/Walmart.
"Instant savings" features a Thompson 7 c.f. chest freezer for $139.99, a savings of $40 and free shipping.
I add this item to my cart on the 15th and get a message that says the item must be paid by the 17th in order to still receive the sale price.
Unfortunately I waited until the last day, Sunday the 16th, to order and missed out of the free shipping as by this time the stock for online showed zero.
But the website showed that I could still add the item to my cart and pickup in multiple stores the next day for $139.99, not as easy as the free shipping but still a good deal.
During check out I was given the option to "pay in store" or "pay online". I reviewed this throughly and decided to select "pay in store" since I had a few gift cards and didn't want to try to use them online; plus the prior message that indicated that I must pay by the 17th.
Once I arrive in store I asked the greater what to do, she politely directed me to a green kiosk labeled "club pickup".
This kiosk has you select which "club lane" you will be at and promises "an associate will be with you shortly".
After a couple minutes someone starts yelling "hey!" and waves me over to a small desk by customer service.
After some trouble with the scanner things get rolling and the price appears as $179.99 plus tax.
I explain that this is not the correct price and offer to show the digital recpiet that was sent to me.
Nope. He doesn't seem to care, but quickly tells something like "oh, are you talking about the instant savings? That ended yesterday".
A second associate agrees and I begin laughing, as this is the absurdity of 50% of my interactions with the Sam's Club/Walmart brand.
Rather quickly someone suggests giving me a gift card for the $40 difference, I decline and state that I followed the procedure as stated onlins, I have an emailed receipt and that they will charge me $139.99.
Eventually this works out, but not before the employees make it clear that they are "doing me a favor".
I stop them right there and say "you're doing me a favor? REALLY? By following your own system??!!"
Sam's: "yes, we ARE doing you a favor. The sale is over."
Me: "I have the email and I read the site throughly", again the associates have no interest in the receipt.
I then explain/rant that every time I shop at Sam's Club or Walmart, if anything goes wrong, it's always the same response: the customer is wrong, the store is right.
How many times have I shopped at Walmart at 5pm-6pm and been stuck down an aisle because they are pulling by pallets onto the floor, at rush hour?
Then only half the registers are open, again, at rush hour.
These chains literally HATE the customer.
"Oh, but we'll do you a favor".
Why are they doing the CUSTOMER a favor?
At both chains I've been told I was being done a "favor" after trying to buy a discounted/clearance item that rung up for the original price.
This is so common place that I now take a picture of the item and the shelf tag showing the discounted price to prove that there system is wrong, but I still get they "we'll give you the price, this time".
Back to the point, eventually I got the advertised price and a fine gentleman helped me load it in the back of a suburban.
For the record, I normally shop in Eau Claire. I rarely come to Minneapolis or I would be a member of COSTCO.
Clearly the upper management has lost the vision of Sam Walton many, many years ago or else this would not be another "normal" visit to Sam's Club/Walmart.
Someone needs to remind management that Sam Walton modeled his chains after the work of Sol Price.
In the end, is anything associated with Walmart really worth the price?
Cheap isn't cheap when experiences like this are common place.
More and more I buy everything used; why buy the unheard of brand Thomson for $139.99 and get to deal with this when I could have bought a used Kenmore or other name brand for $50-$75 used?
I am wondering if the associates have the power to do all these "favors", maybe I should start haggling????
Now that would entice me to shop under the Walton banner guilt free.i