I dunno…
Now you know that store will actually HOLD SOMETHING FOR YOU if you ask them to.
If they had said “hey, it WAS on hold, but fuckem, you got the cash you can have it now” you’d know they are money grubbing whores that will sell you out in a heart beat.
Its like the business equivalent of not wanting to marry the guy that will leave his wife for you.
A lot of customers are “regulars” and you do extra things for them. I’ve gone way out of my way for regular customers because they give good business.
Perhaps this is the case. I might be miffed too, as the OP was. The salesclerk should’ve said, “That item is sold, but I can order you another one.”
This would be a great H/R exercise in giving the customer MUCH more information than they need
Had the person truly needed it, he or she would have come by on Tuesday or Wednesday. Why should Vernon be inconvenienced in favor of someone who cannot keep his or her word?
I didn’t say you threw a tantrum in the store. Where did I say that? You take the time to compose a post on a message board complaining how you couldn’t get something RIGHT NOW and how you’re going to go get said item somewhere else and then call the manager to teach him a lesson? Please, that’s the adult version of a whiny child kicking his heels.
As I said before, part of life is waiting for what you want and also, realizing that agreements (even if they aren’t beneficial to you in particular) should be honored.
Yes, I got all that from your original post, no need to explain it to me again. And I’m sure the store manager will lose a lot of sleep on your big ticket $100 item. That will learn him.
You had better hold an item you promise to hold regardless of somebody walking in and wanting the held item. This is why you also have polices at stores that state exactly how long you will hold it or that you will not hold an item. I would chose not to hold an item if I was setting policy. First come first served. I’ve worked retail and I would hate the person that sold somebody else a held item, because the person that is supposed to get it will be throwing a fit.
Maybe. Or maybe he’d just be pissing off the people on the other side of the equation. It’s even conceivable that he’ll look at that $100 as a fair price for getting you out of his hair.
The ONLY reason VV is “inconvenienced” is because he knows they have the item in the building. If everything else was the same but the store didn’t mention that they had one on hold for someone else, he would have gone his merry way and ordered it online. He’s not ‘inconvenienced’ he’s annoyed.
And again, I’ll mention, we don’t know the whole story. Maybe the person is a great customer, maybe they called this morning and said they’d be in tomorrow for it, maybe it’s already been paid for (I don’t remember if that was mentioned or not), maybe they have a policy to keep items on hold for two weeks, maybe this maybe that, it doesn’t really matter, the store is choosing to hold the item for this customer and that’s the end of it, whether or not WE think that’s a good/ethical decision is irrelevant.
I agree completely in that particular situation. If the “hold” customer had already been waiting for days, then what’s a few more? And I am sure that (most) anyone would understand.
But really everyone would have been satisfied (if not happy) if the store had just said the item was out of stock and would be in on [whatever date the new ordered one would arrive] and not shared the fact that they did have one but didn’t want to part with it just yet. I think that was the biggest failing on the part of the retailer. Their bad handling of the situation lost them money and left them possibly with no sales (if the hold customer abandoned the purchase after all) when they could have made two.
You have the right to be just as mad as you want, and you have the right to tell them. How else are they going to know?
If they still think they made the right choice, fine. But, if they don’t, they’ve learned something.
And don’t see how any of this is childish. This is a message board where you seek opinions. The OP used the message board as intended. Had he whined in the store, that would be childish.
People need to stop this shit about having emotions being childish. No, it’s called being human. People rarely if ever choose what they get mad at. In fact, if I had a choice, I’d never get angry at all.
So cut with the condescending crap. If anything, the fact you have to label someone else’s emotions as childish is far more childish.
A business is built on integrity. The owner gave his word that he would hold the item. As good business practice, he should be keeping his word.
You can argue that the owner could have said, “you need to pick it up by tomorrow” to the other customer. Or “I’ll hold it, but if someone else asks for it, I’ll sell and order another.” But the owner seems to have said, “I will hold it for you.”
That’s a promise. Keeping a promise is known as “integrity.” The owner is 100% in the right here.
I agree. I’d be far more pissed at a store that promised to hold something and then DIDN’T, than a store that refused to sell me an item they had on hold for someone else.
The store made a promise they should honor. Maybe it was a stupid promise. Maybe they offered to hold the item for a ridiculous amount of time. But it still was a promise to a customer.
in my opinion, it would depend on the item in question,if its something they can easily get (as in your case, “we can definitely have another one in later” i can see the problem, ubt if its something like a figurine at my local comic shop, i’ve seen stuff on hold there forever simply because some of the regulars are only there once a month or so, and their distributor likes to “miss” items so things aren’t definite that they can get more. Then again, they’ll also order things and hold them until a certain customer they think would buy it comes in, just in case… being a regular has its advantages i guess.
I find in favor of the retailer for this particular case. They promised to hold an item for a customer and were doing so.
I disagree with the concept of making such promises however but that ship had already sailed.
They promised the guy something, so they owe him something.
They never promised you anything, so they don’t owe you anything.
The store is right in holding the item. They made a promise to another customer and they should keep that promise.
The only reason this would bother me is if I called ahead to check inventory and they told me to come on by, or it was listed as ‘available’ on their website, etc. Otherwise I agree, it’s their item and they can reserve it for someone else if they want. I would be annoyed if I were the guy with the item on hold and the store sold it without a phone call.
Personally if they item is on hold I’d rather they just tell me the truth, then I know I can call on Tuesday to see if the guy picked it up. I could see why it’s easier for a store to just say it’s sold/out-of-stock, but I wouldn’t fault them for telling me the truth. And I can’t imagine what good it will do to tell the manager you’ve bought it online, if they are the only seller in town then I’m sure they figured out your plan when you left without making an order.
To me, the crux of the matter is the story behind this hold. Was the holdee told it would be held until a certain time, and it’s now past that time? Or is it still withing the stated/promised time frame for a hold? Did the holdee agree to pick it up by a certain time, and it’s now past that time? Or is it still within the pledged time frame for a pickup?
If it was still within the period promised/agreed upon between the store and the holdee, of course they should still hold it for him.
If it was past that period, then they’re either stupid or clearly stating that the holdee is a more valued customer than Vernon. Were I in Vernon’s shoes, I’d take the hint, buy it elsewhere, and let the store know that I would rather be a first class customer of their competitor than a third class customer with them.
This.
If there is an offer to buy and an agreement to sell then a verbal contract has been made so it depends on what was agreed to.
If it was a vague request with no time involved or the time had expired then I would have sold the item.
In that situation, you have a right to be mad. ESPECIALLY since it’s screwing with their inventory system. Had that person picked it up the day they asked it to be held it’s possible a replacement would have been sent by or near the time you were there.
I worked in many retail stores for years. My policy was I would only hold an item if it was another store calling on behalf of a customer, and the customer was on their way down. I’d hold it for as long as it would take to drive there. Otherwise i didn’t want another store employee to gripe to a district manager.
However I was also a complete ass to customers on the phone. If they ever called to ask if an item was stocked I’d always give some bs answer like, “i’m sorry we’re too busy to do inventory checks – you’ll have to come in or call back later”. Get off your ass and drive down to the store or order it online.
The agreement was between the store and the other customer, you have no dog in this fight. If you wish to make a offer, such as a immediate payment that is your option and it is the stores to accept or deny, again you have no dog in this fight and should go no further.