# Why K-Mart Is Going Under: An Example **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 17, 2003, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052 "2003-03-17T17:56:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![RexDart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b77776/32.png) [@RexDart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RexDart)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/21 "2003-03-18T05:43:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ladyfoxfyre \* > \*\*Like the Martha Stewart collection, human skin lampshades would fall under the Ed Gein collection… \*\* Wouldn’t it fall under the Jame Gumb collection? (Hey, I didn’t make the movie, don’t blame me.) ---
**Author:** ![DadWagonDriver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/edb3f5/32.png) [@DadWagonDriver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DadWagonDriver)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/22 "2003-03-18T05:57:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ivylass \* > \*\*They just opened a Super Target near my home town. They still have a problem with some garden items (no Indian Hawthorne, for instance, a fairly common plant around here) but I’m sure the management will pick up on the consumers’ requests fairly quickly. > \*\* Hijack coming… Sorry to tell all of you this, but in store management at a Target store has very little to do with what the store carries. In my four-and-a-half years with the company, I have only had a boss interact with the buyers once. That was some sort of experimental meeting where the buyers were supposed to listen to what we were being told our customers wanted. I think one item from a list of about 150 made it into our store. The best way for a customer to get a new product in a Target store is really simple. All you have to do is fill out a “Guest Comment Card.” I am almost 100% positive the postage is even free on the card. Any comments or complaints are best handled like this, NOT screaming at the person in-store who has diddly-shit to do with anything but taking your money. I imagine most other retainlers are the same way. ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/23 "2003-03-18T13:33:25Z")
The last time I was in our local Kmart (several years ago) a freaking security guard followed me around the entire time. Oh, yes, I am **so** sinister looking. You have uncovered my villainous plot to rob your store of its entire stock of color coordinated towels, you clever bastard, you. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Sassafras](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@Sassafras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sassafras)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/24 "2003-03-18T14:05:17Z")
Son-of-a-bitchin’ Kmart! The stupid bastards are closing the store near where I live – It’s CLEAN, friendly, and always busy. They are keeping the store near my office open–filthy, understaffed, crime-ridden, and full of rude employees. Why? Because the nasty one is near the Daytona Speedway and they make a shitload of money twice a year. Guess they don’t have to concern themselves with appearances or customer service with that built in customer base. Off to Target I go… ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/25 "2003-03-18T14:13:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Surreal \* > \*\*I’ve noticed that whenever I go to K-Mart there are always a bunch of people waiting at the regular check-out lanes, but at the self check-out lanes there’s never any line at all. > > Why do people stand in line when they don’t have to? Can’t they figure out how to scan their own items?? \*\* This, too, mystified me to no end. I will go through the self checker even if I have more than the alotted number allowed. Yea, verily, I am an evil person I think…nay, I beleive, that people, in general, are just brainless sheep. I had been boycotting Kmart for years because of their Night of the Living Dead employees. But, I confess, I am a sucker for the Martha Stewart Collection, which, while I’m on an intangent, I am very surprised she hasn’t bugged out of the big K already. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/26 "2003-03-18T15:27:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Shirley Ujest \* > \*\*But, I confess, I am a sucker for the Martha Stewart Collection, which, while I’m on an intangent, I am very surprised she hasn’t bugged out of the big K already. \*\* Why? She’s been accused of insider trading and they’re a company going down the tubes. They’re practically made for each other! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/27 "2003-03-18T15:31:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pkbites \* > **Theres this one in West Allis, WI that we nick named “Third World Kmart” because it is so disorganized, nobody seems to be in charge, and it’s a total fucking mess.** There’s a grocery store in DC nicknamed “Soviet Safeway” for pretty much the same reason. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/28 "2003-03-18T16:14:25Z")
I worked at K-mart for about seven months. They do understaff intentionally to keep labor costs down. I guess the concept of improved customer service leading to increased repeat traffic which will lead to increased cash flow is beyond them. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/29 "2003-03-18T16:20:36Z")
I worked at K-mart for about seven months. They do understaff intentionally to keep labor costs down. I guess the concept of improved customer service leading to increased repeat traffic which will lead to increased cash flow is beyond them. ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/30 "2003-03-18T16:28:51Z")
> [@](#): > > _originally posted by baldwin_ > About two or three times, when I’ve been looking for camping or sports supplies at K-Mart, I’ve looked around for an employee, and ended up going behind the counter in Sporting Goods, figuring out how to work the intercom, and going on the PA with: “Customer needs assistance in Sporting Goods.” If that doesn’t work after a few minutes, I come back on: “Customer needs assistance in Sporting Goods. This is the customer. Somebody come back here, or I’ll never spend another dime in this store.” That’s worked at least once, but on one occasion I waited a few minutes and followed that with: “Customer needs assistance opening the cash drawer back here in Sporting Goods.” That got results. I work at a horribly understaffed department store and I can’t stand the shitheads that act like this. I don’t care how long you’ve had to wait for service, you’re an adult, and that means you can have the intelligence not to use devices that are obviously staff-only. Don’t like the service, shop at another store. Don’t make my job more difficult by playing stupid games with things that you’re not meant to be using. I had a similar fuckwit like yourself who decided that he’d try playing with the telephone because he had to wait for someone to serve him. It’s terrible that we are so understaffed that customers do have to wait so long, but that by no means give people like you or him the right to act like children. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/31 "2003-03-18T17:55:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gex gex \* > \*\*I work at a horribly understaffed department store and I can’t stand the shitheads that act like this. I don’t care how long you’ve had to wait for service, you’re an adult, and that means you can have the intelligence not to use devices that are obviously staff-only. Don’t like the service, shop at another store. Don’t make my job more difficult by playing stupid games with things that you’re not meant to be using. > > I had a similar fuckwit like yourself who decided that he’d try playing with the telephone because he had to wait for someone to serve him. It’s terrible that we are so understaffed that customers do have to wait so long, but that by no means give people like you or him the right to act like children. \*\* If management sees that customers are desperate enough to play with equipment meant for staff just to get some help, don’t you think they’d wake up and hire more people? Yes, tbey’re acting childish. But sometimes throwing a tantrum is the only way to get attention. BTW, I’ve worked in retail, and I will **never** go back. NEVER!! ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/32 "2003-03-18T19:26:03Z")
> [@](#): > > I work at a horribly understaffed department store and I can’t stand the shitheads that act like this. I don’t care how long you’ve had to wait for service, you’re an adult, and that means you can have the intelligence not to use devices that are obviously staff-only. Don’t like the service, shop at another store. Don’t make my job more difficult by playing stupid games with things that you’re not meant to be using. > > I had a similar fuckwit like yourself who decided that he’d try playing with the telephone because he had to wait for someone to serve him. It’s terrible that we are so understaffed that customers do have to wait so long, but that by no means give people like you or him the right to act like children. Thanks! Oh, and blow me. I was requesting basic customer service. And if you don’t care how long the customer has to wait, then you’re either an apathetic employee or an incompetent asshole of a manager. If a manager, you could at least put up a sign explaining that you’re horribly understaffed and that the customer is on his own. But I’ll gladly take your advice not to spend my money in your store, dickweed. Did I mention blow me? Thanks again! ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/33 "2003-03-18T19:37:10Z")
**Devil’s Grandma** : no biggie. If you met me in person, the full beard woulda tipped you off. But I know it’s unusual for a _guy_ to be shopping for something like _lampshades_. The idea that you could just replace the shade, rather than the entire lamp, really doesn’t occur to most guys. Hell, the thought of getting a new lamp doesn’t occur to most guys either, as long as the old one works - no matter how old, ugly, dingy, and out of place it is in the room. **Surreal** : the last time I was in a K-Mart before the visit in my OP, it was a Monday morning, 9:30ish, and there were _no_ clerks at _any_ of the registers. I scanned my stuff at the self-service checkout, and had to hunt for 5 minutes or so for someone to authorize my electronic signature. Of course, I’ve had bunches of problems with the self-serve scanners in K-Mart. They often don’t ring up sale prices, they ask me to put an item in the bag that I’ve already bagged (when prompted), and I can’t remember what-all else. **Eva Luna** : if it’s on sale at K-Mart, and I can’t get there on Sunday, I just don’t bother. Like you say, if it’s on sale, they’re likely to be out. And don’t get me started on rainchecks - when have I _ever_ been notified that they’ve got the sale item back in stock? ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/34 "2003-03-18T20:36:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by slortar \* > \*\*The last time I was in our local Kmart (several years ago) a freaking security guard followed me around the entire time. Oh, yes, I am **so** sinister looking. You have uncovered my villainous plot to rob your store of its entire stock of color coordinated towels, you clever bastard, you. :rolleyes: \*\* One of my sisters got stopped by one of the store’s security goons when she was coming out of K-Mart. He thought she might have been attempting to steal one of the blouses they sold since they supposedly sold one that looked just like the one she was wearing. I don’t know what he made her do to prove that she had worn the blouse into the store, but she was embarrassed and very pissed off at the moron. I don’t know if she ever went into a K-mart again after this incident. My other sister had worked there for a couple years. She absolutely HATED it. Every night she would come home, sometimes in years, complaining about all the rude customers she had as well as how shittily the management treated her. She complained about having to walk to the back of the store and dodge customers on her way to the break room so that they wouldn’t take up the precious ten minutes she was given. At home she refused to answer the phone (this was before caller ID) and she always had someone else answer it because she was always afraid of getting called in to cover a shift. At least once a week they would call and we’d have to lie and say my sister wasn’t home. ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/35 "2003-03-18T20:46:51Z")
> [@](#): > > Every night she would come home, sometimes in years… **Tears** , not years. So much for relying on spell-checking my posts. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/36 "2003-03-18T20:55:19Z")
I quit shopping at K-Mart when the store nearest me began recording driver’s license and Social Security numbers for bullet purchases. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/37 "2003-03-18T21:05:41Z")
[Link](http://www.despair.com/ap24x30prin.html) Just my theory. ---
**Author:** ![NE\_Texan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e99b99/32.png) [@NE\_Texan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NE_Texan)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/38 "2003-03-18T21:24:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Surreal \* > \*\*I’ve noticed that whenever I go to K-Mart there are always a bunch of people waiting at the regular check-out lanes, but at the self check-out lanes there’s never any line at all. > > Why do people stand in line when they don’t have to? Can’t they figure out how to scan their own items?? \*\* You know, I thought that those self-checkouts were sooo cool. I’ve seen them at K-Mart, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, etc. So we tried one the other day when the regular lines were too long. We went through the opening stuff pretty quick. Then scanned an item. _Bleep_, the correct price rings up, it says your supposed to put it in the bag. We do. The computer speaker comes on: “We detect an unauthorized item in the bagging area. Please remove this item.” We pick it up out of the bag, and are wondering what to do with it, when: “An item has been removed from the bagging area. Please place scanned item in the bagging area.” We do. “We detect an unauthorized item in the bagging area. Please remove this item.” We go through this about 4 times, which gets old fast. We try to find some way to cancel the item, but the self-service won’t allow it. We finally get the attention of the employee who is watching over the self-checkout areas (who has been ignoring us until now). We put it in the bag, she resets it, we’re ready to go on. Second item. Exact. Same. Thing. Happens. We toss everything back in the cart - the machine goes on complaining that items are not in the bagging area - and we go stand in the regular check-out line. The one that was so long to start with, but is, by now, empty. Takes 2 minutes and 30 seconds to check out. They need to work a few bugs out. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/39 "2003-03-18T21:53:18Z")
I will assist in taking inventory at a K-Mart tomorrow. It is a given that the store will not be prepared for inventory and that the employees will show all the enthusiasm and helpfulness of your average oyster. That might be appropriate because the usual IQ matches that of the oyster. I will be called on to inventory items that do not have a barcode and obtaining one will be nearly impossible. Items will be misplaced, mislabled, mispriced, and just plain missed. A job that should take maybe six hours will probably take nine. To add insult to injury, I will be assisting in yet another K-Mart store the following day. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2003, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052/40 "2003-03-19T01:00:09Z")
**NE Texan** : that’s pretty much the same situation we were in at Home Depot on Saturday! I wonder if they use the same system. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-k-mart-is-going-under-an-example/162052.md?page=3)