Drastic Changes you've Noticed in your favorite Retail Stores.

[Mike 03]

This question was inspired by other threads here at DU, one in particular that completely surprised me because it went against intuition.

If you regularly patronize or order from a particular retail store, have you noticed significant changes? If so, what are they?

I'm a guy, so I'm probably not as sensitive to these things but I can tell you a few:

1. One of the clothing places I order from made its first mistake in the ten years I have been ordering clothes from them, and they panicked over it and did way more than I asked or expected of them.

2. The company I have been ordering nutritional supplements from for about five years seems to be slowly, crawlingly, going out of business. This doesn't surprise me because their products were so overpriced.

3. Two of my other favorite clothing places, which I have not ordered from in many months, keep sending me email coupons and offers. I'm worried about both of them. It would not surprise me if either of them went out of business tomorrow, although they make great products.

[Ian David]

1. Starbucks has started offering hand-jobs. n/t

[DontTreadOnMe]

3. I like money.

I do.

[Initech]

4. Home of the gentlemen's rebate

:rofl:

[Mari333]

22. LOL

[DCKit]

34. You funny.

[KamaAina]

38. I have noticed the foam tasting a little off lately...

:puke:

[sendero]

39. Along...

... with a refreshing glass of Brawndo.

[Greyhound]

47. Give me grande a triple-shot, half-caf, latte, with a happy ending. n/t

[Initech]

2. Borders stopped selling music and movies

[ContinentalOp]

23. Soon to stop selling books as well.

Supposedly. The one around here closed and I read somewhere that the whole company will most likely be out of business before the end of the year.

[TheCowsCameHome]

27. Really? Borders is going down?

I kind of liked their places, at least compared to Barnes and Noble.

[JI7]

41. Borders is a lot better , but i think it might have more to do with Amazon and other online

places people get books from.

i rarely buy books from a store anymore unless it's some used book store where i find a good deal.

[sonic926]

5. My car salesman

Hi there. This is my first post, although I've read DU for
years. One thing I've noticed is the dealership I lease my car
from actually gave me a call this year. The lease is about to
expire. Over the past several years he hasn't given me the
time of day.

[Auggie]

6. Welcome to D.U.

And yes, I've noticed people are lot more friendlier and attentive lately

[mikelgb]

9. ROTFLOL

[xchrom]

15. welcome!

:hi:

[bigwillq]

17. My dealership called me too.

My lease was supposed to be up in July. They called me last month to do an "end of lease interview". Never had one of those before. Needless to say, they were able to persuade me to lease another one.

Welcome to DU! :hi:

[MADem]

33. I keep getting a card from the HONDA dealer offering me trade ins, trade ups,

and maintenance specials for "MY HONDA."

Thing is, I don't own a HONDA, I have never owned a HONDA. I have no idea how these clowns got my name, either.

[spinbaby]

52. Same database that thinks I own a Tundra

I'm always getting reminders to service my Tundra--a big-ass pickup truck I would never drive.

[Sheltiemama]

55. I was offered a fruit basket.

I got a letter announcing that if I traded in my Subaru Forester, I'd become the proud owner of a Harry and David fruit basket! I thought that was an usual incentive. (I didn't trade.)

[Vidar]

49. Welcome to DU, or at least to posting.

[TheCowsCameHome]

7. The local Home Depot people don't seem quite as lethargic.

Although I don't know why.

[OmahaBlueDog]

10. We noticed that, too

We were in there a few weeks ago, and it was like they were all fresh from a customer service seminar.

[Tommy_J]

20. They almost assaulted me with friendliness

HD had a greeter at the door, someone else handing out sales fliers, and then 3 more people waiting to escort customers to the various departments. I just wanted some nails but it felt like running a gauntlet.

[blonndee]

24. Good to hear. Home Depot has SUCKED

in customer service for way too long (as have many retailers, though HD has been REALLY bad in my experience from a family of building contractors and DIYers). I'm sorry that it has taken such a poor economic situation for this to improve, though.

[TheCowsCameHome]

26. At the one near me I'd have to describe what a nail looked like, and what it was used for.

I hope their other stores are better staffed.

[virgogal]

8. Quality is gone. I have been catologue/on-line shopping for

many years.Stores like Appleseeds,Talbot's,LL Bean,and Nordstrom.

In ALL cases fabric quality and workmanship have gone down.

If I want cheap clothing I will shop at Walmart and forget my old favorites---at least I'll save money.

[cabluedem]

25. Shopping online saves on sales tax. Screw the state. nt

[virgogal]

37. No sales tax on most clothing in MA.

[DJ13]

11. Shelves are empty more often

And more and more product sizes that we once took for granted have less in them while trying to fool you into thinking its the same size.

Skippy peanut butter is now 16oz, but looks the same size as the 18oz Jiff next to it on the shelf.

Large bags of pet food have increasingly less in them, and the price still increases.

[depakid]

12. Trader Joes is packed- Whole Foods less so

[JI7]

42. whole foods is overpriced

[lame54]

43. Yes - our business has picked up

[ellie]

13. I always get terrible

service at the Vitamin Shoppe and complain. Only recently have they been sending me frantic e-mails begging to fix the problem. Too late! I no longer shop there! I don't need to be treated poorly and was just stupid for continuing to patronize the place.

[KoKo]

14. SteinMart...women's clothing store is sending me 20-30% off coupons every week.

But, retailer Talbots that CNBC Traders said was on "Death Watch" is maintaining their prices and sending me catalogs filled with merchandise and variety.

I've not shopped in either since Christmas...and I only bought relatives presents...am not buying for myself. It's interesting, though that Talbot's Catalog has the outfit Michelle wore out to Dinner last weekend on their "Getaway" featured in that catalog.

It's the "wrap front white blouse with "trailing ties" with black capri pants and flats.

Just saying....

[KoKo]

16. Needed some "undies" and Kohls Dept. Store was empty over the weekend.

They were very good about taking a "return" I had and not asking for receipt that I lost. They looked up my charge card # and returned the credit on my card for me.

The store was filled with Winter Merchandise still on "real wracks" not the "clearance" and the new stuff for Summer was sparse.

It was all good until the Check Out Cashier asked me the obligatory: "Do you have a Kohl's Charge Card?" ....and when I replied: "No, one credit card is enough for me to handle, but I know you always have to ask me.." and the Cashier then replied: "It's not that I have to ask you but if you don't sign up then I lose my job."

I didn't know how to answer her and the pain in her eyes when she blurted that out. I just finally said to her..."well I'm so sorry you have to do that..shouldn't be that way" and I signed the thingy on the box with my charge card and got the hell out. :-( How sad it's come to this...

[tabbycat31]

18. I used to work for Kohls

and credit card applications are the be all end all of the employee's reviews.

[GoCubsGo]

29. Our local SteinMart is closing...

I have not checked to see if Talbot's is still open. The GAP "outlet" in our local mall also is gone. Not quite sure when that happened, as I don't frequent the mall. Rumor has it the TJ Maxx will close. That is the only one of the four that would upset me if it were to go away.

[KoKo]

30. That's very grim... they were always three of my favorite stores....

and I hate to be forced to only Target and Wall Mart...when everything else goes down.

:-(

[blonndee]

19. Well, I hate to admit that I buy from Old Navy

but I'll go ahead and do it. I buy from them because they 1) fit me well (at least have done in the past), 2) are affordable without stooping to Wal-Mart quality, and 3) they have a great return policy. I know it's not the most socially responsible choice, and buying from them makes me a hypocrite, but I guess I'll just have to deal with that.

About 80% of the clothes I own are from Old Navy because it used to be that I could pretty much know that when I order in my size, it will fit me well. This was up until about two years ago. While they were never close to "high-quality," the clothes have dropped INCREDIBLY in quality overall, and the sizes have become unpredictable as well. It's gotten so bad that I've ended up sending back more than what I keep the last couple of years. I stick with them because of their great return policy and ease of ordering, and because I really don't know where else to go. I don't know what exactly has changed, but something sure has.

[rucky]

21. My wife has a shop.

What's missing are the customers.

Four-year-old business - still young but a solid and steadily growing customer base.

We were breaking records through most of 2008, then fell off a cliff in October, then another one in April. It's brutal right now. People are going straight to the clearance rack and we'll be bathing in Spring seasonal stuff come June.

[KoKo]

31. Fingers crossed for her. Maybe it will work out. Many folks like the small shops

because of the customer service. Let's hope she can hang on. :hug:

[Mari333]

28. less employees. nt

[Manifestor_of_Light]

32. It's time to get out the sewing machine.

Or go to small stores.

I live in shorts and t shirts and dress like a slob (being a retired/unemployed bum) so I don't have to spend money on good clothes.

[Lars39]

53. I went to the nearest Walmart the other day.

I know...:eyes:....anyways....the fabric department is no more. Just crafts. No fabric. Must have just happened, 'cause I wasn't the only one wandering around looking puzzled. I don't sew my own clothes anymore, but there were occasions when I wanted to run something up for the household. The nearest fabric store is approx 40 miles away. I've never shopped for material online, but I guess that might be one of my options.

[Missy Vixen]

35. Less shoppers

I went to Target the other night for some toiletries. They didn't carry the hair color I typically get in the brand I use, which made me think of the stuff a certain DU'er warned us about -- less choices. It's always weird to see a Target with no lines and few customers, too.

We get coupons from Lands' End almost weekly now. I love them. I hope they stay afloat, because they've been dressing us for fifteen years now. At the same time, we're not buying anything right now. Since DH is still out of work, we're only buying the absolute necessities -- well, except for the pooch and the felines. They get the good stuff.

Costco is packed. People are still buying little besides food, at least, that's what we see when we're there buying food.

[Kansas Wyatt]

45. I shop at Target too, and I've noticed a few regular stocked items...

Gone, without any indication they are coming back.

What always infuriates me, is when stores and/or manufactures have a popular product that is moving very well, yet they decide to dump it anyway. Kind of hard to convince me that they want to make money, when they avoid selling popular items.

[SoCalDem]

36. My husband used our Sears card (grr)

The bill arrived Apr 20-something..
Total bill $51.18..

Due date on bill May 11

I set the online bill-pay to pay it on May 1

Today May 9th, we got a letter INFORMING us that they (CITI) had NOT received our payment..the "informative" letter was dated May 3rd..

they even provided us with a phone number to call if we had "questions" about our bill..

So off to the computer I went..and yes the bill was paid... $51.18 ..cleared our account on May 1

I called the phone number on the letter and was told that they received our payment on May 4th, so JUST disregard the letter..:wtf:

I said to the nice lady: "You better cash your paychecks immediately, if your company is sending ominous threatening letters about non-receipt of payment EIGHT DAYS BEFORE the damned thing is even due"...

or are they trying to scare people into re-paying a bill they already paid..and then holding a credit of their money on the books?

[OffWithTheirHeads]

40. Orchard Supply (Sears) is not re-stocking their shelves

I'm in construction and have to shop there regularly. A few months ago I went to buy clip on floodlights for working in attics/ under houses. The entire shelf was empty. Still is, several months later. Then, I went to buy flag tape. After about 20 min looking around for something I've always bought there, I asked an employee. He took me to...an empty shelf. A few months ago, I needed a new Makita driver/drill for work. Mine died and nothing else would do. This is about a $250.00 item. There are about five OSH's within driving distance and this item is proudly displayed for sale at ALL of them. Only one OSH had any in stock. They had exactly ONE available. I told them to hold it as I was driving right over to pick it up. Today, I needed a set of sawhorses. The OSH down the street had exactly ONE in stock. What the fuck are you supposed to do with one sawhorse? What kind of hardware store has only ONE sawhorse in stock? This is starting to remind me of story's I heard when I was a kid about shopping in the Soviet Union.

I'm 58 and have lived through many recessions but I've NEVER seen it like this.

[Pharlo]

51. lol........It's possible someone came in and purchased

ONE sawhorse before they had an opportunity to restock. In high school we had to do a wood working project for Ag class. I made a single sawhorse. I wanted it for storing my saddle when it wasn't in use. I only had a need for one saw horse, I only wanted one sawhorse. When my brother saw that, his response was a LOT like yours. Only, I think the terms, moron, idiot, imbecile, and 'short bus candidate' entered his diatribe. My response was that since I only had one saddle, and HE wasn't going to be using the saw horse, the quantity wasn't any of his damn business. Well, turns out he did 'confiscate' my sawhorse for multiple home repair 'projects' - and bitched every time because there was only one. And, my response every time was - "Where the HELL did you put my saddle?" Right before I'd tell him if he wanted a second saw horse, HE could build the damn thing.

Sorry, but your spiel about one sawhorse brought back a lot of memories. And, based upon my own experience, it's possible someone came in and purchased just one and it hadn't been restocked yet.

[havocmom]

44. Not my fav store,

but the only one in town - constantly out of bread.

Well, not totally out; there is always some of that useless white mostly air artificial imitation bread substitute crap. But real bread? Seems like 12 loaves a week limit. Yes, I have been there right after the bread guy does his (now only) once a week delivery.

Bread. We are constantly outta bread in our town.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

46. Their gone...

[Greyhound]

48. They're... n/t

[tilsammans]

50. The only joint jumpin' locally is . . .

. . . Trader Joe's. Parking lot's full, shelves are stocked, and there's serious shopping-cart gridlock inside. You'd never know that times were tough.

The other stores? The malls? Like ghost towns.

[AikidoSoul]

54. Less stock in places like Office Depot

which used to have items like power supplies, wider array of memory modules, etc. Now they want you to order them from online... which means that the shipping will be directly from the manufacturer. It is an emergency cost-cutting measure from a retail store that usually has lots of product in stock. Not sure what the effects will be for them -- I can't help thinking about the "bird in the hand"... which simply means when I go out to a store I do it because I want it NOW. If they don't have it then I will order it from someplace where I can get it for less. Who loses? Both me and Office Depot I think.