Another Sears story....

[eschoendorff]

So we were on the way home from picking up parts for my tractor and my wife reminded me that she needed to return something she had bought at Sears. So, while she was returning stuff, I was fartin' around looking at the tools... nothing good on clearance though. I start wandering around the store to fine the Mrs... see her at a register and walk up to her. She turns around, hands me a "15% off any tool purchase $75 or more." coupon and says "go nuts."

Well I didn't need to be told twice. I quickly scooped up:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_...pe+of+Wrench|Wrench+sets^Wrench+Style|Box+end
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_...s^Wrench+Sizing|Standard^Wrench+Style|Box+end (to fill out a set of Armstrongs)
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_...aftsman^Drive+Size|3/8+in.^Contact+Points|N/A (for my speeder wrench.... thanks to Merkava for suggesting this)
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_...omotive+Specialty+Tool+Type|Oil+filter+wrench (expect the one I bought was NOS Craftsman)
and then I got a 1/4" punch.

Just a bunch of little stuff I'd been meaning to get.

So we get up to the register and ring everything up. Now it's time for the coupon. Try. Try again. Type it in manually. Try a different register. Call another associate. Call a manager. Try. Try again.

This went on for about 15 minutes. Good thing my wife and I were just about the only two people in the store at the time because it took 3 people and over 15 minutes to make the transaction.

I made the comment that I felt sorry for the Sears associates working on the transaction... that they have gotten the short end of the stick ever since Kmart got involved. Whoa... I opened the floodgates. The conversation wasn't long, but you could tell that I had struck a nerve and these employees were really frustrated with everything Sears - coupons, sales transactions, websites.... and the rude people that go along with the frustrations.

My wife actually had two coupons.. one for 15% ff tools and one for 10% that were usable that day. On the way out i saw a guy with a store flier still in his work uniform... it looked like he was about to stock up.... I gave hin the other coupon. I hope he was able to use it!

 

[Zeroek]

I work at Sears auto center. Sears is a pain. =(

 

[Deafautotech]

I work at Sears auto center. Sears is a pain. =(

what? are you work at sears now or it was your old job in past time??

 

[jay50]

Looks like any purchase from Sears using a coupon or some type of special discounted price always requires some type of extra ordinary intervention by Sears CS staff.

wonder sometimes if it is worth all the hassle.....

 

[Fedwrench]

At least you were able to get the tools you wanted at a discount. I never understand how Sears can screw up simple transactions but, they do regularly.

 

[wilbilt]

My wife actually had two coupons.. one for 15% ff tools and one for 10% that were usable that day.

Are either of those coupons available on their website?

 

[eschoendorff]

Are either of those coupons available on their website?

No, they were the ones that print out after the receipt from an in-store transaction. Usually all I ever get are coupons for the tax services and family portraits. But this time, Mrs. Eschoendorff got some good coupons!

 

[Stuey]

Sometimes they come out with $5 off $20 and the such, but usually for a week or two in the future.

For what it's worth, one of the Craftsman calendar coupons for this month is $5 off $25 I believe. It's a couple of months until the $10 off $50. I'm waiting to see what will be on sale this week. I have a $5 gift card they sent me for signing up for email alerts. =)

 

[Benchloader]

Had a difficulty yesterday.

Placed an online order for store pick up of an air tool; Sears is a long 1 1/2 hour drive one way & I wanted to be sure I would get what I wanted. Took my ready for pick up e-mail to the kiosk at the selected Sears store. After scanning it's pick up bar code I stood off in a corner to wait, read the sign that their normal customer wait is 2 1/2 minutes. At 4 1/2 minutes the tv screen showed my order was delivered to me. Three minutes later I entered the "Employees Only" door to find out where my item was. Found one lone employee and was very explicit that I wanted my item plus the coupon for having to wait over 5 minutes.

About 5 minutes later the employee came out and asked me what type of item I was waiting for. They didn't seem to know what it was. Again a short wait and another employee came out to look at my e-mail, hoping for a picture of the item I suspect. Then I'm told they are "searching the store" for it..........sheeesh!

After several more minutes of pacing back & forth, a different person brings out my air tool & the $5 coupon for having to wait. Seems they had to get it from the sales floor display. Total time from scanning barcode to delivery right at 20 minutes.

Another event that makes me wish my local Dealer owned Sears could order everything.

 

[eschoendorff]

Had a difficulty yesterday.

Placed an online order for store pick up of an air tool; Sears is a long 1 1/2 hour drive one way & I wanted to be sure I would get what I wanted. Took my ready for pick up e-mail to the kiosk at the selected Sears store. After scanning it's pick up bar code I stood off in a corner to wait, read the sign that their normal customer wait is 2 1/2 minutes. At 4 1/2 minutes the tv screen showed my order was delivered to me. Three minutes later I entered the "Employees Only" door to find out where my item was. Found one lone employee and was very explicit that I wanted my item plus the coupon for having to wait over 5 minutes.

About 5 minutes later the employee came out and asked me what type of item I was waiting for. They didn't seem to know what it was. Again a short wait and another employee came out to look at my e-mail, hoping for a picture of the item I suspect. Then I'm told they are "searching the store" for it..........sheeesh!

After several more minutes of pacing back & forth, a different person brings out my air tool & the $5 coupon for having to wait. Seems they had to get it from the sales floor display. Total time from scanning barcode to delivery right at 20 minutes.

Another event that makes me wish my local Dealer owned Sears could order everything.

That sort of thing has happene to me before... buy on line, pick up in store, experience difficulties. it actually happened when I ordered a digital camera for my wife one Christmas... she was in another part of the store and I was going to pick it up and sneak it back out to the car. Took about 20 minutes and three employees wearing safety gear to locate a 12 oz camera.

It is these experiences that drive me to order stuff from Snap On (after all, I have the basics covered- anything that I need will likely be specialized) or other retailers. Sears is just too much of a hassle.

 

[dps]

Just Friday I received a 40" chest that was air-freighted (210 lbs) to me because of continual screw-ups. Saw it online, a "special" price ending that day. Wanted it, but didn't buy it cuz I like to make sure Wifey's on board at $500. She was, and next day it was still marked "special" for an additional 4 days. $680 marked to $500; tried to buy it online for local store pick-up. The system wouldn't take the order for local pickup, so called to order it. They couldn't make it work, told me to call Craftsman to order. Called Craftsman; no, they can't take orders, call Sears.

Called Sears again, got somebody better, told story, said I'd really like to buy this sucker, they're sure makin' it tough to do. This one gets the order in but also can't make it work for in-store pickup. Says shipping will add $175. I get a little irritated, but in a nice way, and something weird happens. She says she'll pay shipping and give me a Craftsman Club discount of 10% on top of the sale price. Now I'm smiling, but remind her of the 7% sales tax to add, and again she apologizes for all the trouble and gives me a new total of $443 including tax and delivery. Very cool!

Time goes by, no box shows up. Call them; they can't find it. Call again, they find it, give me a UPS freight tracking #, which shows up as an order received, but not yet shipped. A couple days go by; it's now been 9 days since placing the order, and nothing has happened. They apologize.

Next day I get a phone call from an airfreight company that they will be receiving the box today and deliver it tomorrow morning. It shows up, it's beautiful, and it was oh-so-cheap. Just slow.

And how much money did they lose on that deal?

 

[Coach James]

I agree with you on the locally owned Sears stores. The people at ours get extremly frustrated because of all the things I've tried to order through them that they can't get. The logic of that situation totally escapes me.

Coach

 

[Abodyracer]

Hey Esch. I wanted to post on this the other day but decided to do a little investigating before I posted. In your original post you mentioned that the oil filter pliers you purchased were NOS Craftsman. Were these the pair you got?

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02820520000P?keyword=20520

If so, this is the reason your coupon did not work. The coupon was for 15% off a $75 or greater purchase in the tools dept. The problem is that this pair of pliers is actually in the automotive dept. The first 3 # of the Sears item # denote the dept. In this case 02820520000, 028 or division/dept 28 is automotive. The computer was looking for items in division/dept 009 of which you only had a subtotal of $60.47. Unfortunatly this happens from time to time as some of these automotive tools are cross stocked in the tools dept as well as in the automotive dept. Hopefully the associates at you store were able to get this taken care of for you.

 

[eschoendorff]

Hey Esch. I wanted to post on this the other day but decided to do a little investigating before I posted. In your original post you mentioned that the oil filter pliers you purchased were NOS Craftsman. Were these the pair you got?

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02820520000P?keyword=20520

If so, this is the reason your coupon did not work. The coupon was for 15% off a $75 or greater purchase in the tools dept. The problem is that this pair of pliers is actually in the automotive dept. The first 3 # of the Sears item # denote the dept. In this case 02820520000, 028 or division/dept 28 is automotive. The computer was looking for items in division/dept 009 of which you only had a subtotal of $60.47. Unfortunatly this happens from time to time as some of these automotive tools are cross stocked in the tools dept as well as in the automotive dept. Hopefully the associates at you store were able to get this taken care of for you.

Ya, those be the ones. Kinda dumb if you ask me. They were with the tools which is like two departments over from the automotive section (you have to go through lawn and garden and also the fitness and seasonal area to get to automotive). Just more Sears red tape. I found them clearly hanging in the tool dept, they are branded Craftsman... I fail to see how or why they should be considered automotive. Especially since nobody ever buys anything from the automotive section...

 

[Abodyracer]

Ya, those be the ones. Kinda dumb if you ask me. They were with the tools which is like two departments over from the automotive section (you have to go through lawn and garden and also the fitness and seasonal area to get to automotive). Just more Sears red tape. I found them clearly hanging in the tool dept, they are branded Craftsman... I fail to see how or why they should be considered automotive. Especially since nobody ever buys anything from the automotive section...

Actually its not red tape. Most retailers cross stock merchandise as a way to help meet the customers needs as well as increase sales. Would you have bought a pair or even known they carry them if they had not been stocked with tools. I guess what I'm saying is just because its stocked in tools doesn't necessarily make them tools. If a pair of Craftsman denim work pants were stocked in tools would that make them tools because they are labled Craftsman and they were hanging in tools?

I'm not trying to start a fight, just trying to help clear up some confusion.

 

[eschoendorff]

Actually its not red tape. Most retailers cross stock merchandise as a way to help meet the customers needs as well as increase sales. Would you have bought a pair or even known they carry them if they had not been stocked with tools. I guess what I'm saying is just because its stocked in tools doesn't necessarily make them tools. If a pair of Craftsman denim work pants were stocked in tools would that make them tools because they are labled Craftsman and they were hanging in tools?

I'm not trying to start a fight, just trying to help clear up some confusion.

Confusion or not, it was clearly not doing much to get me back in the door anytime soon. If you're going to cross stock merchandise, then make the coupons reflect it, that is all.

No fighting necessary. Just another example of stoopid Sears ****.

 

[Abodyracer]

Confusion or not, it was clearly not doing much to get me back in the door anytime soon. If you're going to cross stock merchandise, then make the coupons reflect it, that is all.

No fighting necessary. Just another example of stoopid Sears ****.

All I can say to that is "Stop punishing yourself and quit going to sears"

If you go in with a poor attitude them you will have a poor experience.

Nuff said, I'm done

 

[jniolon]

I've got to agree with all the comments about Sears total lack of regard for customers and it seems for the business in general. I used to work for Sears during highschool (in the 60's) and in their training sessions, customer satisfaction was number one priority even if it meant losing money on a sale, you never lost a customer.

Sadly Sears and lots of other retailers are now governed by accountants and the number on the bottom line is all that matters.


The Craftsman thread reminds me of an experience from about 30 years ago.

I worked part time in the lawn maintenance business for one of the nicest men I'll ever know... soft spoken, even tempered and easy to deal with. When one of the mowers broke down we fixed it on the job. This particular time we were using a Craftsman 3/8" ratchet to try and break loose a nut that was way too large for the ratchet. But, it's all we had on the truck. The ratchet gears failed of course. On the way back to the shop we stopped at Sears to get a replacement. My boss asked very nicely for a replacement for the broken ratchet. The clerk looked at the well worn tool and started his "abused" speech. My boss listened patiently to him, remarked that it wasn't abused but just well used, he smiled, thanked him and we left. I was puzzled and asked him why he didn't press the clerk for a new ratchet. He just said quietly.... " I'll get my ratchet tomorrow"

The next day, when I showed up for work, the truck was loaded with toolboxes. I mean LOADED ! two large rollaround boxes, at least 4 intermediate boxes and three or 4 top boxes. The boss simply said we had to run by Sears. I hooked up the trailer, loaded equipment and off we went. When we arrived at Sears, he unhooked the trailer and asked me to help him unload the tools. We rolled off the rollarounds, stacked all the others on top and we headed for the tool department. He made one trip, I made two..

When the clerk, (the same from the day before) asked what was going on, my boss just said " I'd like to see the Department Manager". The clerk started some B.S. about the manager was busy and he could take care of us, but the boss said a little stronger " Then I would like to see the Store Manager". I think the clerk knew he meant business this time.

The manager arrived shortly and asked if he could help. My boss told him of the problem with the clerk the day before and showed him the ratchet. The manager asked him about all the other tools. My boss simply pointed to the gold leaf writing above the front door of the store that said "Sears, Roebuck & Co. Satisfaction Guaranteed Or Your Money Back" and said "I'm not satisfied with Craftsman tools any longer, I'd like my money back." Honestly there must have been $10,000 worth of tools there. The look on the Manager and clerks face was worth what the tools cost. The manager, somewhat taken back started "But sir, surely..." My boss interrupted saying " I'd like my money back, please".

After some discussion they finally arrived at a solution. The ratchet would be replaced, the clerk would load all the tools back on our truck and the manager agreed to explain to the clerk about customers and what the words above the door meant, while my boss stood by quietly and listened. He never had a problem with Sears again

A hard way to prove a point but I think the manager and especially the clerk learned a good lesson.

So I say......ask for what is owed to you.

john

 

[eschoendorff]

All I can say to that is "Stop punishing yourself and quit going to sears"

Just to clarify... I am familiar with Sears' business model. my wife was a Sears associate for a good number of years. Lately Sears has become really sloppy and there is no good reason why two Sears associates and a manager didn't catch that when I was checking out.

If you go in with a poor attitude them you will have a poor experience.

Nuff said, I'm done

Wow, what great advice!!!!!! I wouldn't have figured taht out if you hadn't said something. If you look through my past posts, you will see taht i was at one time a big defender of Sears.

 

[dxdexter]

Is that time line chart scientifically accurate and drawn to scale? I remember the "big bang" being in the 1980's. At least for me.

 

[wilbilt]

I agree with you on the locally owned Sears stores. The people at ours get extremly frustrated because of all the things I've tried to order through them that they can't get. The logic of that situation totally escapes me.

Coach

The local Sears "Hometown Dealer" here is an utter joke. They used to refuse tool warranties until Sears told them they had to do it.

Now, they just conveniently don't have anything in stock.

 

[kythri]

Sadly, I think a large portion of poor customer service at any level is the fear of lawsuit or some form of retribution.

Our society has made it virtually a crime to discipline or terminate people for poor performance.

I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but I've worked in multiple different industries, and they're all pretty much the same - poor performers with poor attitudes are allowed to stay around, because someone doesn't want a harrassment charge filed against them, or have to deal with a wrongful termination lawsuit.

Add a union to the mix, and the problem gets even worse.

I used to work for one of the Baby Bells, and was unwillingly a member of the CWA. That union kept a TON of horrible people employed.

I moved on to a semiconductor manufacturer, and while surprisingly not unionized, still had similar performance issues - racial discrimination lawsuits (complete hogwash), wrongful termination lawsuits, ****** harrassment lawsuits. None of this **** was happening, but people learned that the company was willing to settle/cave to avoid big problems, so they took advantage of it. It got to the point that when we merged with a competitor, they shut down all of our operations in the state, and refused to transfer anyone but a few high-level engineers to other facilities because of the culture that was there.

I'm in healthcare now, and I'm starting to see it again, both in the union staff and the non-union staff. Another department just promoted a guy to a supervisory role, even though he has the worst record of complaints (rude, condescending, poor work performance) because he'd worked there longer than anyone else, and they were afraid he'd file a grievance if he was passed over for the promotion.

Way back when I was a wee one, and worked in the food-service or retail biz, the same thing pretty much happened, with a slight twist - the quality employees either left quickly for someplace better, or ended up getting canned because they made the barely pubescent managers look bad.

It's a horrible system, and it continues to worsen. If people actually thought they'd get fired for being incompetant lazy jackasses, it might improve...

 

[eschoendorff]

Sadly, I think a large portion of poor customer service at any level is the fear of lawsuit or some form of retribution.

Our society has made it virtually a crime to discipline or terminate people for poor performance.

I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but I've worked in multiple different industries, and they're all pretty much the same - poor performers with poor attitudes are allowed to stay around, because someone doesn't want a harrassment charge filed against them, or have to deal with a wrongful termination lawsuit.

Add a union to the mix, and the problem gets even worse.

I used to work for one of the Baby Bells, and was unwillingly a member of the CWA. That union kept a TON of horrible people employed.

I moved on to a semiconductor manufacturer, and while surprisingly not unionized, still had similar performance issues - racial discrimination lawsuits (complete hogwash), wrongful termination lawsuits, ****** harrassment lawsuits. None of this **** was happening, but people learned that the company was willing to settle/cave to avoid big problems, so they took advantage of it. It got to the point that when we merged with a competitor, they shut down all of our operations in the state, and refused to transfer anyone but a few high-level engineers to other facilities because of the culture that was there.

I'm in healthcare now, and I'm starting to see it again, both in the union staff and the non-union staff. Another department just promoted a guy to a supervisory role, even though he has the worst record of complaints (rude, condescending, poor work performance) because he'd worked there longer than anyone else, and they were afraid he'd file a grievance if he was passed over for the promotion.

Way back when I was a wee one, and worked in the food-service or retail biz, the same thing pretty much happened, with a slight twist - the quality employees either left quickly for someplace better, or ended up getting canned because they made the barely pubescent managers look bad.

It's a horrible system, and it continues to worsen. If people actually thought they'd get fired for being incompetant lazy jackasses, it might improve...

I have seen first hand the workings of that system. I have seen people with more seniority advance while much more talented and work-oriented folks continue to have their asses handed to them.

When I asked someone about it they mentioned that if they lowered their job performance standards and expectations of themselves and others a little - then they might get used to it, be happier and less stressed out.

That kind of thinking just makes me sick...but I wonder if there is some truth to it...