what does a girl have to do? the pack-my-bag pet peeve

Everyone who knows me knows this drives me batty. There is an unusually large amount of data on a particular social media outlet dedicated to this particular pet peeve.

Here’s how it is:

     “Dear Every Retailer,

     Please do not construe my willingness to carry a reusable bag as my
     acquiescence to pack my own goods.

     Yours truly,

     Me.

     P.S. As an added bonus, could my stuffs please come home undamaged and
     still consumable.”

First it was Loblaws with their ‘we're-going-to-save-the-world-from-itself-by-charging-for-bags-keeping-all-the-cash-and-hiring-only-surly-cashiers-who-will-try-and-wait-out-a-customer.’ I might be projecting on some of that.

Yes I have a particular opinion about this service feature. Even more so when my goods are partly packed and then pushed off to the side like smelly old socks. No word of a lie, this has happened on several occasions, as well as a cashier, reaching around my goods to get a bag for the next customer. If I were a cartoon, you would see steam coming out my ears and possibly every character available above the numbers on a keyboard coming out my eyes.

And yet, I have always discussed this only with the store manager, or directly with the head office of that store. In response I get a very carefully worded reply about the situation and how it was not their intent for me to have a bad experience and thank you for bringing it to their attention. Which of always reminds me of those apps that let you type ‘thx buttwad’ and instead out comes a lovely, polite, wordy autotext that reads along the lines of ‘thank you for your time and attention, kind sir plus many more words’.

I know, I know. The unions don’t have to hold on the industry like they used to and the average cashier no longer makes more than a full time, Harvard educated, middle manager, and so they have no vested interest in making my shopping experience a happy one. But I don’t care.

And I have a solution. Well two. One is practical. The other one isn’t but it sure would prove a point.

Practical, actually achievable solution number 1 – where you have the wire bag holder that used to hold 2 sets of plastic bags before you decided to make life tough on all of us, take one of those and reconfigure it to hold the various reusable bags instead. This way your cashiers can set up the bags and ‘drop’ the goods into them the way they did with plastic. Easy, mostly cheap and there’s already room to do this.

And while we’re at it can someone design a lightweight, small reusable bag that fits easily in my purse, because I don’t have a car to carry around all my reusable bags in. And I like to shop on the way home from work.

Completely impractical solution number 2 – make your cashiers do their own shopping, pack their own bags, carry them home on the transit and see how well everything fares. Once they get thrill of cookies crushed by a jar of pickles and triangular bread, their packing skills will, well, prowess.

And finally can someone start an online shopping/delivery option using a supplier I want?! I’m looking at you Loblaws. We’ll come back to this particular retailer and our long term somewhat tumultuous, emotionally laden relationship that I’m not ready to give up on and really, really want to work.

And while you may think I’m being a little over the top just wait. Come January we’re all in this boat due to the grandstanding of our favourite city council against our ‘favourite’ news leading mayor.

Since I wrote this the city council backed off of this particular decision allowing us all to consume plastic yet again. Yes, it's nice to be all eco-earthy, but let's face it, it's just not reasonable to offer nothing to your customers. The LCBO did it and we're all politely trying to lug our glass bottled purchases home and although I have no real statistics on this, I'd wager breakage, in and around, the front of the store is up... way up.

it is you

I’m on the verge of breaking up with another retailer. Things were going swimmingly and then, slowly, they weren’t. That intrinsic ‘something’ just wasn’t anymore. The days of retail satiety were over. It’s hard to describe exactly but it was no longer doing it for me. And now I’m humming a pop song wondering if ‘do you want to break up?’

Let me back up and perhaps explain. It is a tendency of mine, in mixed spaces, to dig right into a discussion without any sort of introduction.

I am one of those people of expects a certain amount of service in my consumer experience. I want you, the retailer, to take the time to appreciate my patronage. And when I feel I’m being shortchanged I am bothered. I am loyal. I do actually say something well of places I’ve had positive experiences, but I do also kiss and tell when it’s bad. I’ve done my time, standing 8 ½ hours – exactly – in heels no less, dishing out my so called advice, bagging your goods and taking your cash. And I did it for years; and for a pittance. I have walked your walk. That makes me both an ideal and idealistic consumer.

A member of Generation X I already feel underserved by the world at large, so when I spend my hard earned dollars, I want there to be an exchange of goods. I am insulted by poorly planned loyalty programs, oddly construed interpretations of consumer analytics and policies that do not allow for a little common sense from time to time. I am aware of many of the issues that plague you as an industry but, as a consumer, that’s not my problem.

I appreciate the simplest of things, coupons for items I do indeed buy, special offers for loyal customers, and packed bags. I prefer a limited set of options but I’d like them all convenient to me. See what I mean about ideal and idealist at the same time. My pet peeves will become apparent quickly.

And yes, like most, I’m in a bit of a Mexican standoff with Rogers. Why do you ask?!