I worked at CompUSA stores in OP Kansas and Emeryville CA, both were poorly run but the one in Emeryville (Oakland) was about the worst example of a retail store I've ever seen. Met some great people but the management turnover rate was crazy, 3 managers in the 6 months I was there. Thank god it was only a temp thing.

I pretty much buy everything online now, I'd rather wait then deal with the stores bullshit.

I've had the same shoddy service from Comp USA, before they were going out of business. I stood around for about 5 minutes, hopeing someone would assist me, and I see a couple guys in the back joking around, and I think, maybe they're on break. So I go to the cashier and ask him to ring someone over to me, and he looks over there and says there's the guys in the department over there, ask them. So I go back and ask them to help me, and they just ignore me as if I didn't talk. So I went back to the cashier and told him to ring someone because they weren't going to help me. So he calls the manager and the manager goes over and tells one of them to help me. So one of them finally comes over to begrudeingly answer my questions on a couple of the products (of which he didn't know anything about it appears as I kept correcting him on the product) until finally I threw my hands up and walked out.

That was the only time I went to Comp USA. Their service was worse than Best Buy, and Best Buy's customer service sucks on a big popcicle stick.

I understand if the guy wants to be the last one off the Titanic, so he's getting his money's worth out of the company before they shutter the store. But instead of Halo, might I suggest pulling up MS Word and polishing off your resume? Or bringing up Illustrator or Photoshop and picking up some marketable skills? Just a thought.

Well, there's always lemonparty if you're looking for excitement...

It seems to me that this behaviour is not so different from when CompUSA wasn't in its death spiral.

CompUSA employees have never seemed to be that focused on business-like behavior or customer service, at least in the stores in NJ and NY that I've shopped in.

They did, however, seem quite focused on bullshitting around with each other.

@notadoctor: I recently left one of the laptops at our CompUSA on a Consumerist article about the closing of the chain. The folks around me thought that was hilarious! But I did get a sweet deal on a Samsung HDTV last week.

@alexander: I chuckled. :-)

Oh, and I too am glad that "jerking off" was in a figurative sense. Thought they might have been wanking at their customers, that'd be horrible!

overdramatic much? "Jerking off" was used in a euphemtistic, goofing off type of way. If it had said "screwing around" would you expect to see employees fornicating?

BTW, went to closing Comp looking for cheap notenook HDD, had to assist cashier kid in using a calculator to get total with markdown. sigh...

"Jon says he stood in the computer section for twenty minutes before anyone helped him."

How is that any different than before they were bought out?

Just you wait until he stumbles on to Fleshbot.

@Myron: Excellent use of JT and his box for that comment. :D

The good news is that I got 2GB of notebook memory for $54. The bad news is that I resisted buying a dirt cheap digital camera that I reallllllly wanted.

It took half an hour to get in and out, most of it was waiting by the game cages.

I learned a new word today. I don't think I'll use it.

LOL! I work at this store! These are two of the laziest guys there. I prefer to "jerk off" by reading Consumerist.

If only I'd thought to take pics.

And I didn't find any good deals - most of the stuff was only 30% off compusa's normally high prices, so you could get it cheaper at Newegg... and have a return policy.

I do not see what the big deal is here. One if you need help just ask. Two they are all about to be fired so I do not think they really care about customer service.

What are they going to do, fire them? They're all about to be out of a job, so I can understand. I don't condone, but I understand.

@dandd: Nah, Pre-bankruptcy they were all in the back jerking off. Now that they have carte blanche to ignore customers, they've moved to the public part of the store.

Just cause he's black, it's gotta be a rap concert?! I kid! I kid!

So? who cares. Seriously if I were an employee and knew I was getting the boot I would be doing the same thing. Besides if you need help just ask. I doubt they would say wait till I get to this lvl and Ill help you.

@Rectilinear Propagation:

amen to that.

If you offend that easily you should fuck off and stop reading anything associated with Gawker.

What else are they going to do? Most employees don't even know when their last day is for the stores to close so like they would care about anything...

Untucked shirts! Untucked shirts!

Did Jon try something wild and crazy like actually going up to someone and asking for some help?