It's A Good Thing Shoppers Can Do Simple Math Because Walmart Isn't So Great At It
James was doing some shopping at Walmart, when he came upon one of those handy signs advertising a price "Rollback" posted on a display of yogurt. But just because Walmart says something is a deal, it pays to do the math to make sure it actually is a bargain.
More »
Raiders Of The Lost Walmart Discover Cache Of Ancient Flash Drives
In the electronics department of his local Walmart in New York state, Joseph made an amazing discovery in the field of retail archaeology. No one was interested in these ten 256 MB flash drives, so they've languished. No markdowns, no clearance: they'll remain on the shelf, with a price tag of $28.83. A cashier told Joseph, "You'll be bringing your kids in here some day, and these will still be here." Something to look forward to.
More »
$2 Billion In Gift Cards Will Go Unused This Year
If you received gifts this last holiday season, there's a good chance at least one of them was a gift card. But while the cards are an easy way to give someone a gift other than cash or socks, a number of people just aren't getting around to spending the money on those cards in a timely manner.
More »
Staples Recycles Laptop By Cracking Its Screen
When you trade in your old electronic device for "recycling" while buying a new one, does that device have to work? Staples offered a $100 rebate this holiday season to customers who sent in their old computers after purchasing a new one. "Recycling" is in quotes because computers traded in had to be running, and include the charger, so they were bound for re-use rather than recycling. That was no problem for George, though — he traded in a working computer. Only the screen was cracked when it reached the center, and he didn't get the full rebate.
More »
Toys R Us Will Be Open For 112 Hours Straight Before Christmas
For those waking up in the dead of night, terrified that they forgot to find that perfect toy for their kid, Toys R Us will be leaving its grinning giraffe arms open for 112 hours straight. Starting this morning at 6 a.m., the toy shillers will keep stores open until 10 p.m. on Christmas Eve, December 24.
More »
Legislators Call For A Boycott Of Lowe's After It Pulled Ads From American Muslims TV Show
Lowe's seems to have jumped right from the frying pan into the fire, amidst a controversial move to pull its advertising from a show on TLC about American Muslim families. So far at least one legislator is calling for a boycott of the store for doing so.
More »
Target Demands Extra $189 To Exchange Camera No Longer On Sale
Coco took advantage of a great deal at Target, buying a digital camera on sale for $189 below list price, with a $75 Target gift card on the side. Neat! Trouble was, he didn't open or test out the camera until a week later, once the sale was over and the gift card had been spent. Photos taken with the camera didn't come out, so he took the camera back to Target to exchange it for a working one. The trouble was, they couldn't exchange it for him unless he paid an extra $189 and return the $75 gift card.
More »
Walmart Charges A Dollar More For Weaker Shampoo In A Smaller Amount
This makes sense! Why buy the cheaper bottle of stronger dandruff shampoo, when you can buy a smaller, pricier version of the same shampoo in a weaker strength? Such is the reasoning at Walmart, as witnessed by Consumerist reader Steve.
More »
Buy Cat Food By The Case At Walmart, Pay More
Comparing prices between different brands of canned cat food, Gabe made a discovery at Walmart: it's cheaper to buy individual cans of Friskies cat food than to buy a case of 24 cans. Buying in bulk is supposed to be cheaper for the consumer, but maybe Walmart has imposed a convenience charge for encasing all of those cat food cans in cardboard.
More »
Check Your Best Buy Receipt Carefully Before Signing For In-Store Pickup Purchases
Best Buy's in-store pickup for online purchases is a handy option, but beware. You could be the victim of a sudden price increase. After Kevin's wallet fell victim to a price adjustment after the fact, he wrote in to warn other consumers.
More »
Your Complaint Is Not Important At Kmart If You're 'Just A Customer'
Terrie finished up her shopping at her local Kmart and headed for the checkout. She was horrified to see that each open checkout had at least dozen customers in line, and the store had no intention of opening any more. When she inquired about making her purchase at the jewelry counter or opening some more registers, she learned exactly how important customers are to this particular store.
More »
Will These Employees Please Stop Hijacking My Cart?
B. keeps getting cart-jacked in big-box stores. Not by fellow customers envious of the amazing bargains she finds, but by store employees eager to clean up the store who think that her unattended cart has been abandoned. Not so, she insists, raising another question altogether: how long can you reasonably expect to leave your cart alone before it is, indeed, cartjacked?
More »
Target Really Wants You To Notice They've Raised The Price Of Cat Food
We hope this is a case of mismanaged math, and not just some employee with access to the sign-maker thumbing his nose at customers. Don't be cruel along with raising prices, Target!
More »
Target Redefines "Price Cut" To Mean "Add 37 Cents To That Price"
Math is hard, right? Plus, minus, add, subtract... argh! So maybe we'll have to forgive Target for their confusing advertising when it comes to a "price cut" on deoderant.
More »
What Can This Babies R Us Coupon Actually Be Used For?
In the comments of
yesterday's Lane Bryant post, reader DeadPlasmaCell shared this terrible coupon for Babies R Us. The list of excluded items includes, essentially, the entire inventory of a Babies R Us store. What's left? Clothes? It would be a nice coupon if it said "20% off any
clothing item" instead (except for the excepted clothing lines) but that would be too simple and much, much too easy.
More »
Michaels Warns Customers Of Possible Data Breach
If you've shopped at a Michaels big-box craft store recently and used a credit or debit card, keep an eye on your statements, especially if you shopped in the greater Chicago area. The chain notified customers on its e-mail list earlier today about a possible PIN pad breach in Chicago that may apply to other stores as well.
More »
False Alarm: There Is No 50% Off Everything Sale At Michaels
Customers (myself included) on the email list of craft retailer Michaels received a message this morning with the subject line of
"50% off your entire purchase - Friday only." thought that perhaps the stakes had been raised in the ongoing coupon arms race between the big-box craft retailers. Alas, no.
More »
Don't Expect A Fine Dining Experience At The Target Pizza Hut Express
You can really work up an appetite on shopping excursions, so it makes sense for many consumers to hie themselves to the nearest source of food and chow down. Which is why reader Kevin B. and his family decided to eat at the Pizza Hut Express inside their brand new Target store. However, he says they had a less than savory dining experience.
More »
Maybe Staples Knows Something About This Safe That We Don't
Staples' marketing reminder emails are very useful for some products that people buy frequently and regularly: say, printer ink or dry-erase markers. We're not sure how sophisticated their marketing reminder software is, though, because they contacted Matthew to let him know that it's time to buy a new fireproof safe.
More »
90% Off An Imaginary Price Is Not A Sale
Paul Michael at Wise Bread thought that he had found a great deal on throw pillows at his local Hobby Lobby store. Signs advertised ninety percent off! Imagine that, a $50 fancy throw pillow for only five bucks! It was only when he looked closer that he noticed that the "original" prices were surprisingly high for mass-produced pillows: about $90 to $120. Research online showed similar pillows from the same company for sale for around half that. Just what was going on here?
More »
Walmart Considering Online Grocery Delivery Service
One day, Walmart was walking down the street, probably whistling or twirling an umbrella, when it saw a Fresh Direct Delivery truck and a big ol' lightbulb dinged on above its head. Even if that didn't happen, the mega-chain is said to be considering offering its own version of online grocery shopping, complete with home delivery.
More »
Big Box Stores Pushing To Tax Amazon Sales Nationwide
In recent years, retailers have been successful in getting a handful of states, including Illinois and New York, to pass laws requiring Amazon.com and similar e-tailers to collect sales tax on products shipped to those states. Now, with the backing of super-sized chains, there is a full-on push to get these laws on the books in every state that collects sales tax.
More »
Target Sells Your Reserved iPad, Then Promises Imaginary Discount
It seemed reasonable enough to Mark: his local Target gave out more tickets to purchase 16 GB iPads than they had iPads, and he was the last person to reserve a ticket. The store had plenty of 64 GB models left, though, but Mark didn't want to pay that much and tried to leverage the situation into a discount on one of those. Some employees agreed that the company should make this happen, and others claimed that it wasn't physically possible. Mark began a quest to get his promised discount, but it looks like he'll be running Flash on his iPad before that ever happens.
More »
Confessions Of A Staples Employee
It's been more than three years since we received any
confessions from an employee at Staples. Thankfully, Staples vet Dave decided to write us with the insights he gleaned from his time at the office supply superstore.
More »
Don't Rush Into Buying Stuff At Liquidation Sales
With the news that the
Ultimate Electronics chain is to be liquidated, we were reminded of the Circuit City liquidation and the lessons consumers (hopefully) learned from that debacle.
More »
Ultimate Electronics To Liquidate, Close All Stores
Ultimate Electronics, a Colorado-based chain, took on a nationwide expansion in 2010, opening new stores, entering new markets, and taking over a lot of empty retail space abandoned by Circuit City. Now the big-box dream is over: the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late January, and announced this week that it will liquidate and close all 46 stores.
More »
Stupid Shipping Gang Thinks Every Dog Treat Needs Separate Box
Dog treats shipped in separate boxes large enough to put a dog inside. A wallpaper border crammed on the edge of a box that could fit five more rolls. And a laundry rack shipped to a FedEx store in a box large enough for its purchaser to climb inside. These are the tales of the Stupid Shipping Gang.
More »
Retailers Do Not Want To Sell Magazines, Porn, Porn Mags
Add this to the woes facing the magazine industry: retailers are cutting back on the space they allocate to print products, and many are outright banning titles that show a little skin. Over the last three years, 18,000 North American retailers stopped carrying magazines, an 11.3% decline.
More »
Home Depot Cancels Sale, Overnights Free Tool To Customer After EECB
SgtBeavis ordered a clearance item from Home Depot last week. The site claimed that the item was on backorder, and let him place the order. Then they canceled it. Fortunately, the good sergeant reads Consumerist, and decided to write to the CEO of Home Depot to get the situation fixed. It worked: Home Depot overnighted the item to his house for free. He and his woodworking buddies were stunned,
More »
Did Banfield Mislead Dog Owner Into Expensive Pet Care Contract?
Beware any service that's sold to you with the promise that you can "cancel at any time." Brian claims that he was misled into buying a $29/month "wellness plan" for his dog. He was told that he could cancel the plan after the first year with no early termination fee. That's apparently not what the actual contract says, and now he's stuck paying either a fee, or for another year of the plan.
More »
Here's What Happens When You Trust A Big-Box Electronics Store
Ben's father is the kind of lucrative and delectable customer that big-box electronics store salespeople love. Or perhaps they just love their bank accounts. A few months ago, Ben writes, his dad walked into an Ultimate Electronics store knowing that he wanted to buy a 3D TV, and...not much else about what he was looking for. Ben knows enough about electronics to conclude that the local Ultimate store sold his father products that he didn't need, then botched the installation.
More »
Store Credit Cards Are An Even Worse Deal Than You Thought
Next time a checkout clerk offers you an "opportunity" to sign up for a store credit card so that you can get an instant 10% discount on that pack of gum or box of tissues you're buying, remember this: the price you'll pay for that deal is an interest rate as high as 25%. And, yeah, you're telling yourself that's no big deal, since you'll pay it off every month. But will you? And are you prepared for the other gotchas tied up in a bright ribbon by your friendly retailer?
More »
What You Hate About Retailers
Over at DailyFinance.com, they asked readers to give nominate the most annoying ways in which retail stores try to squeeze you for extra cash or tempt you into spending more.
More »
Target Shortchanging Customers On Coupons
Coupon-clipping Target shoppers are ticked off at the news that the retail chain has been shortchanging customers on some manufacturers' coupons since at
least mid-summer.
More »
Things To Buy Exclusively At Warehouse Stores
Warehouse stores such as Costco and Sam's Club like to lull you into a false sense of security, sure that everything you see on shelves is cheaper there than elsewhere. But in many cases, warehouse prices are unbeatable.
More »
Helpful Best Buy Employees Recycle Van Full Of Computers, Delight Customer
Mindy writes that she had all of the elements for a disastrous morning lined up: she visited Best Buy with a preschool child, an infant, and a van full of old electronics for recycling. However, she found herself in a parallel universe full of helpful Best Buy and Geek Squad employees willing to accept more electronics than the usual limit and give helpful advice.
More »
Meet The Disposable, Recyclable, Reusable Cardboard Shopping Cart
One great thing about living in a city like New York: Being able to buy just about anything you need. The problem: Getting the things you buy back home. That's why a designer in the UK has come up with a cart constructed completely out of cardboard that could allow you to wheel your purchases down the street and onto the bus or train.
More »
Experience The World Of Sam's Club At Next Week's Open House
To some, member's only warehouse store Sam's Club is kind of like a semi-secret society of savings and free food samples. That may or may not be true, but you can find out for yourself next week when the retail chain tries to get its hooks into more members by hosting a three-day open house.
More »
Buy This Twin-Pack Of Deodorant And Save... Negative $.97
If you're shopping for Right Guard deodorant at Walmart, be careful before you pick up that twin-pack thinking that, like the packaging says, you'll "Buy 2 and Save." Because if you do the math, you'll realize you've just saved yourself out of $.97.
More »
Is It Too Early For Back-To-School Sales?
Public school students in Union City, NJ, just wrapped up classes earlier this week. So Consumerist reader Juhgail was caught off guard when she popped into a Staples to pick up some supplies and came upon an entire rack of back-to-school items.
More »
Did Target Adopt This Sorbet?
In the Super Target at St. Charles, IL, there is a forgotten container of sorbet that is damaged, missing a seal, and over a year past its expiration date. Keith says it's been sitting there by itself in the freezer case for at least four months now. He and his wife say hi to it whenever they shop there.
More »
Ohio Kmart Turns Into Jerry Springer Show Over Coupon Argument
We've all been there — You're in a rush at the store and the person in front of you is trying to redeem too many coupons, or there's a problem with a coupon, etc. You get irritated, might even grumble something under your breath. But I'm guessing it's never come to fisticuffs. Unfortunately for shoppers and employees at a Super Kmart in Ohio, one customer couldn't manage to show such restraint.
More »
Shoppers Love Costco And Dillard's, Say Target And Walmart Are Subpar
Consumer Reports asked 30,000 readers to weigh in on the
best and worst chain stores in the country, and it looks like people really love Costco and Dillard's. Both stores received above average ratings in things like merchandise quality and value. On the other end of the spectrum, Target's women's fashion, jewelery and watches were rated below-average in quality.
More »
Best And Worst Places To Buy Tech Gear
PC World has compiled a list of the best and worst places to buy a range of gadgets, including digital cameras, laptops and printers. While many of the results may not be surprising (Amazon ranked at or near the top in almost every category), there are a few interesting wrinkles, including a Best Buy victory for HDTV shopping.
More »
Kmart Wants Your Dirty Laundry
If you live in Iowa City, Iowa, you'll soon be able to
do your laundry at Kmart. I don't get it either, but that's what the retailer has announced. It will be testing a laundromat addition to one of its Kmart stores in the city, and has named it Kwash. I'm assuming you're supposed to pronounce it K-Wash, but for the first five minutes I kept reading "quash" and wondering how in the hell that was supposed to make me think of clean clothes and cheap goods.
More »
FutureShop Accuses You Of Scamming For No Good Reason
Adam was shocked when he tried to return a router and a switch to FutureShop and they accused him of being a scammer. All because of a little dust on the items. Well, that little dust turned into quite a dustup when a huffy assistant manager at the Canadian Best Buy subsidiary got involved. "Fine, I will play along with your little game," she ended up saying to Adam once the actual manager overrode her and made her stop getting in the way of the return. What the heck?
More »
Red "Sale" Sign At Kohl's Means Item Is FOR Sale, Not ON Sale
Nice try, Kohl's, but we see through your game. An item isn't on sale just because you say it is. You have to actually decrease the price. Noah writes that when he found a tag emblazoned with the word SALE, he thought this meant that perhaps the item was on sale. Don't be silly, Noah.
More »
(Jim Anchower)
Famed Fake Newspaper Columnist Sides With Receipt Checkers
As any dedicated Consumerist follower knows, our readers generally fall down pretty squarely on the side of
not having to show your receipt when you exit a store. That being said, we should always welcome the dissenting view, especially from a respected journalist.
More »
What's Going On With Retail Medical Clinics?
Retail medical clinics — you know, those little offices in places like Walmart that promise to treat minor ailments in the amount of time it takes to check out on the express line — have been around for a few years, but haven't exactly won over tons of customers from the neighborhood GP. Now, it looks like they're about to take off in a big way. Or collapse. Or do nothing. That's what happens when you get a second opinion about the fact that Kroger is closing 20 of its Little Clinic branches.
More »
Abercrombie & Fitch CEO's Perks Include Money For Not Getting Perks
It makes sense to reward those who perform well at their jobs, and withhold perks from those who don’t — but it seems Abercrombie & Fitch is a little bit confused on that last point. The company, mired in its “aspirational” $90 prices for cargo pants and its ads featuring gamboling half-dressed models, netted only $254,000 last year. So what’d they do? Take away the CEOs exorbitant travel budget. And then pay him more money to not spend money.
More »
Bikinis For Children: Now With Padded Bras
What constitutes an appropriate swimsuit for elementary school-aged girls? Is a bikini inappropriate? How about a padded bikini? This summer, U.K. discounter Primark tried marketing a bikini with a padded top, aimed at girls as young as seven. It didn't go well. The chain
removed the suit from its racks only hours after tabloid
The Sun declared the product a [pedophile] bikini.
More »
Hobby Lobby Just Wants To Share Craft Supplies And Christ With You
The big box craft store Hobby Lobby famously places full-page, Christian-themed ads every Easter in newspapers in the markets where it has stores. They also make this message the centerpiece of their Web site during the period right before and after Easter, with a religious messages where normally one would find information about sales on picture frames and sock yarn.
Sarah tells Consumerist that she noticed this when she visited the chain's site to print out a coupon, and wrote to the company to tell them that she was offended. A Hobby Lobby representative answered that he was sorry that she was offended, but the company believes that it would conversely be "truly insensitive" not to share their religious message with all customers, Christian or not. More »
Kmart Told Me To Lie On Application To Get A Job
Senyaka said she applied for a temp job at Kmart and the company told her to lie on the screening questionnaire to improve her chances of getting hired.
More »
What's Up With Rite Aid Scanning My ID To Buy Booze?
Consumerist reader Mark lives in the L.A. area and says he often picks up his alcohol from Rite-Aid because they’ve got good prices. But now Mark says Rite-Aid has gone beyond checking IDs and is actually scanning them into their computer. Not cool, in his book.
More »
Yes, You Can Still Make Claims On Your Circuit City Extended Warranty
If you bought a TiVo with an extended warranty at Circuit City before the chain died and came back as a retail zombie, TiVo forum poster Mark has good news and bad news for you: It is still
technically possible to use your warranty, but doing so requires superhuman levels of persistence.
More »
Never Pay More Than $10 For HDMI Cables
You already know that
coat hangers sound just as good as those pricey Monster cables, but this infographic really lays out the full argument on why you should never pay more than $10 for HDMI cables. Whether it's gold-plated connectors, EM RF interefence shileding, or "gas injected" cables, it's all the same thing: goldbricking. There's no reason to drop $250 on a four-foot cable.
More »
Survey: Everyone's Shopping At Walmart, Even If They Don't Want To
With the economy continuing to circle the bowl, it's not surprising that customers are turning to Walmart's cheaper prices for just about everything. A new survey has the box store biggie as the most frequently shopped-at store in all U.S. regions, even though consumers don't necessarily consider themselves loyal to Big W.
More »
Circuit City Stores Could Rise From The Dead
Systemax, owner of Tiger Direct, scooped up the remains of Circuit City last year for $14 million, a year after buying CompUSA for $30 million. Now the corporation has opened some new CompUSA stores and is
considering doing the same for Circuit City, Chicago Breaking Business News reports:
More »
Are Best Buy Employees Working On Commission Now?
AnnoyBBYemp, who says he works for Best Buy, says the store has shifted its policy to determine employees' hours based on commission. The workers who are best at pushing accessories, warranties and optimization will get to make more money.
More »
Tipster: Target Trimming Back PA Access To Avoid Walmart Racism Replay
An anonymous employee says Target is apparently reacting to the
Walmart PA racism incident, sending around a memo that limits PA access.
More »
Kmart Posts Amazing Coupon On Internet, Then Forgets Internet Exists
Here's a helpful piece of advice for Kmart and Sears Holding Company as a whole: if you're going to issue a coupon valid only for a few stores and post it on your Web site, don't put the words "valid at all stores" on it. See, there is this thing called the "internet," which
people like to use to share coupons and deals. Customers printed out what looked like a perfectly valid coupon from Kmart's site, then were treated like criminals and accused of fraud when they actually tried to use those coupons.
More »
Walmart-Owned Store Delivers Sex Lube Instead Of Kids' Bubble Bath
Not even a week after Walmart-owned British retail chain Asda
decided that "Fat Balls" might be an inappropriate name for bird food, they also managed to royally screw up an order for kids' bubble bath and sent a bottle of lube instead.
More »
Target Is Slashing Full-Timers' Hours At My Store
An anonymous Target employee writes in with a story that seconds what we were
told back in February about the company reducing several thousand full-timers to part-time.
More »
Walmart Wants To Know Who Made The Racist Announcement Over Their PA System
This past Sunday, a male voice came over the
public-address system at a Walmart in New Jersey and said, "Attention Walmart customers: All black people leave the store now." Understandably, customers and employees were pretty offended. One of the shoppers made sure that store management and local media outlets were made aware of what happened, and Walmart apologized—over the PA system, fittingly—on Sunday evening. Store officials say they're now reviewing security footage to find out who made the announcement.
More »
Woman Attacked At Walmart, Says Security Didn't Stop Attacker
A Houston woman says she was attacked by a man wielding a knife inside her local Walmart and that the store security did nothing to stop the incident or to apprehend the attacker.
More »
Thief Gets Everything He Needs To Rob Walmart... At Walmart
It's true — You can get everything you need at Walmart, including everything you need to steal thousands of dollars of Walmart merchandise.
More »
Panasonic & Best Buy Really Want To Sell You A 3-D TV
Okay, so Avatar was a big blue dud at the Oscars last night. But that still doesn't change the fact that the 3-D spectacle has made more money than some small countries. And with Alice In Wonderland raking in over $100 million in its opening weekend, the U.S. movie audience has shown it's willing to embrace 3-D. That's why Panasonic has teamed up with Best Buy to push its new line of 3-D TVs.
More »
Judge Sues Sam's Club, Walmart, Alleging Bad Customer Service Led Him To Be Committed
It's a story that sounds too odd to be true, but a judge in Brownsville, Texas, has filed a lawsuit against his local Sam's Club, the store's manager and the store's parent company Walmart Stores Inc., alleging that a bad customer service experience led to his arrest and involuntary commitment to two mental health facilities.
More »
A Best Buy Dude Lied To My Friend To Convince Him To Buy An iPod
Nathan says a Best Buy salesman lied about the amount of memory on the last iPod left in stock in order to get his friend to buy it.
More »
Toshiba Is Holding My Computer Hostage For $140
Getting something fixed under warranty is rarely a pleasant task. It often takes longer than expected and occasionally lapses into bouts of back-and-forth finger-pointing between the manufacturer and the owner of the faulty product. Just ask Consumerist reader Art, who says that Toshiba has not only had his busted laptop for three months, but they've reneged on their promise to replace it and now want $140 for his troubles.
More »
Walmarts Gets Into Streaming Video With Possible Vudu Acquisition
While Walmart sells everything from gasoline to groceries, and they have a pretty sizable online presence, they haven't gotten into the lucrative business of on-demand/streaming video. But that could all change with news that the box store leviathan is about to purchase streaming video service Vudu.
More »
Best Buy Tried To Overcharge Me For An On-Sale Gadget; I Regulated
Blake says he had to inform a Best Buy that the media player he wanted was on sale, and $30 cheaper than the sticker price offered at the store. He argued his case and to their credit, Best Buy staffers gave him the appropriate price.
More »
Best Buy Bans Visa Contactless Payment Over High Fees
If you buy something with your Visa card at Best Buy, you'll have to go the old fashioned route, comparatively speaking, and swipe it. Visa demands that contactless payments have to be signed, which is
more profitable for Visa but not for Best Buy. Visa refused to change their policy, so Best Buy says it will no longer allow customers to pay that way,
reports StorefrontBacktalk. Mastercard doesn't ban PINs on contactless payments and will continue to be an option.
More »
(Photo: Jesse)
If You Want The One On The Left, Cough Up An Extra $100
Jesse found identical sets of Six Feet Under on DVD, one for $249.99 and the other for $149.99. The more expensive set was most likely a labeling error that would have been caught at checkout — after all, Best Buy
sells it online for the cheaper price — but you'd have to be during to grab the set on the right and take it to the register.
More »
Best Buy's Buy Online, Pick-Up In Store Delays Made Me Regret Purchase
Rick thought he'd streamline his computer part purchase by snagging it at
bestbuy.com and opting for in-store pick-up, skipping the hassle of digging around store shelves and cruising out of the store in a flash.
More »
Parking Lot Safety Tips
You're not done with your holiday shopping when you swipe your credit card at the cash register. You've often got to
navigate a potentially treacherous parking lot and get the goods home. The personal finance blog Finance for a Freelance Life offers some common yet helpful tips on how to avoid parking lot robbers.
More »
Target Unfires 7 Workers For Buying Zhu Zhus Before Customers Could
7 Buffalo Target employees fired for buying Zhu Zhus, this year's hot robotic rodent toy, during their shifts have been reinstated. A failure to communicate seems to have been the culprint:
More »
(Photo: The Mexican Reader)
Best Buy 'Optimized,' Raised Prices On Laptop Model I Wanted
The Mexican Reader tells us a Best Buy tale we've
heard all
too many times — He goes into a Best Buy to buy a computer, only to find he can't buy the one he wanted at the advertised price because everything in the inventory has been "optimized."
More »
Videodrome #3: Paper Puppet Reenactments Of Removed YouTubes
Faster! Leaner! Meaner! Ben Popken rounds up Consumerist.com's top stories of the week, from psychotic stewardesses to deadly foreclosures. This week we introduce a new feature: printing out the internet and turning it into a puppet show.
I Found It Impossible To Buy A PS3 At Sears
If Sears isn't happy with its sales figures, it can blame itself by looking at the example of the way it treated Teresa — a frustrated would-be customer who tried and failed several times to buy a PlayStation 3 from the store.
More »
Man Pays Best Buy For Washer/Dryer, It Doesn't Appear, Takes Laundry To Store, Shames Store Into Delivering
After Best Buy blew two delivery dates on the washer/dryer he paid $1,600 for at Best Buy on Black Friday to arrive, a man decided to take his dirty laundry to the store. He had unhooked his washer/dryer at home in anticipation of the new appliances and wanted to know which washer of theirs they wanted him to wash his clothes in while he waited for his. His buddies videotaped the adventure. This plan didn't go ever so hot with Best Buy management. Let's roll the clip:
Flyby And Driveby Photos Of Walmart's Super-Secret Data Center
Have you ever seen these crazy Walmarts ginormous data center in Missouri? Airplanes and the Google Maps Streetview car have. Dubbed, "Area 71," the facility is built on bedrock so it can withstand numerous kind of disasters. Four years ago, their Bentonville, Arkansas HQ was said to have 460+ terabytes of storage. This is an auxilary facility in Missouri, located 15 miles from their HQ. It's gotta have something in the peta or exabytes. Wonder what they use all that for? More pix inside. Leave your crackpot conspiracy theories in the comments.
Kmart Workers Find $10k Tin Can
Did you leave your tin can filled with over $10,000 on the customer service counter of a Des Moines Kmart? Because if you did, call them, they found it.
Update: Several of our readers have pointed out that the
owner has reclaimed the can and the money. She says her husband left it there by accident, possibly while having a reaction to some medication, and that she's going to deposit the cash in a bank.
More »
Lowe's Travels To The Future To Discount Your Appliances
Mary was purchasing a washer and dryer set for her home at Lowe's. Just as she was finalizing the purchase, a sales circular with a lower price on the very appliance she was buying dropped through the time/space continuum, and visited the store from the future. Or maybe an employee put it out early. Either way, the store's manager very generously let Mary buy her washer and dryer for the much lower future price because of an employee's mistake.
More »
Customer Makes 2-Hour Best Buy Trek For Vanishing Netbook
Valente's plan was simple enough: Purchase a netbook from Best Buy during Cyber Monday sale. Order it from Best Buy's web site for in-store pickup so he could be sure to have it in hand. Bring netbook home and hide it from his son until Christmas. Unfortunately, he tells Consumerist, the transaction didn't work out according to his plan, he drove to another Best Buy two hours away that claimed to have a netbook on hold for him. A netbook that did not, as it turned out, exist.
More »
Fry's Employee Says Store Offered Black Friday Line-Skipping Deal
An Oregon employee of Fry's Electronics says his store offered a shady Black Friday deal that let customers skip lines if they bought a certain router. Taking the name George Orwell, he writes:
More »
Use The Internet To Subvert Bogus Best Buy Optimization Fees
Patrick discovered a clever way of avoiding Best Buy's silly optimization fees as he shopped for a laptop: Shop online and opt for in-store pickup.
More »
Fry's Sells Magical Disappearing HDTVs To Customers
The Fry's store in Renton, Washington, just played a mean trick on at least half a dozen customers. This morning, Jeff successfully navigated through the crowd outside, the crowds inside, and no less than five different lines in order to purchase a 52" TV. Everything went remarkably smoothly. Well, until the very end.
More »
Craftsman Doesn't Have The Ability To Cancel A Duplicate Order
—>Reader C.W. is wondering why Craftsman (which is part of Sears) doesn't have the ability to cancel a duplicate order. Especially since there appears to be a "cancel" button on the website. More »
Rumble In The Strip Mall: Best Buy Calls Out Walmart
—>Sure, Best Buy emerged victorious over Circuit City in the Battle of the Big-Box Electronics Stores, but they still have to compete with general discounters like Walmart. Which is why in a new ad campaign, Best Buy calls out Walmart specifically, attacking their employees' presumed lack of product knowledge compared to Best Buy employees. More »
Current And Former Walmart CEOs Shop At Target
—>Fortune has an interesting article about a Target that opened up in Walmart country. The store is located about seven minutes from "Wal-Mart No. 1", the first Wal-Mart ever built, and 20 minutes from Walmart's headquarters in Bentonville, AR. At first, Target was concerned that the Walmart faithful wouldn't shop at their new store — but they worried needlessly. Apparently, former CEO Lee Scott and current CEO Mike Duke are regulars. More »
Reader Has Amazing Best Buy Experience
—>Our reader The_Lone_Gunman just had a great experience with the Best Buy in Irving, Texas. Snark fails us at a time like this, so we'll just humbly print his email. More »
Walmart To Rest Of Planet: "What Recession?"
—>A new survey of American consumers shows something very unusual — they've lost their interest in shopping. Is this lack of interest driving them to discount stores like Walmart? Seems so. More »
What Happens When You Actually Try To Buy The Stuff In Target's Ads?
—>We'll give away the answer right away. You need to talk to at least 3 people, and 2 of them will try to sell you a Target credit card. Finally, the last one will locate a product that may or may not be the one from the ad. It may, however, be cheaper than the advertised deal. More »
Returning These Games To Best Buy Could Get A Little Awkward
—>Reader Charlton went to Best Buy to buy some games. He successfully accomplished his task, only to find that opening his purchase was going to be a little difficult. More »
NY Corks Selling Wine In Supermarkets Plan
—>Do you enjoy one-stop shopping? Do you love to pick up your groceries, Valium, cat litter, and a nice Cab Sauv all from the same place without the sheer slog of taking out your credit card a whole four times? Well, tough luck, because New York Governor Paterson has nixed his plan to sell wine at supermarkets. Why? More »
Is Buy.com Friendlier To The Environment Than Brick And Mortar Stores?
—>A study by the Green Design Institute at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh states that when comparing getting a flash drive from Buy.com versus a physical retailer, Buy.com ends up being about 30% less damaging to the environment. To reach their conclusion, the researchers compared transportation, packaging, warehousing, and energy usage both by the consumer and the retailer. More »
The mice are all gone and the Pikesville Target is again open for business! [Baltimore Sun] More »
Rodent Infestation Forces Target To Close
—>A Target in Pikesville, Maryland "has been closed until further notice because of a rodent problem," reports WBAL Baltimore. Target officials wouldn't tell customers why they were closed—our tipster aishel says they told him it was for maintenance, and a person interviewed by WBAL says she was told it was a "water main problem." Target's corporate office, however, confirmed there's a big mouse problem. Update: The store has reopened. More »
Best Buy Taking Over Circuit City Credit Cards
—>"Good news about your credit card account," proclaims the letter Wilman recently received from Chase. Starting in May, you'll be able to use that Circuit City card to make purchases at Best Buy. We think this is more like "mixed feelings" news, but on the plus side you won't have an otherwise good credit card account closed (assuming you care about your FICO score). See the Chase letter below. More »
Home Depot Begs You Not To Leave The Store Because Of Their Crappy Service
—>Reader Shawn submits this photo that he took at Home Depot. The sign begs you not to leave the store if you've experienced bad customer service... More »
Office Depot To Employees: "Don't Lie About Inventory"
—>An anonymous Office Depot employee sent us this internal reminder from HQ that addresses this week's allegations that associates and managers lie about inventory depending on the customer. Now the next time you're told by an Office Depot associate that the laptop you want is out of stock, you can say, "Are you absolutely sure? Because I know you had a Sales Practices Reminder on March 12th about lying to customers." And if a manager tries to get all up in, uhm, your grill area, you can say, "Don't you have some tasks to go check off in your Task Manager?" More »
Is Target Too Expensive? Profit Down 41%
—>Consumers are cutting back — and the AP says that shoppers are abandoning Target for even cheaper stores. In addition, Target's credit card division is running into trouble as shell-shocked shoppers aren't able to pay their bills. More »
Animation: Target's Spread Across The U.S.
—>Last summer, we highlighted an ominous-looking animation that traced the spread of Walmart stores across the American landscape over the past 5 decades. Now the same guy behind that map has put together a new one, this time tracing Target's growth. More »
Walmart Greeter Attacked By Cop During Receipt Check Suing For $21 Million
—>Remember the Walmart greeter that got attacked by a cop during a receipt check? Well, he's suing for $21 million, says Chattanooga's News Channel 9. More »
"Why Circuit City Failed"
—>Now that Circuit City has finally sputtered out, it's fun to talk about what did them in—see their firing-your-best-employees stunt a few years back, for example. But what do former Circuit City employees think? This guy worked with them from 1997 to 2002, and he says for one thing, they should have never stopped carrying appliances. More »
No Store Was Spared The Holiday Bloodbath, Not Even Walmart
—>Walmart missed its same store sales estimates (considered the most important barometer for the health of a retail operation) for December — leaving analysts "shocked and disappointed." More »
Fry's Price Matches, But Only If You Pay "Overnight Shipping" For Item In Your Hand
—>This Fry's in Texas apparently wants you to pay for them to replace their inventory. Or they think their customers are idiots. Maybe both? More »
Circuit City Lies About Guitar Hero Release Date To Get You To Go Away
—>David went to Circuit City yesterday to buy a copy of the new Guitar Hero game, which, according to our extensive research, is currently on sale at Circuit City. Unfortunately, the employees at this particular store refused to sell him the game, then lied about its release date, so that they wouldn't have to correct an error in their computer system. Why were they so reluctant to fix the mistake? Because the game was priced at $10,000 in the system, and to mark it down to its actual price would "look bad." More »
Is Circuit City Going Bankrupt?
—>Since the end of May, Circuit City's stock has lost about 87% of its value; the company has fired its CEO, lost a $1.3 billion takeover offer from Blockbuster, and posted quarterly losses of $239.2 million. Now the Washington Post says that the company lost a recommendation from a firm that advises manufacturers on whether to ship goods to retailers — meaning that Circuit City may be having trouble paying its vendors. Are they ready to go under? More »
Dear New Circuit City CEO: Here's How To Fix Your Stores
—>Yesterday, we asked you to tell us how Circuit City's new CEO should fix his stores. It's been a troubled few years for Circuit City. Before the former CEO resigned last week, he'd embarked on an expensive and drastic "turn around" plan that, well, let's be honest — failed. More »
Circuit City Is Hemorrhaging Money: How Would You Fix It?
—>Somebody stop the bleeding! After losing $164.8 million in the first quarter, Circuit City has announced that they've taken it to the next level, and, not to be outdone by last quarter's disaster, have managed to lose $240 million dollars. More »
Central Florida TV News Accuses Walmart Of Price Gouging Poor People
—>Local 6 news in Central Florida is accusing Walmart of setting their prices for sugar and other "staples" by demographic — charging more in stores where the population isn't as wealthy as other neighborhoods. Walmart's spokesperson claims to be offended by this accusation. More »
Best Buy (Accidentally) Announces Yet Another "Elite" Reward Zone Level? "Premier Black?"
—>Reader Andrew forwarded an email he just got from Best Buy letting him know that he now qualified for an even more special fantastic elite reward zone level. One in which he would be granted access to something called a "Premier Black Concierge." We're assuming this is like Reward Zone Silver but, more so. More »
Circuit City Says Rogue Firedog Was Wrong, Refunds $40 'Repair' Fee
—>Last week we wrote about a Circuit City customer who was charged $40 without warning for "repairs" to a brand new computer. We received several explanations from Circuit City insiders, both in the comments and through email, that the repair was mandatory—Acer and Circuit City had agreed that instead of pulling the PCs, the retailer's Firedog techs would flash the BIOS in-store upon purchase. What was unclear was how or why this would fall under the Firedog "Quickstart" service, which is optional and includes things like removing shortcuts from your desktop and setting up your background. (Seriously, check it out here.) Yesterday we received the following interesting email from Circuit City HQ. More »
Do You Want To Save 10% By Opening A Target Visa? Just Kidding!
—>Reader Nancy says that Target rejected the 10% coupon she received for being a Target Visa card holder. When she asked why, the cashier told her it had probably been used, but had no more information.
More »
Target Will Not Let You Return These Shoes Because They Are "Worn"
—>Reader I. ordered some shoes from Target.com, only to find out that they were so big that they fell off her feet when she tried them on. No worries, she would just print her receipt and bring them back to her local Target. Right? Wrong.
More »
Circuit City Firedog Charges $40 To 'Fix' Computer You Just Bought
—>Update: Circuit City says the repair should have been free. Here's their response. Travis writes that a friend of his just bought a new computer from Circuit City, and after turning down all of the Firedog's "it won't work unless you also buy this" offers, he noticed a $40 fee on his receipt. Turns out the associate claims he had to flash the computer's BIOS or Vista wouldn't work. Travis writes, "Regardless of the fact that Vista booted up just fine with out the update, he was more disturbed with the fact that Circuit City would sell him a computer that they knew didn't work, or so they say." So does Circuit City sell computers that don't work without a preliminary repair, or do they lie in order to generate extra fees? More »
Target's profits fell for the 4th straight quarter as the retailer's sales failed to keep pace with Walmart. [Bloomberg] More »
Why Do Americans Insist On Buying Cheap Crap Instead Of High Quality Merchandise?
—>Over at MSN Money there's an interesting article about the tyranny of cheap crap that we, as a people, are accustomed to living under. Why do we buy a coat every year instead of one high quality coat that will last many years? Why do we buy crappy kitchen knives that go dull and become dangerous? Do we enjoy shopping so much that we're content to keep rebuying the same stuff? More »
Watch Walmart Spread Across The Country Like A Virus
—>We've seen "Walmart is a virus" videos before, but this interactive map showing the proliferation of Walmart from the early 1960s until 2007 is especially cool. Zoom in and out as the Walmart infection grows... More »
Target Fixes Their Broken Wedding Registry, Will Let You Return Duplicates Without A Receipt
—>Reader Jon writes in to let us know that your complaining has had a positive effect on Target's return policy. They will now allow you to return duplicate wedding registry gifts without asking your friends and relatives for a receipt. More »
Wal-Mart "Genuine Steakhouse Brand Steaks" Are "100% Guaranteed Fresh" (Some Restrictions Apply)
—>Reader Richie would like to point out the impressive pointlessness of this Wal-Mart promotion for "Genuine SteakHouse Steak." More »
Wal-Mart Tosses Student In Jail For Trying To Cash Real Money Orders, Then Sends Her A Bill
—>Nitra Gipson sold her car to pay for her last two semesters at Texas Southern University, where she is studying criminal justice (of all things), and was paid with Wal-Mart Money Orders. When she tried to cash these money orders at her local Wal-Mart she was arrested and charged with felony forgery — even though the money orders were real. More »
Wal-Mart Planning Its Own "Geek Squad"?
—>MarketWatch says that Wal-Mart is "very interested in expanding into installation and repair services in its fast-growing electronics segment." More »
Warning: There Are Scorpions In The Walmart Produce Department
—>12-year-old Megan Templeton was shopping with her father for some watermelons and hamburgers for their Memorial Day cook-out when she was stung by a stowaway scorpion that had made a home in the produce section of her local Walmart. More »
Big Box Retailers Fight Back Against FCC's Recent Fines
Best Buy, Circuit City, and Sears are all contesting the FCC's recent fines against them for not properly following analog transition rules in their stores, reports Ars Technica. Last week, Best Buy submitted a 41-page response (PDF) that claimed among other things that the FCC has no authority to fine them. More »
Walmart's "$4 Prescription Plan" Adds OTC Drugs, 90-day Supplies For $10
—>Walmart's $4 prescription plan is getting even cheaper, says Reuters. The big blue box will add 1,000 over-the-counter items for $4 or less and make some drugs available in a 90-day supply for only $10 — thus kicking K-mart's 90-day supply program squarely in the teeth. More »
Target Bungles Wedding Registry, Won't Exchange Duplicate Gifts Without Receipts
—>Target doesn't accept returns without receipts to keep criminals at bay, but Chrissy recently discovered that their policy also extends to wedding registry gifts. Chrissy and her husband ended up with several duplicate gifts when Target failed to keep track of her registry. Chrissy didn't want a refund or cash, just store credit, but Target refused to consider any proffer until Chrissy provided receipts. One manager even urged Chrissy to call her wedding guests to ask for their receipts, because in Target's book, that's not extraordinarily rude or anything. More »
Can The "Sears Catalog" Save Sears?
—>When Sears chairman, Eddie Lampert, took over Kmart, he was determined to revive the long dead "blue light special." Excited about bringing back the old favorite, Lampert's chief marketing officer called the new campaign a "marketplace of discoveries." More »
Walmart To Partner With Hospitals, Open More In-Store Clinics
The first of the new Clinic at Wal-Mart walk-in centers, as they will be called, is to open in Little Rock, Ark., in April and be run by nurse practitioners employed by the St. Vincent Health System, a three-hospital group in central Arkansas.
More »
"Customers Are Avoiding Sears Stores In Droves"
—>On paper, the merger between Kmart and Sears looked almost fool-proof. Investors were confident that hedge fund manager Eddie Lampert had the midas touch, and that Sears' real estate holdings were worth more than $150 on their own. Sears' well-regarded brands would be paired with Kmart's convenient locations—and everyone would make tons of money. More »
Diane Von Furstenberg Sues Target For Copyright Infringement
"Defendants' infringing dresses are 'wrap' dresses made of materials designed to look like silk jersey, a style consumers and the general public have come to associate with DVF," the complaint said.
More »
Best Buy announced today that they'll be opening stores in Mexico later this year. We can't wait for our first story where someone buys a hard drive and opens the box to find it's been replaced with a piñata.
More »
Firing All The Smart People Isn't Working: Circuit City Sales Down 12%
—>Circuit City's same store sales for the month of December are down 12% in the U.S., causing some to speculate that firing all the people who understand the products you carry might not be a winning sales strategy. More »
Sears' Eddie Lampert Is "Worst CEO of the Year"
—>The fact that Eddie Lampert isn't even a CEO didn't stop Herb Greenberg at Marketwatch from slapping the coveted "Worst CEO of the Year" award on him. Eddie beat out such unemployed luminaries as Chuck "Whoops" Prince, formerly of Citigroup, and Ed "I Hate My Customers" Zander, formerly of Motorola. More »
Dangerous Toys Helping Walmart?
—>Parents are staying away from small toys this holiday season, says a survey from America's Research Group, and planning instead to buy more expensive tech items. More »
Costco Finds Item You Accidentally Left In The Parking Lot And Holds It For You
I wanted to let you know that Costco customer service is awesome. Last Sunday, My family went to Costco to shop. I saw they had a good deal on a chair mat. Right before we checked out, I went back to get it. As we were headed to the exit, my wife figures out they overcharged her for something. So (with help from a CSR) we split up so I could load the car. Well, I put the chair mat somewhere and forgot about it. (probably against the car) I realized it later that night that I had forgotten it, and had written it off. Today, I went to Costco to get a prescription filled and I thought I would ask about it. Apparently an employee found it, logged it, and put it back on the shelf. The CSR told me to get another one off the shelf and gave me a note to get through the cashiers with it. The cashier then radioed to the receipt checkers, so I didn't even have to wait in the exit line! Well, damn. That's really nice! Good job, Costco.
More »
Sears' Cost Cutting Not Going So Well
—>The New York Times has an article that attempts to diagnose what's wrong with Sears, and it mainly focuses on their (ill-advised?) cost cutting strategy. More »
What's Wrong With Sears?
—>Sears' earnings are down 99% and there's really no denying that something is going wrong with the retailer. Same store sales, the most important indicator of the health of a store, fell 4.2 percent in the third quarter. More »
Fired By Circuit City? They Might Want You Back
—>Circuit City fired 3,400 of its highest-paid store employees in March, claiming that it needed to hire cheaper help in order to stop hemorrhaging money. It didn't work. Only a few months later, analysts blamed the ill-advised job cuts for Circuit City's poor sales. More »
Walmart: "Black Friday" Is Now This Friday, Thanksgiving Surrenders
—>Walmart is moving "Black Friday" to this Friday in a desperate attempt to make some money this holiday season. Never mind that this "holiday season" is weeks away. Black Friday is here, folks. More »
Kmart Worker Who Put Rat Poison In Ground Beef Sentenced To 1 Year House Arrest
—>The pissed off Kmart worker who tried to get revenge against the store by putting rat poison in the ground beef has been sentenced to a year of house arrest, plus $4,000 in restitution to Kmart. More »
Walmart Threatening Legal Action Against Websites That Leak Its "Black Friday" Circular
—>You must wait until Nov. 19 to know what delicious deals Walmart has in store for America this "Black Friday." The Mart of Wal is threatening legal action against any website so bold as to post the coveted "Black Friday" circular before that date. More »
Walmart Tries To Make DVDs, Toothpaste, Soap, Milk, Beer, Vacuum Cleaners, and Soda Eco-Friendly
—>According to BusinessWeek, Walmart is using its considerable power to pressure its suppliers to reduce manufacturing energy consumption, and in doing so, cut costs. More »
Agassi Sues Target Over Unauthorized Flip-Flops
—> Andre Agassi is suing Target for slapping his name on a pair of brown men's flip-flops without his permission, says the AP. More »
What Walmart Can Tell Us About Ourselves
—>Walmart knows more about us than we do, according to ABC News. More »
Target: Putting Merchandise In Correct Bins Not Our Responsibility
—>Reader Marie went to the Target store in Biddeford, Maine and was told by the on-duty manager that "it is not the responsibility of the department manager or stocker" to ensure that the store's bins actually contain the items that they are supposed to. More »
Man Attempts To Return Walmart Ammunition At 1300 Feet Per Second
—>It's Walmart's policy, clearly visible on their website and in their stores, that all sales of guns and ammunition are final. One San Diego man didn't like that policy so he tried to return the ammunition in another way. By firing it in the Walmart parking lot. More »
Home Depot Finally Sells Commercial Business Supply Division After $2 Billion Price Cut
—>Home Depot has finally rid itself of the commercial business supply division that was often blamed for the chain's miserable customer service and lagging stock price. The commercial supply division was accused of stealing resources from the stores, and was the pet project of disgraced former CEO "Big Bob" Nardelli. Home Depot had to chop $2 billion off the asking price, but they got the deal done. More »
What Retail Slump? Target And Lowe's Are Doing Just Fine
—>Target and Lowe's cheered everyone up by announcing that they're doing just fine in the "tough selling market" that Home Depot was so worried about. More »
Circuit City Rep Offers Refund Of $389, Now Is "No Longer In The Dept" And Won't Help
—> Josh realized he forgot to click a "web only special" link when ordering something from CircuitCity.com, so he suspected that his order was not processed correctly. He called customer service as a precaution and sure enough, because he didn't click the link they said he wouldn't be getting the the deal and there was nothing they could do about it. More »
This Walmart Fried Chicken Could Use A Few More Feathers
—>Reader Sean is the most recent reader to purchase food at a major "big box" store, find it unacceptable, and send us a picture. More »
Kmart Pays $15,000 Fine For Not Putting Price Tags On Merchandise
—>Kmart has paid a $15,000 fine to Westchester County, NY for not putting price tags on its merchandise. "Westchester's law is clear: Items on store shelves must be clearly marked with a price tag, so consumers can verify how much an item costs and be sure that they are being charged the correct price at the checkout register," County Executive Andy Spano told Lower Hudson Online. More »
Is Walmart Too Cheap For Its Own Good?
—> According to a confidential report leaked to the New York Times by WakeUpWalmart.com, Walmart's low prices may be working against it when it comes to selling plasma TVs and more expensive clothes. From the NYT:
A confidential report prepared for senior executives at Wal-Mart Stores concludes, in stark terms, that the chain's traditional strengths — its reputation for discounts, its all-in-one shopping format and its enormous selection — "work against us" as it tries to move upscale. More »
Sears Tells You Your Order Is In Stock, Even If It's Not
—>Here's a good way to lose customers. Tell them that their order is in stock and ready to be picked up, even though it is not. Hey, at least they came in, right? Maybe they'll buy some gum on their way out of the store... forever. More »
Will Walmart Be Your New Doctor?
—>Millions of Americans don't have health insurance, and many of them are Walmart shoppers. Heck, many of them are Walmart employees. The solution? Walmart is opening 400 more "health clinics" in the next 2-3 years. Eventually, there will be over 2,000 of these clinics. More »
Target Tightens Return Policy: No Returns Over $20 Without A Receipt
—>Target is tightening up their return policy according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Currently Target doesn't allow any cash/check returns without a receipt for items over $40, but in August that limit will drop to $20. Customers who bought their items with credit or debit cards will still be able to return items without a receipt. More »
Would You Buy Your Wedding Dress At Target?
—>Getting married? Target is launching a bridal collection by Isaac Mizrahi. The collection has "8 stunning looks in ivory, white and black," and range in price from $9.99-$159.99. More »
Target Bypassing Music Labels, Releasing Its Own Music
Target on Thursday said it partnered with an independent start-up music label, 180 Music, to release 15 adult contemporary CDs in all 1,449 stores on February 25 for $9.99 each. Similar releases are set to follow, according to 180 Music founder and chief executive officer Jim Brandmeier.
They're planning on releasing CDs by Kenny Loggins and David Cassidy.
More »
Kmart Has Your Huge Box of Pot
A huge-ass box of pot on its way to a Philadelphia drug dealer was mistakenly rerouted to the local Kmart, Saturday, where it was discovered by an employee in the stock room. Imagine their surprise when, instead of Martha Stewart towels staring up at them, the poor Kmart employee saw the, ahem, unfamiliar sight of 25lbs of marijuana. From the story: More »
Live, Hot, Best Buy Chatroom
Golly jenkins, the comedic possibilities, they are endless. Gatecrash time.
More »
Independent Indulgences: Big Box Guilt-B-Gone
—>You might feel guilty from buying from anything but the most independent of retailers. If you have fallen sway to the charms of big box stores, Cambridge bookstore Lorem Ipsum is offering 'Bookstore Indulgences' to assuage your guilt, complete with quasi-official Catholicy font. By purchasing these indulgences, you give the bookstore free money—and they forgive you. More »
