Tonight, I was on a mission. The two things I needed to get were silver hoop earrings and Kashi granola bars. I had done some research online to see where I could get the Kashi bars for the best price. Since Stop & Shop sells them for $4 and Walmart for $2.50, that was enough of an incentive to get me to drive out to Framingham/Natick after work. On the way, I decided last minute to go to Target instead of Walmart. To put it bluntly, I hate Walmart and haven't been there in at least two years. Why? The parking lot and the store are always packed with the rudest people on earth. Literally, I just hate Walmart shoppers and the long lines. I find that Target is usually much cleaner, brighter, has shorter lines, better merchandise and the same cheap prices.
At Target, no surprise, I spent much more than I had originally planned. In the sign of the times, I actually ended up by more grocery type items than I usually do since it's just so much cheaper than a grocery store (Yoplait yogurt - $.50! Cake mix - $1.00! Pudding - $.82! And in case you're wondering, I'm making a trifle this weekend, hence all the junk food). I even found a new Kashi fruit and granola bar (Chocolate and Raspberry) to try. But I struck out on the Kashi bars I needed to replace from Andrew's stock and the hoops. The hoops in particular are driving me nuts. I have literally bought three sets of sterling silver hoops from Target in the past year. Somehow, I've bought a slightly different set each time and now I have three single hoop earrings with no match and Target seems to have stopped selling silver hoops in the size and the width I prefer.
Walmart was only a few miles away, I decided to bite the bullet and give it a try. And I was pleasantly surprised. Granted, it was a Tuesday night during February vacation, which means that it was pretty uncrowded. But the store just seemed to be brighter and better organized. I was pleased to find that Walmart did carry the Kashi flavor I was looking for and grabbed four boxes of it off the shelf (the guy standing next to me gave me a weird look but hey, these things are that good!) I was also happy to find out that Target is actually cheaper than Walmart on a lot of grocery items, with butter being one of the only exceptions. I was in and out in a breezy 15 minutes, considering I walk the perimeter of the whole store. And I found the jewelry counter worker and the cashier I had to be very nice and polite. I don't mean to sound snobby or elitist, but I was genuinely surprised by how much nice Walmart has gotten, perhaps because of the rebranding effort they launched last year? Regardless, I may be visiting them more in the future. Just not around Christmas or the end of August when people are in back-to-school mode.
Showing posts with label Target. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Target. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Friday, January 2, 2009
No Hassle Return at Target
So I made good on my one day resolution on getting the right floodlight at Target.
First, I had to return the light I bought last week that was the wrong size. The parking lot was packed and the first thing I saw when I walked in was the long return line. I sucked it up and joined the line, counting ten people in front of me. It took nine minutes to get through the line (with one couple leaving as they got fed up with the wait). When I hit the front of the line, I wasn't sure how smoothly my return would go because 1) I was missing the receipt and 2) technically, the light bulb had been opened although you couldn't tell since it was in a resealable package.
I noticed a sign while waiting in line that said if you had the same credit card that was used for the purchase, they could pull up the receipt.
So when I got the register, I told the woman I wanted to return the light, that I didn't have the receipt but I had the credit card I used to buy it. She scanned the item, scanned my credit card, out popped a return receipt and I was good to go. This whole process took 20 seconds! I even stood there, mouth agape, asking the woman if that was it for the return.
As the rest of Target was a zoo, I went straight for the light bulbs, picked up the right size (hopefully!) and headed straight for the register. One swipe of my credit card and I was out just as quickly. I think they may have installed a new credit card system even since the last time I shopped there last week. All in all, a very pleasant return process which was definitely unexpected.
First, I had to return the light I bought last week that was the wrong size. The parking lot was packed and the first thing I saw when I walked in was the long return line. I sucked it up and joined the line, counting ten people in front of me. It took nine minutes to get through the line (with one couple leaving as they got fed up with the wait). When I hit the front of the line, I wasn't sure how smoothly my return would go because 1) I was missing the receipt and 2) technically, the light bulb had been opened although you couldn't tell since it was in a resealable package.
I noticed a sign while waiting in line that said if you had the same credit card that was used for the purchase, they could pull up the receipt.
So when I got the register, I told the woman I wanted to return the light, that I didn't have the receipt but I had the credit card I used to buy it. She scanned the item, scanned my credit card, out popped a return receipt and I was good to go. This whole process took 20 seconds! I even stood there, mouth agape, asking the woman if that was it for the return.
As the rest of Target was a zoo, I went straight for the light bulbs, picked up the right size (hopefully!) and headed straight for the register. One swipe of my credit card and I was out just as quickly. I think they may have installed a new credit card system even since the last time I shopped there last week. All in all, a very pleasant return process which was definitely unexpected.
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