#48 - Toys-r-NOT-us

By, SoccerMom


Okay can someone please tell me at what point it became okay for stores to treat customers like crap, especially here in Canada? As of late I have found the level of customer service has bottomed out and the stores and store managers could care less.

I am looking for the newest item for the Wii called Wii Fit. So being the resourceful SoccerMom I am, I go on-line to see the who’s, what’s, where’s and how much’s it’s going to be. I notice that Future Shop and Best Buy are out of stock, so I head over to Toys-r-us.ca and they are showing “Stock in Store.” I’m now thinking ~ Wahoo!! I am going to be fit for the summer and I won’t have to see the inside of the Pink-eye gym.

But wait…
Before you think way-to-go SoccerMom, I of course had issues or I would be playing and not posting.

This morning I called the 1-800-Toys-r-us line to see if the stores did in-fact have the units and why I could not order it on-line. The lady assured me that it was in the store and that if I headed over that it would not be a problem. So I jump in the car and I am driving and thinking I am on my way to being a Hot SoccerMom and not because someone turned up the pre-mena-temp.

Once I get to the store I go to the Electronics department and I don’t see the units. So I track-down a nice yet young clerk and ask her "Where is my new fitness routine??" She says “I don’t know where they are, let me check and see if we have them in stock.” She checks and say "the computer says we have 18 let me call the manager and see where they are.” At that point I was getting all giddy and said "sure."

Oh now by this point you know this is not going to go well, don’t you??

So the Store Manager tells her to tell me that they don’t have them in stock and they are not getting them until later and so they won’t be available until tomorrow. Okay so I just drove from Stoney Creek with gas at $1.27 per litre to be told by this manager No-fit-for-you??!!

That my friend did not sit well with me, so I call the 1-800-Toy-r-us line again and I am telling the very nice lady my saga and she was very apologetic and sympathetic in not understanding why be-otch will not sell me a friggen fit. It wasn’t like I was asking for a discount, Wii just want to play. She was as helpful as she could be (by the way she was in the USA) and asked me if I minded calling the Head-Office location for assistance. It this point I am all about calling, so I do just that and the lady tells me that it would be best if I called the Canadian Corp Office that has a Customer Service support, again I am thinking what they heck it’s only one more call ~ And then I get Jo-Ann on the line.

My friends let me tell you Jo-Ann gave me that same Canadian customer service they think we Canadians will tolerate and think we deserve and have come to expect!

She lied to me and said just because the computer said the stock was there doesn’t mean it is/was actually there… wha-wha-what??
Okay I was born at night but it wasn’t last night, Jo-Ann! I work for a Manufacturer and I get how stock/stock levels etc… work. Duh…

Oh I’d love to stay and whine at you but I must go and skower the pages of Ebay.ca in the hopes of finding someone who is reasonable and will not rip me off.
Wish me luck…

A Mother's Thoughts