Griping shopper just wants to give up

The Gazette prides itself in being a watchdog for the community. It serves as your eyes and ears through the in-depth page one articles about issues in the Portage County community, the editorials on page four and even the little tidbits in the “What did you expect for 50 cents?” column (or as we call it, Whadaya) on the back page.
This back-page column, which is meant to be light-hearted, oftentimes contains gripes Gazette staffers sometime have about bad drivers, inattentive people and my favorite – poor customer service. Another staff member and I came up with a long list of these gripes about shopping during a discussion earlier this week. I realized what was meant to be a few Whadaya tidbits was actually a full column.
The list we came up with starts in the parking lot.
I fully support and appreciate designated parking spots for disabled people. But do we really need spots for senior citizens, expectant mothers and other perfectly capable people?
All the seniors I know that go shopping are easily able to get from their vehicles to the store’s door. The ones that can’t usually are able to park in a disabled spot.
And expectant mothers are even more capable. The only reason for them not being capable is if they are on doctor’s orders to maintain bed rest until the baby’s birth. Then they should be at home complying with the doctor’s orders and not shopping.
I may be too harsh in my feelings on this, but that’s because my wife was insistent on doing things herself when she was pregnant. Pandering to her needs was not allowed, unless it involved obtaining specific foods for her cravings. I’m still not over her craving of a combination of pickles and pineapple.
The list then moves onto shopping-cart etiquette.
Pushing a cart should be like driving a car. Stay on the right. Don’t go in the middle. Be respectful when passing slower shoppers.
Sounds easy, but judging by recent experiences, it seems most people haven’t figured out these simple rules. People walk where they please, usually taking up the entire aisle, and passing them is difficult, even when using proper manners.
I don’t like to spend a lot of time in a grocery store. My mission when I’m there is to move through the store as quickly as possible, and not get in other people’s way. My hope some day is that the majority of people feel the same way, making a trip to the store a pleasure and not a chore.
The third item on our list is the amount of advertising people are bombarded with while shopping.
I have nothing against posters, signs and other advertising material hanging on the walls, from the ceiling and in aisles at the store, but I do have an issue with advertising on shopping carts and on the floor.
Don’t get me wrong, because I know the importance of advertising. It provides me with a weekly paycheck, since The Gazette relies on advertisers to keep us going. But on the floor and on the carts? Come on. That’s just one step closer to advertising on toilet paper. When that day comes, and it will, corporate America’s marketing techniques will literally go down the toilet.
The final item on our list is customer service.
Let me start with an example. Last week while checking out at a chain store, a manager told my cashier to turn her light off. The cashier seemed happy and quickly did so. She then told the lady in line behind me, who already had her items on the checkout counter, that she should use a different lane.
As someone who worked at a chain store for six years throughout high school and college, I was a bit shocked. We were always taught to finish with the customers we had.
The lady was not pleased, but complied. She ended up third in line at another checkout.
Even more shocking to me, though, another lady got in line behind me and put her items on the counter. The cashier looked at me and rolled her eyes, muttering something under her breath.
I really wanted to say something to the cashier. Not only was she very inconsiderate in dealing with the other lady, but she made it clear to me that she wasn’t pleased with this new lady. Complaining about customers to other customers was a big no-no when I worked at a store.
Then again, we were required to take customers to any items they were looking for and make sure full attention to their needs were met before leaving them. Those days, just a short decade ago, seem to be gone forever.
I told my co-worker that I would like to give up on shopping forever, based on our gripes. Unfortunately, necessity for food and other important items requires that I go every once in awhile. Maybe my gripes here and in Whadaya will inspire some store managers to change a few things and a few store clerks to care about the people that help them earn their paychecks. I can hope.