I agree with you. I also happen to have a good Walmart, in fact one of my daughter's teachers works there part time and she's always happy to see us. With every chain store or restaurant, you have good and bad locations. In my neighborhood, it's actually the Toys R 'Us that has jerks working there. Go figure.
It does depend on the Wal-Mart and the location it's in. I grew up in Illinois and never had a problem. Everyone was nice who worked there and helpful even. The store was actually clean (for a warehouse looking place). The lines didn't get too long, really no problems. Living in the Tampa Bay area, I've been to at least 5 different Wal-Marts here that are the EXACT opposite. Sure not every time I have gone in it was a horrible experience. But there has been enough of the situations like the original post said that I like to avoid it more. I have a Super Target close to me that has close enough prices for me to justify having a pleasant shopping experience. It's amazing the difference there. I don't remember any problems I've had there, in the Tampa area! Occasionally I do go to Wal-Mart however if Target doesn't have something I'm looking for. They don't have quite as much merchandise and that's it's downfall. But I'm always like oh great how's Wal-Mart going to be today.
I like Walmart, I do admit that there are some rude people that work there sometimes. But it wouldn't stop me from shopping there, it doesn't happen all the time. And plus there are rude people in every store you go too. I just put them in there place, and the next time they see me they are more polite. lol
I have actually head quite pleasant experiences with Walmart. By far, they are the best and most efficient with coupons and price-matching. I also had to return an item with no receipt, and they took it, no questions asked.
You can save at Walmart. But you also have to compare prices. We shopped at Walmart recently after taking a hiatus from there for a while. We normally shop at Ralph's. Well, I'd say that Walmart did better than Ralph's with only about 50% of there grocery items. I told me husband that what we should do is make a copy of our shopping list and have one of us go to Walmart and the other go to Ralph's. We take out our shopping list and cell phones and find the items on the list and compare prices over the phone. The lowest priced items go in the cart. Yep, that's our idea of a fun Saturday afternoon. lol I'll have to come back here and give a review on the differences.
I paid my first visit to the Walmart 3 days ago. First of all, the store looked shabby. Even the floor was worn. Secondly, There was food and then random clothing displays. I just did not like the back alley feel of the store. We went to buy a wall charger for my mobile phone, and I did not even noticed the price being cheaper. So, why do people shop there? We did not end up buying anything, so I cannot comment on the customer service, but that will not be a store I will shop at again.
There are two huge reasons I dislike shopping at Wal Mart. 1. I don't like the premise of the company; I don't like their business practices as a whole and they seem far too greedy for my liking. And 2. they are WAY to crowded. Every time I go there I have to shuffle through the crowd with my card and my daughter in two. It isn't worth it for me to save a few dollars.
My daughter and I usually go when Walmart opens at 6AM. No crowds, no lines, no noise, no waiting. And the McDonald's inside the Walmart also opens at 6AM so we usually get coffee there that has just been made before we go into the main part of the store. Going during early bird hours is such a superior experience that I don't even like to go during normal afternoon hours. If I can't go at 6AM, I wait and go another day.
I think it depends on the Walmart your shopping at. The shopping experience can be different for some stores. I hate shopping at my local Walmart because the workers there are very rude and unhelpful. I prefer to shop at Walmart located 10 miles away from my location.
it really does depend on which walmart. There are three in my area that I can go to, and two of the three aren't bad, but of course, the one closest to my house........is the one that is the absolute worst. I do my best to avoid it. It's trashy, the people are rude, customers are asses, it's just ridiculous.
Walmart is not the first choice when I go shopping, for one it is out of my way. There are two stores in my area that I could go to but one the people there are very rude and I will not go there. I got to the point one time of leaving my stuff and walking out the store. The store is clean, larger and the people are more helpful.
If they would only staff more of the cash registers that are just sitting there unmanned it would really go a long way in helping me to enjoy shopping there more. It is the extreme (20 minutes+) lineups that make me really think twice about taking a trip out to Wal-Mart. On the weekends? Forget it, not worth the savings to lose an hour of my time standing in line.
I have heard good and bad about the store. I think most of the complaints have been about the clerks. I would report them, they should have accomodated you at the checkout counter. I don't shop there for the very same reason you do, it's not close to my home.
I spend way too much time in Walmart. They know a lot about marketing and how to place merchandise in just the right way to make me want to put that useless item in my basket. I tell myself I'll put it back at the end of my shopping trip if I think I don't need it, and I usually do, thank goodness. I'm finding my local dollar store often has better deals than Walmart, and is a lot easier to get in and out. I try to find other places to purchase besides Walmart if possible, especially online stores, to save time and gas.
Now that I've finally been to a Dollar Tree, I agree that there are certain items that are genuine bargains and cheaper than Walmart. You will not find any wrapping paper at Walmart for $1 but Dollar Tree has tons. You can't get Softsoap at Walmart for $1 but Dollar Tree has it. Don't buy the Suave and Alberto shampoo at Dollar Tree because it costs $1 anywhere and sometimes goes on sale for 89 cents. If you know what items cost elsewhere, then you can find the actual deals at Dollar Tree. Obviously candy corn at Dollar Tree isn't worth it because some Walmarts have candy corn 2 for $1. I think part of bargain shopping is having a good memory. If you don't remember that something is 89 cents elsewhere, you might think you're getting a deal at Dollar Tree.
The one main gripe I have about my local Wal-Mart is the people at the Customer Service center. There's just something about those workers in that section that I don't like. Every time I go there the people behind the counter are always grumpy looking and they are rude too. There's no greeting or asking if they can help you or anything. That's the one place I try to avoid unless absolutely necessary. Everything else about the Wal-Mart in my city is fine.
As a few others have mentioned, I think it all really depends on the Walmart location you're shopping at. I've had nothing but positive experiences at Walmart and i'm a pretty regular shopper there as well (I'm a broke college student). I admit that I probably spend way too much time at Walmart but I save a lot more money there than at other stores like Kmart.
Wal-Mart really kind of gives me a bad vibe as well. Not only does everyone and their mom shop there, but the lines are always long and I spend a lot of time waiting around. The cashiers seem to hate their job and I've never seen one that is really happy. Then when I get to the door, they always look at me like I'm stealing something and want me to show my receipt. Shouldn't the items in the bad be enough? I mean come on!
There are like 3 Walmarts relatively close to me. The closest one is a joke, not because the employees are bad but the customers are awful, some of the most rude people you'll ever meet. But that's in the middle of what is consistently rated as one of the worst small cities in America. The other 2 Walmarts nearby are probably another 5-10 minutes away but the people are much more approachable and the staff is just as competent. It really depends on the store. It's not like Walmart goes out of their way to hire incompetent people, but sometimes by luck of the draw you just end up with a store full of employees like that.
I've seen the rudeness in customers too. They always seem to think they're the only one in the store. Selfishness seems to be a big thing at Wal-Mart. Since everyone in the world shops at Wal-Mart, things can get hectic.
