I agree and I hate to admit it too. With or without tags and receipts they always honor my return with cash back or another product. I even bought Easter dresses for my girls, but after one washing they shrunk and became just awful. Even though they were not only worn but also washed, they took them back and returned my money with a smile. I also believe some smaller stores only give store credit. Hallmark is a food exsample of this, although I wouldn't call them a smaller chain. Then on the other hand you have those cute little mom and pop shops that will do whatever it takes to make their customers happy and coming back. In my opinion a flexible return policy is good customer service and I will continue to visit these stores.
Home Improvement: Lowe's. I've had folks there work hard to help me get my money back on returns, and with other customer service issues. They have been really great. Home Depot was a bit fussier, but not bad. Discount Department Store: Walmart has been excellent in handling returns. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before the screw that up, too, but for now - they're the easiest. Of course, you usually have to wait in quite a line. A lot of stores were getting bad about accepting returns, and WE their customers apparently let them know over a few Christmas seasons, and now the trend is cautiously more towards allowing returns, at least with receipt. Safest bet: throw all your receipts into one box - at least you'll know where they are when you do need one. I have two stacks: one for merchandise, and one for consumables, so that after I reconcile my credit card statement, I can throw away the receipts for gas, restaurants, and other things that don't get returned.
