OT: Treatment of Women In Hardware Stores (Yes, this is a Rant)

[Emzyyy]

ROFL!!!#!%!$!%
THATS HYLERIOUS
but i so agree w/ u on that one guys should really respect woman I mean im blonde sometimes but I know what a 2x2 is and im 15 so yea he should prob know tooo.

 

[EweSheep]

My hubby loves to play jokes on the employees such as "Is there a light bulb repair kit?"

Hubby loves Lowe's and I hated them, not friendly toward women. I love to shop at Menards because they treated women with respect. However I dont like being charged for local delivery for free which we live the next town less than ten miles away.

They hire alot of young kids at Lowe's and alot of them dont know what the heck I am talking about in certain items. Menards, they get it for me and not look at me like a dummy.

 

[Yanna]

Quote:
LOL!!!! That is SO rich. I'll have to try that one some time.

Actually, though, I have managed to locate a couple of locally owned stores and I think I'll be giving them my patronage in the future.

As it turns out, it was a blessing that the service was so bad that day - two days later I got an enormous rabbit hutch for $20 from someone on Craig's List (it would normally sell new for $300 or so). I probably would have spent about $100 on building a temporary coop, so that worked out rather well.

There have been some really great responses in this thread! Thanks, everyone!

 

[Sheilak]

You are not alone. I have experienced the same treatment while loading 16 x 16 pavers on a flat cart. The little creep was smirking at me while peeking around the corner. Worthless freeloaders are everywhere.

 

[Hokum Coco]

I see your point.
If I would want a special cut done for a miter to make a corner for a kitchen counter top or a unique cut in something I could not cut at home I would want the shop to handle it and most likely wait a day or two to have it accomplished..
In your case I probably would have not asked for that added service to begin with.
My experience in most big box stores is true service is a rare commodity.
Now days the service you get is more inline with the service that is give to a cow when my grandfather said take the cow down to the neighbours to get is "SERVICED"
Part time help and hours are the new gendre and full time employees who take pride in their work and the service they provide are a dying breed.
I am sorry to say I do not see it getting any better in my area in for see able future.
I think you might be in for more of the same as time marches on..

 

[mountaintopchicken]

I've gotten that treatment before. But when I go to the local lumber yard, used mostly by contractors and carpenters, I've only been treated that way once in years. I have never ever seen any other woman buying lumber there. Once, in all the years I've been there, I saw a woman buying something in the roofing and screws section. It's THAT male. But I am embarrassed every time I go there, because they remember me, and they remember what I build, and they always say, "Are you building ANOTHER chicken coop?!". So I've taken to being really vague and telling a few white lies along the lines of "No, just general farm repair..." because I feel like a ridiculous chicken obsessive. Which I am. But the whole lumber yard doesn't need to know how bad my obsession is. Oh, and I think at times I get perks men wouldn't get, like offers of free wood, which a guy would not get. And that's not fair either. But that free wood (free because knots, but you can cut around the knots) came in awful handy.

 

[mountaintopchicken]

Men in hardware stores are really very simple creatures.
Next time, just wear a tight shirt. They'll smile at you and do whatever you ask of them.

 

[Beekissed]

That might have worked for me about 20 years ago....... I agree with Grumpy Cat....no way! If anything, a tight shirt on me now might indeed entice them to work a little faster to get that sight out of the store so that customers would stop puking in the aisles.

 

[conny63malies]

I buy most of our lumber for various projects. When we first got here and I went to the various home improvement stores I got looked at funny. They tried to sell me the wrong nails that would rust in treated lumber, or they just didn't know what self tapping screws and a Kreg Jig are... Now they know me, the only help I need at the store now Is for mixing paint. There I still get funny looks when I had purple and yellow 2n1 paint for a coop mixed. That dude NEVER heard of somebody making a "pretty" coop with solar twinkle lights.... after all it was just for chickens. They know that me and my oldest daughter (12) will stand there and sort through lumber. THey think its cute that she looks down the boards to see if they are warped, cupped, twisted.... She will tell you if they are good or not.

 

[BusyBlonde]

Oh, my - I have certainly gotten that attitude. What's funny is that I've worked in construction for over 20 years, and before that I worked in an auto repair shop for 5 years. So I know how to look up my own parts, which saves me returns at the auto parts store - yes, I've gotten parts handed to me that were wrong more than once by the employees. It's funny when they insist on looking them up for me, and hand me something I know is not correct (like the air filter for my husband's F-250 diesel) - and get insulted when I make them get the one I really wanted in the first place. I know how to build - I did warranty repairs and built homes for a number of years - and I know when I'm getting BS'ed by someone who doesn't have what I need, and is trying to sell me what they have instead.

When I go to the local Lowe's, I know who to get help from in the lumber section - and if those couple of individuals aren't there, I know I'm pretty much on my own. It really is that bad, I swear most of the employee's hide so they don't have to work. I usually know what I want, but sometimes it's higher up than I can easily and safely reach, and it takes forever to get anyone to respond to a page. Now, if my husband goes with me, we've got a much better chance of getting help, even if we don't know the people that are working. Go figure! Home Depot is even worse, their turnover here is tremendous. No one there seems happy, or cares a bit about customer service.

The problem with going to local places is they're often not open the hours I have to shop. After work, Sundays - most of those kinds of places are closed. When I can go to them, I get outstanding service almost every time. The owners often work at those establishments around here, and excellent customer service is what keeps people going back to them instead of the big box stores. They also try to carry more products that are produced in the USA than the big-box stores do.

Not to send this thread off on a tangent, but this year my DH and I did almost all of our Christmas shopping at non-chain, locally owned stores. I dread Christmas shopping - the crowds, traffic, lack of customer service - but we really enjoyed our experience, we found more unique and personal gifts, and all the shops were staffed with helpful, cheery people. Even my DH said that he enjoyed our experience, and will be glad to go with me again next year, LOL.