HOME DEPOT HELL

National Review Online - The Corner ^ | April 20, 2004 | John Derbyshire

[Cincinatus' Wife]

This darn place is going to the dogs. As if the aisle-closing business wasn't bad enough, I have now encountered a new annoyance.

The Home Depot has introduced self-check-out stations. Fair enough, and a convenience, if you have just small items & no complications. However, there are now situations -- I just encountered my second -- where Home Depot employees apparently feel that the self-check-out business relieves them of the need to man check-out stations altogether. If for some reason you can't check yourself out, there may be no regular check-out stations manned. (Personned, whatever.)

I gotta stop using this store.

[nuconvert]

LOL

Good for you!

Sounds like he's sticking to his statistics.
Maybe the reason people like them though, is because the regular lines are always so long, because they never really have enough cashiers working. I avoid those self-check lanes in all the stores. The few times I've self-checked, I've felt like I ought to be paid for doing it. Maybe if they offerred a discount for going thru the self-check, I'd be more inclined to "work" as a cashier.
Otherwise, I'm the customer, not an employee.

[Pharmboy]

Outstanding! Next time he calls, tell him the Home Depot in Rockaway, NJ has lousy help!

[BigSkyFreeper]

I certainly do remember this thread. That is so cool that you actually spoke to someone at the top who's "in-the-know" so to speak. Great job! :)

[Barnacle]

OK, Here's what I'd like to see improved at HD.

One Saturday, I was walking the length of the store on a very congested middle isle. Ahead of me, was a fork truck driver, who was not content to let the constant beeping motion alarm announce his presence, he also laid on the horn as if everyone was suppose to leap out of his way. By the time I got to the other side, I was ready to throttle him. When I mentioned this to someone behind the service counter, I got nothing but cluelessness.

Secondly, don't make me press a button just so that I can check out in the language of the United States of America!

[John Lenin]

I think the self checkouts are great but you should try to only use them for easy to scan items and items that don't sell by the foot or pound because than you have to wait for the help person to ok the measurements. I like the self checkouts in the grocery store even better.

[Bob J]

I love Home Depot, if you want a piece of them you gotta go through me...heheh.

[MinuteGal]

I decided to quit Home Depot. Both of their stores in my area don't have enough help any more and I got sick of walking, walking, looking for an orange apron. These guys do masterful job of disappearing to god knows where when you need one of them.

It's the biggest time of the year in the Home Depot Garden section. Not enough help there either, in the past two months. In fact I couldn't find a clerk there at all the last two times I was there. I had to ask to speak to the store manager to get some help to appear outside.

So, as I said, I quit Home Depot. My next trip was to Lowes, a longer distance away. Guess what! Not enough clerks there either.

I think I'll eat some worms.

Leni

[John Lenin]

Agreed, Lowes is worse as far as store employees and the prices are higher but they do have air conditioning ...

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Congrats! I called and very politely and with helpful concern, gave a detailed account of my displeasure with Home Depot's check-out policy. I was asked for and gave my name and ph #. The HD rep gave me a ref # and told me my information would be passed on and someone would call. That was the day I posted this thread. I haven't been contacted.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

My last last two trips to HD garden check-out.

1. The line was long (partly due to the fact that people with nails and paint were trying to avoid the computer check-out and were mixed in with the dirt and begonia customers). I saw an employee approach a check-out booth and since I had didn't have a cart, walked over to see if indeed she was opening up, the answer was yes and I waved to the two gals I had been talking with in the other line (we were talking about how HD has gone down hill). At that point people in line shifted to get there first and all hell broke loose. One woman was screaming so much about where she should be in line, her husband walked out of the garden area in embarrassment. Everyone was stressed and short by this time. HD lost several customers that day.

2. I went to get 8 bags of dirt and since I had recently had some surgery on my hand, decided to pay for the dirt inside and drive through the yard and have it loaded. Normally, I would have loaded that amount on a flat-bed and taken it to the car myself. The line was long and while I waited a manager walked by, I asked him if the garden soil I wanted would be out in the yard, he assured me it would. When I got to the checker, I told her what I needed and she didn't have any book with the skew #. She yells at the other checker who doesn't have one either. Other customers are staring holes in my back. I told her the customer in front of me had just bought a bag of what I wanted so she backed up that transaction and got the #. I paid and drove around to the pick-up yard. They didn't have that dirt stocked there. BUT the nice guy loading cars told me to leave the car there, got a cart walked back inside, got two bricks to stand on so he could reach the bags and loaded them into the cart. He brought them back out to the yard and loaded them into my trunk. HD needs more service like that.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

When I mentioned this to someone behind the service counter, I got nothing but cluelessness.

I've tried this. There is nothing they can do but listen. Management needs to act because people are voting with their feet.

[television is just wrong]

I went to the home depot in glendale. I had four men trying to crawl in my car saying, "lady take me home with you". I was only buying my annual supply of veggies. I dont' need four men to help plant the 12 2" potted plants I brought home.

I won't go to the store many years later, alone. I always bring my husband with me. He however is bored with my annual purchase of 12 plants. I don't have men crawling in my car anymore. Don't know what to think of that.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

LOL

[Cincinatus' Wife]

We're saving a spot for you here in Texas when you're ready to come back ;-)

How sweet. Thanks for the invite.

[bk1000]

Cool! I have always found HD to be a customer-oriented company. Every now and then you get a bozo, just like anywhere else, but my experiences have typically been good. I'll even bet that after that call you would be willing to try that store again just to see how he deals with it.

[Barnacle]

I've tried this. There is nothing they can do but listen.

Actually, it was worse than that. She defended the idiot against the lowly creature known as "customer".

[O.C. - Old Cracker]

There are four Home Depots in my town and all are dirty and cluttered. I had to visit one today because Lowe's didn't have the 0.95" line for my weed eater in bulk. Lowe's appears to be better run and cleaner. The same is true when comparing Costco to Sam's. I dropped my Sam's membership because the Sam's near my house makes you wait in long lines and their selection is inferior.

[LibWhacker]

Precisely why I quit shopping at Homo Depot.

[Peeved in Winchester]

Home Depot SUCKS! I'm so mad right now I could spit nails (NOT bought from Home Depot, I might add)! Last year I bought a Toro weedeater with the blade attachment for cutting brush and lost a part to it. I went to HD asking if they had a kit to fix it. They didn't sell the part. I got on the net looking for Toro replacement parts and they don't sell directly to the consumer. You have to go through one of their distributors. I finally find a distributor in my area, take the weedeater to their shop and they call Toro, because the model number doesn't appear in their computer for parts. After about six different phone calls by them on my behalf, we find that Toro didn't even manufacture the product. It was made for HOME DEPOT by another company and THERE ARE NO REPLACEMENT PARTS AVAILABLE AT ALL! So, I go to HD and ask for the manager, tell him my story, tell him they should put a sign above the Toro trimmers, "WARNING: THIS PRODUCT IS NOT MADE BY TORO AND THERE ARE NO REPLACEMENT PARTS AVAILABLE." I wanted my money back. They said no. I wanted them to rectify the situation . . . they said they couldn't. I told them that if I didn't receive satisfaction from them (HD) they would hear next from my attorney, at which point both the Assistant Manager and guy from the lawn and garden department said, "That's it. Conversation over." and walked away from me. Is THIS any way to treat a good paying customer? Over the last three years, I've probably spent close to $4,000.00 at that particular store. I am more incensed than ever and will probably go to great lengths to warn consumers about both Toro AND Home Depot. How can a company, in all good conscience, sell a product they KNOW the product name didn't manufacture and that no replacement parts are available???? ARRRRRRRRGH! Thanks for letting me rant. :)

[thackney]

Have you tried talking to Toro about HD selling someone else's product under their name? Or did they license their name?</p>