Wal-Mart Complaint - Tired of waiting

Posted by GenuineNerd on 2011-06-14:

Walmart is often times good at keeping too few checkout lines open when there are crowds 10 or more deep in line at the few registers that are open. It was almost the same story last night at the Steelyard Commons store in Cleveland, OH. Only 6 checkouts open, all the express lines closed, and lines at least 8 to 10 deep at the open checkouts. Finally a couple more checkouts opened, and the crowd thinned out a bit.

Posted by trp2hevn on 2011-06-14:

Let me just say... you have more patience than I could ever hope for. My cart would've been one of those that they would have to return to the shelf. About the only time I would wait in a checkout line like that might be around Christmas time.

Posted by Nicole29 on 2011-06-14:

Me too, Trp2hevn! And I did walk out the last time I was there, due to the same problem. Haven't gone back and don't plan on it. This seems to be a problem you see often, at least at the Walmart stores near me. Over an hour wait is really pushing it.

Posted by Justice-4-All on 2011-06-14:

Was this a Supercenter? The all-night stores? Just curious, because if it was, it might help to explain why only a few cashier lines were open, and why so many were working on getting the returns sorted and restocked before closing time. But if it was a 24 hour store...then certainly no excuses.

Because if it was closing, then having two lines open would be no different than a restaurant closing off sections and trying to get out of there on time.

Posted by littleshorty on 2011-06-14:

This is why I like the self checkout lines. But they don't keep those open at night. I've always wondered why because the lines seem to be longer at night

Posted by Slimster on 2011-06-14:

Don't leave us hanging, did the BRUINS win?

Posted by trmn8r on 2011-06-14:

Exactly. You will pay more to shop elsewhere. But in the beginning you yourself stated you understand that you pay lower prices because "the conditions are not so great."

You can't have it both ways. Once I discovered I would only pay 3-5% more to shop at an excellent store, I threw WalMart into the gutter and never looked back.

Posted by PaulaJ on 2011-06-14:

Waiting at Walmart is nothing unusual, it's unfortunate that the powers that be don't care enough to have more cashiers on hand. I've walked out plenty of times, even wrote about it here.

Posted by ok4now on 2011-06-14:

There had to be a serious out of the ordinary problem if you had to wait over an hour. Too few checkout aisles open is not just a Walmart problem. Retailers don't pay well and to maximize profit they don't open more aisles than they have to. I have experienced this same problem at Shop-Rite, Kohl's, BJ's and more. Sadly it's a fact of life today.

This is why I prefer online shopping, especially Amazon. I can take my time shopping and when I'm done there is no line. A few clicks later my order is on it's way.

Posted by Venice09 on 2011-06-15:

OP, you might want to do some comparison shopping in your area. Many people are under the false impression that Walmart has great prices. That's not the case where I live. I get excellent customer service at other stores where prices are similar to Walmart's. Never assume Walmart has the lowest price. Shop around. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Posted by littleshorty on 2011-06-15:

That's true Venice. I went to my neighborhood grocery store today and I noticed a lot of really great sales going on. I went to Walmart the other day and probably paid more than if I had just gone to this grocery store. There's a few things I get at Walmart that are always cheaper than other stores. But it does pay to shop around for the best deals.

Posted by Venice09 on 2011-06-15:

Yaya, it might take a little more effort to look for sales at other stores, but I'd much rather do that than shop at Walmart. I, too used to go in for certain things that were cheaper, but it wasn't enough savings to keep me going back. Not to mention all the times those items were out of stock or moved to a place where I couldn't find them. I can't even remember the last time I was in Walmart, and I can honestly say I don't miss it one bit. My kids even stopped going!

Posted by littleshorty on 2011-06-15:

Walmart does have a better selection than the neighborhood grocery store. So I go there for certain items. Luckily Walmart isn't too far from me so I don't waste too much in gas going there for a few things. The one thing I hate about Walmart is the crowds, so I go to the Walmart Food Market. It's smaller and carries all the same food and toiletry items. There's just no clothes or toys or electronics there

Posted by GenuineNerd on 2011-06-18:

If the neighborhood grocery store is an operation such as Aldi or Save-A-Lot (which carries mostly store brand items and little else), or an older full-line supermarket (most likely an independent instead of a major chain), then Walmart's food selection will be better. But most major chain supermarkets carry a more extensive selection than Walmart does, and often times, have better sales and higher quality items. In my area, I often do better with Giant Eagle than I can with Walmart when it comes to grocery shopping.