9 posts tagged “shopping”
Where have the shoppers gone?
I've been to two malls, Sam's Club and Wal*Mart and not had a problem finding parking on the first try. Heck, I even parked near the door!
All the cashiers were open which made the buying experience all the more pleasant. I found what I needed, in the size and colors wanted. What gives?
This is the final weekend folks, get moving!
Which are your favorite sites for shopping online?
Amazon is my favorite because they really know how to do customer satisfaction and convenience.
When do you start your holiday shopping? I am usually finished by the time Black Friday arrives. I use the official opening day of shopping season to buy things we want or need. Rarely do I find gifts for loved ones and friends.
...is not something I do well. I don't rise at the crack of dawn to stand in line freezing for that $299 computer. I do shop on this day but it's well after the crowds are gone and the piping hot deals have been exhausted.
Our neighbor had to work on Friday, leaving her feeling very angry and sad that the rest of us would be lying in a warm bed well after her 6 a.m. departure. No matter though, since we all felt bad for her and decided to wait to do any shopping until she returned.
We picked her up from work around 2 p.m., dined at Coco's restaurant and then drove the one block to my favorite store Target. I have to say that this store was so neat and clean that there was no indication a mad sale had taken place earlier that morning.
We were shopping around 4 p.m. and Target still had plenty of $5.99 DVD's, decorations and music to satisfy our needs. I ended up buying Night at the Museum, The Notebook and The Holiday. Next we went to Bed, Bath & Beyond where I couldn't find Pomegranate fragrant beads, but did find a Pomegranate candle that smells divine! Of course, we bought other things we hadn't planned.
Even BB&B was very organized with plenty of check stands open and associates helpful and eager to assist. The attitude of the staff goes a long way to ensuring the experience I'll have at a store. If service sucks, I will not return even after the mad rush.
...from acupuncture because, according to the vet, he's been super grumpy and hyper-sensitive to the needles. She feels he needs a break and a reduction in treatments. Nobuku will receive four days off, return next Monday and perhaps, not again until Friday. Hopefully for straight days off won't adversely affect the strides made and the strength in his hind legs.
Meanwhile, Boo and I left work which was fabulous! I've been wanting to stop at a local outlet mall to buy another game called Phase 10 that we enjoy playing at home a lot. I've wanted a separate for work and since the mayhem starts after Thanksgiving Day, Boo and I hurried to the mall and made our purchase.
Now the game at the outlet cost only $4.99 - no biggie, right? Well, we left in such haste to beat traffic, etc. that I left without a jacket. Boo had one but I didn't, so I was told that I had to buy one because the temps dropped so quickly.
Once you calculate the new jacket, the game (we ended buying 3 other items because if you buy three you get the fourth one free), dinner and dessert our "quick trip" cost us $50.
Remind me to stay home next time!
Nope. Not here.
I am the type of shopper that knows what I want and will buy it. I straddle the fence for weeks only to return and not find my size/color/style. If I want it, I buy it and that's that!
My sister on the other hand, will see what she wants. Try it on for like hours. Eventually buy it after we've walked 'round the mall back to the shop. Keep it for two or three days and then return it.
Why bother buying anything?
So no. Four pairs of shoes later. A few outfits and there is no buyer's remorse! LOL
We are members of two warehouse-type stores: Costco and Sam's Club (also affiliated with Wal*Mart) and as a general rule, we avoid both after Halloween. Both stores become so busy and overcrowded that finding a parking space is a challenge in itself.
Well being the sucker that I am, when a friend asked me to please check Sam's Club for a men's Casio Pathfinder watch, I obliged. I kicked myself all the way to the store anticipating the fight for a parking space and the lines of 20 people or so at each cash register. I even thought we might miss our following appointment as a result.
Boy, was I wrong! I parked two spaces from the entrance. The lines were non-existent. The demonstrators were begging folks to try their food samples and we easily navigated our way around the warehouse. Heck, we even had time to compare LCD television prices and picture quality among brands!
It was so unbelievable, we waited in line discussing where all the customers had gone? The news keeps reporting brisk sales, but I haven't seen it. The parking lots appear full but once inside a store, the people are walking about and window shopping withoug carrying bags.
Oh yes the watch, Sam's Club does have it in two styles and the range is $159.00 - $169.00. I SMSed my friend and she's holding out for a better price. I told her to stop being so cheap. I also reminded her that what they had today may not be the case one week from now! LOL
What's it like in your area?
We awoke at 7 this morning and judging by Boo's itinerary for the day, I knew it was going to be a long Black Friday. We shopped at eight stores in eight hours and pretty much found everything we needed. The one item MIA was a Jensen iPod docking system with AM/FM radio.
We easily found parking everywhere we went and the staff was helpful. The crowds were well behaved and everyone just seemed to be in good spirits and eager to have a pleasant experience. You better believe we put our 20% discount coupon to use on our entire order.
A cashier at Bed, Bath & Beyond shared her concern about arriving to work at 4:30 a.m. until she saw a full parking lot and throngs of customers lined around the building and snaking through the lot. A Target associate said "People pushed through the doors and ran through the store like we were giving away stuff free!"
The shelves were stocked and the stores were not messy or in disarray. It's unbelievable that everywhere we went store associates would inquire "are you finding everything?", how often does this happen? Seriously, Sears is notorious for looking like a graveyard and having associates from the hardware department cover for someone in jewelry and not knowing anything helpful to the customer.
In So. Cal. the San Fernando Valley region is poised to entice you to
spend your hard earned money. We recently celebrated Halloween,
Thanksgiving has yet to arrive, but onward the shopping centers push us
to Christmas. Er, is it Happy Holidays? Last year all retailers wanted
our money but wanted to woo us with Happy Holidays lest, they offend
non-Christians. Recently Wal-Mart announced that their greeters will
indeed be wishing shoppers a Merry Christmas, after receiving numerous
complaints from consumers. I could have waited until after Thanksgiving
to be reminded of the frenzied onslaught just around the corner. In
case you are wondering, these money grubbing retailers did not get my
money this weekend!
