Frustrating trying to buy things

I went into a Lowes (similar to Home Depot) to see if they had a work bench like I saw in a different Lowe's a week ago. They couldn't find it and the 1 guy (there were 3 people at the desk) said I should have bought it when I saw it. WTF? I happened to see it on the way out and didn't have my truck. I went out to my truck and called another Lowe's and they had no idea. Then I called Debi to ask her if she remembered which Lowe's it was. Yes, so I called that Lowe's and they said the store I was at showed 6 of them in stock and gave me a number. For some reason it's listed as a rack commercial. The legs are like racking but it's only 3ft. high with a table top. Regardless what it's called it's really frustrating when people working in a store don't know what they sell. It's very much like parts people who can't figure out what you need without the actual part number. I made sure to push the cart past their station and tell them they had it. The guy said "oh was it on clearance?" No, you had 6 in stock, it's a regular item. Learn what the hell you sell!
Went to get some Hyd. Fluid at Walmart because it's $15 to $20 cheaper than anywhere else. They were lost and even after they found it in the system couldn't tell me if another store(s) had stock. So I drove to another store and the girl was also lost and couldn't tell me if another store had it. She said I could order it online. That doesn't help me much if I need it tomorrow.
It's so hard to buy anything today so when you actually find someone who has a clue it makes you appreciate even more. They are few and far between.

Try my best to avoid the big box stores just for the reasons you mentioned...If one does find an employee with a "clue", they will be gone the next time your there.
The plumbing dept at Home Despot is the worst, employees are good at the "deer in the headlights" look when asked a question, thats it.
Ed

The Lowe’s website is shockingly accurate when looking at stock. Even tells you which isle and bay to look in. Use self-checkout and you don’t even have to make eye contact with their drones.

Seriously, I don’t like the box stores either, but our privately-owned native corporation hardware stores are worse.

The play with the box store is to set up a commercial account. When you run into a issue like that, call your commercial account rep. There is some kind of incentive for the commercial guy to help you vs the 300 pound, purple haired gal wondering the plumbing dept.

This is what I call "Having to push it in one end, to pull it out the other end".
It's bad even in industrial supply houses.

I have a HD Commercial account. I email or hand deliver an order with the SKU number for each item. Give them 3 days to pull the order. No call so check on the order. Oh it is ready. Go to pick it up. Check each item as I load it. All ways 2-4 mistakes on the order, wrong items, wrong quantity what ever. I gave up on the big box stores. I use a commercial plumbing supply house 20 miles away. Call my sales contact and place my order. delivered to my farm 2 days later 100% correct and the driver helps me put it up. Same with electrical. Use a local City Electric Supply. Better prices and service from both and I don't have to chase my tail all over town.

Be lucky you have a Lowe's or a Home Depot in your town, we have neither and the only options is a mom and pop hardware store and if Walmart in this town doesn't have it, welp you are SOL (schit out of luck). Nearest anything in that relation is a 8 hour round trip to get it if you need it soon since next day shipping or 2nd day shipping doesn't exist either here, be lucky if you got 3 day shipping.

The general retail employees with the rare exception tend to be damn near useless meat bags on legs.

if you don’t know what it is or where it is and can’t find it on the app…good f-king luck on your scavenger hunt.

If you went to the Walmart and Lowe's I'm thinking you did, I am not suprised.

Coaldust said:

The Lowe’s website is shockingly accurate when looking at stock. Even tells you which isle and bay to look in. Use self-checkout and you don’t even have to make eye contact with their drones.

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I'm sure the website is accurate. Finding the product is the problem. If you don't know what it's listed under forget it. Maybe I should have just looked under a Craftsman??? This is where it would be nice if employee's knew their products a little better or the website would show similar products that may be listed under a different category. 3ft. tall table looking thing with a flat top and 1 lower shelf seems more of work bench that a rack to me.

I blame the computer systems a lot. We've turned to relying on them too much and often the descriptions don't match instinctively, so know one knows what they have.

I'm terrified of the impending reliance on AI (we already have too much of it)...

On a different but similar note I was in the ER at the hospital last Friday, and first thing they did upon my check-in was to talk to the AI in their little walkie-talkie thing to set/fill my bed. As soon as the lady said whatever she said it came back and said "I think you said blah, blah, blah" I couldn't help but laugh for the next couple minutes after the AI said that several times as it sounds like the same garbage AI that answers all customer service phone calls, that can't understand a thing, and I'm sure that won't cause any issues in the emergency room. I don't know how reliant they are to that system but it's garbage.

Speaking of buying things, fuel inj parts are getting ridiculous.!!
Finding “a” part is an all day job and IF you’re lucky enough to find it.. the price has DOUBLED since February.!!
NOW, the “go-to” phrase is, it’s stuck in customs..
Bosch is in Germany.
Delphi is in England.
Yanmar is in Japan.
Zexel is in China..
In the last month, I’ve had 2 occasions where the part is “obsolete with no replacement”...
And the pump isn’t that old..late 80’s maybe..Putting it THAT WAY I guess it is old.. lol

thepumpguysc said:

Speaking of buying things, fuel inj parts are getting ridiculous.!!
Finding “a” part is an all day job and IF you’re lucky enough to find it.. the price has DOUBLED since February.!!
NOW, the “go-to” phrase is, it’s stuck in customs..
Bosch is in Germany.
Delphi is in England.
Yanmar is in Japan.
Zexel is in China..
In the last month, I’ve had 2 occasions where the part is “obsolete with no replacement”...
And the pump isn’t that old..late 80’s maybe..Putting it THAT WAY I guess it is old.. lol

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Seeing the same thing. 6+ week waits for stuff we used to be able to get within a week.

It makes no sense to buy things at a big box store or walmart, because its all cheaper, and then complain that the employee's don't know anything.

Buy from a local oil supplier or industrial warehouse, and you will likely get someone who knows something, and you will pay for the knowledge.

crane operator said:

It makes no sense to buy things at a big box store or walmart, because its all cheaper, and then complain that the employee's don't know anything.

Buy from a local oil supplier or industrial warehouse, and you will likely get someone who knows something, and you will pay for the knowledge.

Click to expand...

The industrial supply houses aren’t open on the weekends when I need stuff.

also a lot of them tend to have an attitude problem that I don’t care for too much.

The difference is the box stores are where you go for regular items that they display on their floors. The computers and how they're listed is part of the problem but it should be a lot easier to find things, especially when most larger items are on display. Obviously some employee's are a lot more aware of what they sell. Better training would certainly help.

Only thing I'll buy at Walmart is synthetic oil. 5L Supertech for $21 vs $75 for Mobil or Penzoil.

I spent 2 minutes at a sonic drive thru window waiting on the employee to punch in the numbers right on a calculator to make sure I got the correct change from a 9.09 bill after I gave him a 20

Unfortunately, in a lot of cases the industrial supply houses will not talk to a "civilian" customer, you have to have a company account and an EIN number.

The thing not to like is how they are slowly taking more from us. Guy at Lowes said they are going to just have water color paints so by by anything oil base, I suppose the other idiot outfit will follow suit, (homedepoo).
So now R134A is no longer available here, what's next? And to think it wasn't too many years ago I could have bought it for .99 cents per can. I see it occasionally for 25 to 50 per can, but stores can't sell it.