By Kyle Roberts
“It’s right there,” I thought to myself last night. “If I actually took it and left, what could possibly happen?”
The answer to that question is unknown, because once I realized that all five of us were powerless to fix the problem, I knew it was time to leave, item not in-hand, despite paying for it at the counter.
For context, I took a quick trip to the store last night for a piece of computer equipment that I had found on the Walmart app. One of the beauties of searching for items on Walmart’s online store is seeing if the item is actually in stock at the local store. And even better — the item was listed as $40 off its normal price. So I made the quick trip into town and walked right into the electronics’ section, looking for Aisle K7.
Right there was the last one. I asked the cashier to open the case, and he rang up the item. And I saw the item was full price.
“Sir,” I said in an effort to be disarming. “I found the same item on the app. It said it’s on sale.”
It was clear immediately he’s had this conversation before. “That’s if you buy it online,” he said as kindly as possible.
“Sure,” I replied. App in hand, I added the physical item into the virtual cart and clicked purchase, thinking this was the logical solution. I selected “Pick Up” because, well, I was in fact right there to pick it up. Case closed, right?
“You’ll have to come back tomorrow to get it,” he said, taking the item to a cabinet behind him.
I blink three times. “Come back…. tomorrow?” I can hardly get the words out. “But it’s right there, and you watched me buy it.”
By this time, the electronics manager has come over. She, too, has had this talk with plenty of customers.
“It’s a corporate thing,” the manager said. “They’re trying to compete with Amazon, so you have to buy the item online.”
I’m nodding. “And I just did that. So, can I have my item?”
She shook her head no. “One of our shoppers will have to come scan it, and that won’t be until tomorrow morning.” The first cashier is bringing another manager and clerk over at this point, as I have no doubt my face was in a different stratosphere of confusion.
An important note: the staff, from the clerks to the managers, could not have been kinder or more helpful. And rest assured, I was not going to make their jobs more difficult than they already are. Customer service is hard enough without someone making it worse. I was abundantly clear that I was not going to be argumentative — I was curious at this point to see if there was a reasonable answer to the following question:
“Am I crazy here, or is this insane?”
Five nods in unison, and we’re all practically laughing at this point. The item belonged to me, but due to company policy, a second person would have to scan the item to remove it from inventory which would not happen for another day. And not one person with any authority inside the store was allowed to use the common sense solution of handing me my item and allowing me to leave.
Various solutions were tossed out, ranging from paying full price (uh, no) to canceling the order and having someone deliver it to my house. I’d still save $30 and get my item quicker than the next day, but someone else driving the item to my house was out of the question. At this point, I’ve got ten toes standing on this business.
The one solution that was not offered? Handing me the paid-for item and allowing me to leave the store.
“They think it’s more efficient this way for their inventory system,” the second manager said, again referencing the corporate office. “But I understand why you’re frustrated.”
“Nah,” I replied, honestly, even though the thoughts to just grab the item and walk out are running through my head. “I just really wanted to make sure that I wasn’t the only person who sees the absurdity in this. I’ve purchased the item, and I’ll have to come back tomorrow.”
We all shook hands, and I thanked them for their time.
As I entered into my car, I couldn’t help but think about all the great technological advances we’ve had with online shopping. There’s so many things that are easily purchased and more processes that are efficient, now more than ever. Make no mistake, I understand this is the literal definition of a “First World Problem,” but what’s the cost? Is it truly best-business practice to let a customer walk out without the items they paid for in the name of efficiency? Walmart pays people way smarter than me to answer those questions.
All I know is that I don’t like it — but when the item is “ready,” I’ll be right back in the store today to pick it up.
Quite frankly, maybe that was corporate’s plan all along.
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