Time for another installment of “Shelly’s Pet Peeves” here on the TwoClassyChics blog. I know some of our members enjoy reading about the things that irk me off and some don’t. If you don’t…this post isn’t for you. If you do…read on!
Just like all of you I have to go out into the retail stores to buy groceries, to pick up household items, gifts, pet supplies, clothing, toys, etc. I enjoy shopping and I try to shop in offline retail stores during the week when they tend to be less busier. I don’t like standing in long checkout lines, fighting for parking spaces or dealing with crowded stores. I like to shop…but hate dealing with all of that!
A few weeks ago I had to go out and pick up a few things at XYZZ store. I won’t mention the store’s name as its NOT about bashing that particular store. This post is really about all of the stuff that irks me off and things that shoppers shouldn’t have to deal with. Let’s go!
(photo above is one that I personally took during a recent shopping trip. It was a miserable shopping experience).
1. I’m disabled and I have a handicap parking permit. I get really ticked off when a store only designates 1-2 spaces for handicap parking when they need at least 10. I also get irked off when I see lazy, non-handicapped people parking in those spaces!
2. Why do people seem to hold conversations in the middle of an aisle? Why do they park their dang cart in the middle of the aisle so you can’t pass? Come on now…I want to get in and out. Get your butt and your cart over to the side. I get really irritated when I see sales staff nearby who do NOTHING to get these people moving to the side.
3. I get really irked off when I go into a store to get a specific thing and find the shelf empty or almost empty! What? I’m talking about things that should always be in stock! Ugh. Great, now I have to go to another store.
4. Please don’t block an aisle, freezer, shelf, etc. with a stock cart! If you don’t have time to unload that stock cart & put things up on the shelf…park it in the stock room or at the back of the store. I’m tired of finding FULL stock carts in the middle of the aisle or blocking my access to grab something off a shelf.
5. I understand the need for more floor space but come on now…I’m not 7 foot tall. Please quit piling things up on high shelves that I can’t reach! Don’t tell me to go find a salesperson to get something down. Screw that…I’m a busy woman and I don’t have time to hunt people down.
6. Don’t try to sell me expired and outdated food and products! If you want to try to be sly and sell that stuff to consumers you need to put up clear & concise signage stating that XYZ is beyond the sell date. Trickery is not cool.
7. Let’s talk about support pets. I’m all about people having certain type’s of support pets and service animals. However…I’m not about the “fakers” bringing all kinds of animals into a store and then claiming it’s their “Support Pet”. Get real. Your rat, hermit crab, billy goat, boa constrictor, etc. don’t need to be in the store! Businesses need to step up, put their foot down and get these people & these type’s of pets out of the store. Quit turning your nose the other way.
8. Trashy and dirty stores. Time to clean up your act if you want my business. I’m tired of hangers laying on the floor, items thrown in the wrong places, trash laying on the floors, dirt on the shelves, etc. I don’t expect your store to be as clean as my home but come on now…time to clean up your business!
9. Not enough help! Every store pretty much knows which days of the week and which times of the day that their store gets busy. It’s their job to have enough staff there to handle all of the customer’s needs. Don’t try to save on business expenses by hiring a skeleton crew.
10. Long checkout lines!!! On a recent shopping trip I stood in line for 45 minutes to pay for my purchase! The store had 4 registers but ONLY ONE was open. WTH? If there are lines you need to open up more checkout lines! Customers shouldn’t have to wait that dang long to check out!
I could go on and on about the things that are irking me these days when I go out to shop in the retail world. What kind of things really get under your skin?
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I agree with all of your rants. I am a parent and a grandparent. If my child/grandchild has a tantrum and won’t stop I will leave the store.
Your rants are so funny, partly because they’re so true! Here’s my grocery store rant: I was minding my own business, with my hand on the side of the cart’s handle, and a kid driving a cart slammed her cart into my hand. I yelped right out loud–that hurt! The kid looked like, “whoops, what did I do” and her grandmother didn’t seem concerned at all. Another shopper came to check that I was okay. I had a bruise for a day or two, but the worst was the throbbing all the way home. Thanks for giving me the space to share my own little rant!
I had to add another one…. I was just at the grocery store the other day and saw a woman in there shopping in her PAJAMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I HATE THAT!!!! It was during the day, there was nothing wrong with her, she was late twenties early thirties just LAZY! This is not the first time that I have seen this in stores and it makes me a little/lot cray cray! Once I was at another grocery store that I go to a lot and there as another slob in there wearing his bathrobe and slippers! I complained about him but since he was already in the check-out like they don’t do sh*t about it! I had to go to the store the day I had surgery and I STILL managed to get dressed and put on my shoes before I left the hospital!!!! NO PAJAMAS, NO ROBES, NO SLIPPERS IN STORES!!
Yes, all of those things irk me too. Add customers who decide they don’t want something that has been in their cart and just put it on a shelf of where ever. This really applies to refrigerated food. Don’t be so lazy, take it back to the correct place. I will probably get someone mad but those crying, screaming children that the parents just ignore and let it go on FOREVER. If you haven’t taught them better than that… take them outside or to some corner in the store until it is under control. I have actually cut my shopping trip short just to get away from them. It gives me a headache and shopping is bad enough. Sorry to those that I have hurt your feelings.. but it really gives me a headache.
I can’t stand the screaming kids thing either. Three weeks ago I went to a store manager and have them go talk to a woman who had 2 small kids in the back of her shopping cart who had been throwing fits, screaming and crying for over 20 minutes. She just ignored them and kept on shopping (clothing aisle in a dept store). Everyone around them was whispering and commenting about it. I couldn’t take it anymore & went to the store manager. The manager did go talk to the mother who in turn started yelling and cursing at the store manager. I had finally had enough. Parked my cart and left.
The screaming crying kids give me a headache too. If I had done that when I was little my mother would have left the store with me right then and there and I would have gotten in trouble outside. These parents who just ignore it make me so mad, I have left many a store because of it never thought about going to the store manager before that is a great idea thanks for sharing I will do that next time.
A lot of these young parents are told to “ignore” their child’s temper tantrum and stuff like that. Well, that’s fine & dandy but do that ignoring BS at home. Don’t do it in a store where your child is driving everyone around them totally nuts. I don’t go shopping to hear a child screaming and throwing a hissy fit. Get your child and leave the store. Come back when your child is behaving properly or come back alone. I’m really tired of dealing with this when I go out.
I do enjoy reading your rants, especially like this one where I agree with all of them. A friend said: If you go through self service you are keeping someone unemployed.
Very true. I avoid those self checkout lines as much as possible. I hate using them.
I am with you on EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE! There is one that I have to add….the darn self check out out lines. If i wanted to check out my groceries, I would have been a Cashier.
Your rants are the best, keep ’em coming!
OMG I hate those self checkouts too! They’re all different and you have to learn each one when it comes to ringing up and paying for your own order. They’re a PITA and I try to avoid them.
I am one that likes reading your pet peeves and can identify with them. I have found lately that some stores are out of their advertised specials or don’t have prices marked correctly. Last week I was charged $16 for a green pepper because it was entered in wrong. Wonder how many people never check and end up being overcharged.
I consider my rants, vents & pet peeves to all be about common sense. Sadly these days…a lot of people lack common sense and manners.
Man, ALL of the above things you listed piss me off too. I was just at a busy store the other day and had to wait in a huge line and there were six cash registers and they are ALL closed I thought I was going to totally nut up! If I saw someone in the store with a snake I would freak out! I stopped shopping at Ross because it is such a total cluster in there and it smells like a gym turns my stomach! Oh and people chit chatting in the middle of the aisle ticks me off too or people on their cell phones just stopped in the aisle like they are the only ones in the whole store. I hate the people who want o stand one inch from me at the cash register and cough on me that really sets me off – I don’t want your cold. So now I make sure I keep the shopping cart behind me at the cash register to keep them off of me. I love your rants thank you for posting I feel better now.
Working on 4 more rants…another one being posted next week after I have it done.