A Borders cashier wouldn’t give Allison her copy of Harry Potter without a plastic bag. A mindful environmentalist, Allison refused, even after the cashier stated that the bag would serve as Allison’s proof of purchase. When Allison pointed out the absurdity of using a bag as proof of purchase when she had a receipt, the cashier:
…rolled her eyes and said that if I didn’t want the bag, I could throw it away as soon as I left the store. I exclaimed that that was certainly the least environmentally friendly thing anyone could do, and she just pushed my book, a bag, a poster and my receipt at me and said, “Next.”
Allison’s letter to Borders, and their response, after the jump.
Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 23:44:03 -0700 (PDT)
From: Allison
Subject: Disappointed in Service at Borders
To: ccare@bordersstores.comI am a longtime Borders customer with a Borders Rewards card who is reconsidering her book-shopping values after an incident this evening. I’m hoping that you can help me understand what happened.
Like millions of people, I pre-ordered “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” earlier this year and planned to pick it up at the Creve Coeur, Mo., location at midnight Saturday, July 21. I obtained a line ticket July 20 and found the activities and atmosphere pleasurable. I was impressed by the staff’s energy and ability to keep everyone happy. That is, until I made it to the cashier’s bar.
As soon as I approached, the cashier began to pull out a plastic Borders shopping bag. I explained that I didn’t need a bag, as I was only purchasing one book. She gave me an odd look and curtly said that everyone needed to have a bag. I responded that that was not environmentally friendly, especially in light of Scholastic boasting 65% certified ancient forest-friendly pulp pages in the American version of the book (Raincoast Books in Canada, however, used 100% recycled paper). The cashier again looked at me askew and said that it was policy and proof of purchase. I said that my receipt should be proof of purchase, especially since the one book I was buying was being held behind the counter and not available elsewhere in the store. She rolled her eyes and said that if I didn’t want the bag, I could throw it away as soon as I left the store. I exclaimed that that was certainly the least environmentally friendly thing anyone could do, and she just pushed my book, a bag, a poster and my receipt at me and said, “Next.”
I find it doubtful that Borders, Inc., had set a policy stating that each person MUST take a plastic bag with them when purchasing books, especially since I had purchased books previously (including during previous “Harry Potter” release events) without taking a bag. I also find it disturbing that this cashier brushed off my concerns with eye rolls and a short tone. I understand that the store was packed, but I was not trying to hold up the line — I simply wanted to buy the book without a plastic bag. There was no one at the door checking for bags or receipts, and most of the customers I saw only had one copy with no use for a bag.
In an age when people are finally beginning to understand the global consequences of their actions, corporations are taking measures to behave in the most environmentally way possible, and consumers are taking small but firm steps to lighten their environmental impact, I find this cashier’s reaction to my baglass request and her brusque attitude in general appalling. I certainly hope that her attitude is not indicative of Borders as a whole, but I would appreciate clarification from your front office within one week. Specifically, I would like to know if taking a useless plastic bag for one item was “policy,” and if it was, why? Why have a policy like that when potentially 12 million American readers may only purchase one book, which would mean potentially 12 million useless plastic bags littering the country?
I also will be sending my concerns to Treehugger.com and Consumerist.com, two massively popular websites that review the behavior of corporations.
For the record, my receipt shows the following information:
Store: 0113; Reg: 05/03; Tran#: 2201; Sale 07/21/2007; Emp: 00158; 07/21/2007 00:42 AMThank you, and I look forward to hearing from your corporate office within one week.
Sincerely,
Allison
Allison received an email from Borders over the weekend:
Date: Sat, 21 Jul 2007 09:16:53 -0500 (CDT)
From: ccare@bordersstores.com
Dear Allison,Thank you for contacting Borders Customer Care and making us aware of your concern. I would like to apologize for your experience at our Creve Coeur store.
I am forwarding your comments to the General Manager for the store and the District Manager for the area. I am sure the GM and DM for this store will be grateful to receive your feedback so that they can rectify the situation.
Again, thank you for taking the time to bring this matter to our attention. If there is anything else we can do for you, please let us know.
Sincerely,
Shelley
Borders Customer Care
http://www.bordersstores.com
The store manager did get in touch with Allison:
This weekend, the store manager (I think his name was Brian), called me. He was super-nice and very apologetic, though I still don’t feel completely satisfied. He said that he appreciated my positive comments on the staff and activities of Harry Potter night and agreed that most everything went well. He said that one of his cashiers approached him before going home, saying that she had a customer who didn’t want a bag, and she (the cashier) didn’t handle it very well. After hearing that and then receiving my email from customer service, he realized that both referenced the same incident. He apologized for his employee’s behavior and said that while corporate had handed down a general mandate that all books be in bags (to speed things along and deter stealing), employees are always free to serve the customer as they see fit. This employee, he said, tried to stay a little too true to the policy and ended up offending me, the customer.Obviously, I was miffed at being forced to take a bag when I clearly stated that I didn’t want one and would be happy to show my receipt as I went out the door that was ten feet away (though no one was stationed there checking bags or receipts). That wasn’t my biggest problem, though. I was more concerned with what was apparently a policy from corporate that all purchases be put into bags, even when customers were only buying one item. He said that on normal (non-Potter) days, employees ask customers if they need a bag (I’ve had this happen) and most customers decline if they only have an item or two. Because of Pottermania, however, the company decided that automatically putting the books into bags would easily show employees that people had purchased the book. I’m still aghast that Borders didn’t take into consideration what an extra 12 million plastic bags could do to the environment and that they thought they needed them in the first place, since, again, no one was checking receipts/bags, and all Potter books were well behind the counter of approximately eight cashiers. I related all of this to the manager, and while he was sympathetic, he couldn’t shed any more light on the subject.
It all just seems careless on Borders’ part, though I’m sure they’re not the only bookstore to do this. I think it’s a bit hypocritical to put canvas bags with the Borders logo up for sale in an effort to reduce plastic bag use among customers (and show off the Borders brand) and still automatically hand out plastic bags for one of the biggest bookselling events in history. This could have been a great opportunity for Borders to lead the bagless way, and it was squandered.
We understand Borders’ desire to keep order on one of the busiest days of the year, but that doesn’t excuse ignoring the wishes of an individual customer wanting to do her part to clean up our environment.
What do you think? Was Borders’ response sufficient? Tell us in the comments.
(Photo: s2art)
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Whups, sorry. Borders. I can’t tell the two apart.
Actually, at my local Barnes and Noble in Norcross, GA, none of the cashiers handed out a single bag during the Harry Potter event unless it was requested by the customer. It was simply, pay, get book, and leave–no question about a bag. I’m not sure if this was nationwide or simply my branch, but it was a completely different experience to the experience held at Borders.
@CatMoran: And again, what part of “especially since the one book I was buying was being held behind the counter and not available elsewhere in the store” escapes you?
I could halfway buy the clerk’s reason if not for that. If the book was behind the counter, and is now in the customer’s hand, the assumption is that it’s paid for.
Sounds like our local Borders. Not only are they anal about bags, but one of the managers flat-out refused to check me out without a Reward Card.
I just stared at her in shock because I’m not at all confrontational and she was just being rude for no reason. She asked me if I knew the lady I’d been standing with in line. I said yes and the manager yelled over to my mom for her card.
don’t environmentalists have better things to do then whine about every little thing?
@Quietly:
I would have left. Absolutely no excuse for that kind of behavior, especially from a manager.
For every bag she doesn’t take, I’m going to ask for three.
Some people have too much free time, it seems…
Crazy hippie chick. Think of all the trees murdered to publish your stupid harry pussy potter. See what happens when we let you out of your coffee shops and drum circles for one minute? Fast forward 5,000 years – the last human pulls itself across the tundra, trying to survive on a dying world and finally chokes to death on a Borders plastic shopping back. Woot – irony!
And remember for every plastic bag you use, a hippie’s hacky sack goes in the gutter.
@leftistcoast: What I meant by “the real source of the problem” is the production process and the fact that we have to take the petroleum from the ground, refine it, transport it, process it into plastics generates much of the environmental impact of plastic usage. Even if the demand for plastic bags decline by a significant amount, the production of plastics will barely be impacted because it is literally used everywhere. Are you going to refuse milk packaged in plastic jugs (which is the same stuff–polyethylene–as the bags), or plastic shrink wrapped goods, or buying a new car because it’s plastic?
Instead of overemphasizing the usage of plastic bags, perhaps we should direct our energy into supporting new research on plastic alternatives, or lobbying for better regulation of the plastics industry, or lobbying for a policy change that can affect new research. Granted it doesn’t feel as good as refusing a plastic bag, but if it succeeds, it’ll be much more effective than giving a cashier who gets $8/hr grief over one bag.
I’m really surprised that the manager didn’t offer her some sort of coupon or freebie to retain her as a customer after the issue. I used to work at my local Borders and managers usually had two coupons in their name tag holder at all times: “xx% (I think it was 10%) off the regular price of any item”, and “1 free drink in the cafe,” and could offer whatever kind of discounts they wanted.
While it seems Allison’s frustration with the store is settled, if not the corporation at large, I know she could have gotten something more had she been ruthlessly committed to getting something. nice to see she wasn’t bloodthirsty, though.
And, as for the bags as loss prevention: from a retail standpoint, it makes tons of sense, especially on a huge event night when you expect to have ten times the amount of sales of a normal day
…and ten times the traffic
…and when you’re selling what will likely be the number on book of the year at the lowest prices (probably 40% discount off of cover)
…and when it is unlikely that the store has had time to prepare those books with the typical loss prevention devices.
A bag takes the place of a PAID sticker, and does some lo-key marketing. It’s alot better than having some borders bouncer stop you as you leave to check your receipt. I think all parties are in the black here.
Since (apparently) Harry Potter isn’t available as an eBook, might I suggest the following environmentally concious ways to enjoy this outstanding literature:
1) Check it out from a library
2) Borrow a friend’s copy
Of course she would have to wait a bit longer to read the book, but wouldn’t that be a small price to pay for someone that got her silks in a bunch over the initial plastic bag problem?
@Namlia “A plastic bag isn’t the end of the world.”
Plastic bags add up, it may not seem much to you but if you think about every bag given away with just a single book, 12 million bags is quite a bit of waste. If everyone does a small part to conserve, it adds up to large dividends in the end. Try to think large scale, not on a personal level.
@LowerHouseMember:
Bravo, I agree.
My interpretation from this is – perhaps Allison has a stick up her patootie(wooden not plastic) and the persnikitty attitude is just as offensive.
YES YES, sure sure, all store clerks need to keep their composure and practice discipline in not rolling the eye-ballies, but – for her to open the letter to customer service with:
“I’m hoping that you can help me understand what happened.”
EeeeGats – don’t play coy-victimized consumer.
“Help you understand?” Um-DUH, we all have bad days sometimes. You could understand perfectly well that clerk did not handle the situation well and in my oppinion – you blew it out of proportion.
I’m done with my soap box, thank you
@SBR249: Less people purchasing plastic bags equals less demand, which equals less desire for manufacture. It’s one step of many that help prevent plastic stopping up the pipes. Every little bit helps.
Their response was enough… customer service bad, customer contacts corporate, corporate talks to store, store apologizes to customer. End of story.
The cashier was rude and stringently enforcing a stupid rule, the cashier was wrong.
The “policy” is stupid on two levels:
1) it costs the company money in wasted bags
2) it makes shoplifting EASIER not harder. As a juvenile delinquent I learned the easiest way to get free music (this was before the days of Napster) was to purchase one disc, then wander around the store and stuff my bag with other merchandise and then walk out, looking like a paying customer. Sometimes, we even skipped the first step and just brought in an old bag and filled it and left, although that felt a lot riskier.
@3drage: I don’t think you read the part of my comment where I said plastics are literally everywhere? Crimping on plastic bags will barely put a dent on the plastic industry. that’s like saying if we each conserve a little gas instead of finding alternatives, we can wean ourselves off gasoline. If we hope to solve the problem of plastics, we need to fundamentally change how they are made and what they are made of, not how we use them.
I’m not a fan of the big chain bookstore and would normally side with the, um, extremely enthusiastic environmentalist….but it sounds as if Alison could have expended her resources on a more worthwhile issue. The cashier apologized, Alison, you got a response….get a life ! and move on.
@SBR249: I completely agree that the issue of plastics is a much much larger problem than this story addresses or intended to address. And one plastic bag does not a solution make. But it’s a step. And, yes, it may feel good to get your eco-righteousness when refusing a bag but, call me an optimist, I’d hope that Allison has thought as much about the omnipresence of plastics and opted to compatible decisions in other areas of her life (opting for glass or paper milk cartons, walking/biking rather than driving, seeking out minimally packaged consumables, etc). Perhaps she’s even lobbied for appropriate governmental action, as you mentioned. But the attack has to be two-pronged: petitioning for redress from your government will only go so far…your dollars, your consumer-behavior, take you the rest of the distance.
@leftistcoast: Speaking of ‘petitioning’, I’d like to petition for a comment preview function…man, I can’t seem to get my edit on proper today.
Allison,
Sometimes I dump used motor oil down the street drain. You don’t even want to know what I do with used plastic bags…
Sincerely,
Reality
I kind of sympathize with the cashier. If I had some rabid Harry Potter eviro-nut going on about the percentage of tree’s in a plastic bag while rambling on about what bookstores in Canada use, I would probably look at the nut for what she was too.
And what a shock Borders taking care of the issue was not enough. Stand by for the $54 Million lawsuit with her new lawyer, Roy Pearson.
umm…anyone concerned about all the trees that were chopped down to make the pages of those books…and what about the colorful covers…must be some good chemicals there too.
@robertseaton: No, they farm trees for paper production… And minks for fur coats.
Before I start, I should say that I agree with the writer that she shouldn’t have had a bag forced on her, but if it had been me, I would have left the bag on the counter.
I think this is one of the best complaint letters I have ever seen. She is polite, reasonable and objective in her complaint, provides her entire side of the story, and asks for clarification of Borders’ policies instead of for a gift card or other ridiculous “compensation”. In return, I think Borders handled the situation very well and to a full resolution. She may not be happy with their policy, but they explained it as best they could. It was a poor decision on their part, and maybe next time they won’t make that decision, but the incident has been handled, and should, I think, be considered over.
However, I hope that the manager also assured her that the cashier in question would be given additional training in customer service, including how tone of voice and eye rolling can escalate a situation. Maybe I’m just too cynical but I find it really hard to believe that the cashier approached the manager to say that she didn’t think she handled it well. I’ve worked in retail enough that I know people don’t cover their asses like that, they just hope not to be found out.
I really don’t see how flaming Allison for not wanting to use a bag is constructive in any way. She’s not alone in wanting to skip the superfluous bag at the register either.
While I agree with everything this woman said and did and commend her for her efforts, there’s one thing she didn’t consider. If she’s REALLY concerned about her personal environmental impact, she shouldn’t have bought Harry Potter that night. She should have waited a couple of months (after the hype begins to wear off) and either bought it used or checked it out from the library.
What you do is say “I don’t need a bag” and if they give you one anyway, just take the product and receipt out of it. Leave the bag on the counter and walk out. No argument and you leave the bitchy cashier with a bag sitting on the counter.
While I like to see a well-written, articulate complaint letter, I don’t think it was necessary in this case. I simple “I will NOT be taking a bag” would probably have sufficed to shut up the snotty checkout girl. I think a majority of the problems people face with companies stems from our dislike of confrontation- acquiescing at the counter and complaining later is passive aggressive at best and sets a bad example.
@Clobberella: Sure, and she could wear cocinut husks instead of clothes and only eat out of dumpsters. Or, she could kill herself, and reduce her impact 100%
Or, she could do whatever small thing she can whenever she’s able, like she’s been doing, only without the snarks from the holier-than-thous.
What a sanctimonious twit. Just take the fucking bag and quit hassling the cashier.
@infinitysnake:
Wow! The hostility! I already said I agreed with her. I don’t think it’s terribly “holier-than-thou” to suggest that someone who is clearly already concerned with her environmental impact (inlcuding the impact from paper, which she brought up herself) to take it one small step further. Used books are cheaper anyhow, and library books are free. It’s a win-win for everyone.
I agree with everyone else. Take the book out of the bag and leave the bag. I hate taking home a bunch of plastic bags. I think what really made this woman mad is that fact that the cashier “rolled her eyes”.
@Clobberella: It is certainly “holier than thou” to make such a suggestion, and condescending to boot.
@infinitysnake:
I’d really like to understand why you think so. I buy used books all the time. What’s wrong with used books? What’s wrong with suggesting that someone who cares about waste buy used books? How is that in any way condescending? Why are you attacking me instead of everyone who thought she was stupid for not wanting to take the bag? Good lord.
@tvh2k: “If she cared about the environment she would have purchased an eBook!”
Do you know what goes into making consumer electronics? Do you know how bad these products are for the environment?
I believe a book printed on recycled, or mostly recycled paper is much better for the environment.
@Clobberella: I think so because your comment was not framed to be helpful, even if you’re backpedaling now. And yes, it is considered holier than thou to play one-ups: “if she’s REALLY concerned” carries the obvious implication that you think she isn’t.
@Kimba: Amen!
@infinitysnake:
I think you’re just misunderstanding me. I didn’t mean really as in “honestly” but really as in “very” (which she clearly is)… I guess it didn’t come across that way to you, but I didn’t mean it the way you think I did, which is why I was honestly quite flabbergasted by your responses. And no, I’m not backpedaling. I just don’t think that the printing of 100 million books is any more helpful to the environment than 12 million plastic bags, and if more people bought used books or checked them out or borrowed them from other people then there wouldn’t be a need for so many to be printed. If you still think that’s condescending then I’m sorry you feel that way. I know it’s hard to discern tone through text.
So take the bagged book from the cashier, take the book out of the bag and leave the poor bag for the cashier to recycle. NEXT!
If you’re concerned about the environment, you could always reuse the bag for something else. If you don’t take it, the person behind you will.
@bigvicproton: pish tosh, it always seems like theres a war on, be it iraq or the middle class
I think Borders response was completely adequate but what I am concerned about are the responses here. However Allison approached it, her concerns are extremely valid. How many Harry Potter books were sold in Borders store that night, each one with a plastic bag? It’s little things like a single plastic bag, multiplied hundreds of thousands of times over, that make huge differences. “It’s just a plastic bag, chill…” is a pretty ignorant response.
@Rectilinear Propagation:
I guess I’m lucky to live in Berkeley. All the independants had midnight parties for the Potter junkies. My bookstore around the corner had a huge shipment wrapped in black plastic the Friday before the release, even they mostly deal in used books.
Some one who seriously cares about the environment that much should know that Borders donates to right wing parties. Now I do not wish to pick a fight with anyone, but typically, republicans do not care nearly as much about the environment as their left wing counterparts.
What is the poster seeking?
That a minimal wage entry level employee be fired for following management directives?
Should the store manager drive across town and retrive the offending bag?
What was the purpose of the complaint?
Personally, if I was the owner of Boarders, I would banish the poster from my stores for life as the poster is more trouble than she is worth.
@Namilia:
A plastic bag is the end of the world for the turtle that eats it.
Allison – I think that Harry Potter book did more damage to the environment then that plastic bag. If there was one you should have passed on, it should have been the book. You could have waited to get one from the library, or borrow a copy or wait to buy a used copy (ya know, “recycle” the same thing your Cadillac liberal ways are so desperately trying to do). But you just had to have your precious crappy book, just like Bush has to have his oil.
Face it Allison, you’re full of shit. Bleeding hearts, bleeding hearts everywhere, and not a a drop of blood to be found.