If you go shopping on Black Friday at a clothing store, you should take the time to brave the fitting rooms, no matter how long the lines are. Nick learned this the hard way, buying three pairs of jeans for $15 each. He made it out of the store unscathed, but when he got home, found that the jeans didn’t fit. Boo. Oh, well, he can just take them back to the store and swap them for the correct size, right? Not so fast! [More]
Sam’s Club Reinstates Oversold Black Friday Orders, Makes Up To Sad Customers
By December 6, 2012
Remember the Black Friday deal at Sam’s Club where too many orders came in for the best deals, and there wasn’t enough merchandise to fill them all? Well, Sam’s Club is doing the right thing for those customers, reinstating the canceled orders and even sending free memberships and gift cards to customers who went and found the same items elsewhere. [More]
These Best Buy Customer Service E-Mails Would Be Hilarious If They Weren’t Real
By December 5, 2012
On Thanksgiving, Consumerist reader Tom tried to buy a TV combo deal from Best Buy. This was just the beginning of a trip through a parallel universe where orders turn into ghosts that charge your credit card and customer service reps repeatedly use the phrase “Good day!” while reminding you of your duty to check BestBuy.com more frequently. [More]
JCPenney Was Fastest To Answer Customer Calls On Black Friday Weekend; Costco Slowest
By November 28, 2012
With Black Friday weekend being the busiest shopping spurt of the year, it’s also the time when customers call up retailers to complain or ask questions. But a new survey of 25 top retailers shows that consumers waited anywhere from 22 seconds to 12 minutes just to speak to customer service. [More]
Shoppers Are Not So Thrilled That Toys R Us Is Cancelling Orders And Not Answering Calls
By November 27, 2012
Toys R Us went after customers in a big way this holiday weekend, opening early on Thanksgiving to compete with Walmart and Target, and offering deep discounts on coveted items. But the company may have overextended itself, as shoppers are complaining about canceled orders and having to wait ridiculously long times just to speak to a human. [More]
What A Black Friday Logistics Disaster Looks Like From The Other Side Of The Register
By November 27, 2012
We mere consumers sit here waving our credit cards, whining about how we missed this or that great holiday deal, or our orders were canceled. But what’s the winter shipping frenzy like on the other size of the counter? One employee of men’s clothing store Joseph A. Bank reached out to us to explain the chain’s Black Friday logistics mess from the other side of the register. In addition to regular in-person shopping frenzy traffic, employees had to fill online orders if they happened to have the inventory. This worked pretty well until orders started to come through in multiples. [More]
Walmart Offers Rain Checks, Doesn’t Know How To Give Them To Customers
By November 26, 2012
In theory, if Walmart doesn’t have a sale item in stock when you’re at the store, they offer rain checks. Here in the real world, no one at David’s local store seems to know what a rain check is, let alone how to issue one. A rain check is a document that allows you to get the sale price on an out-of-stock item, even if the sale is over when the item comes back in stock. Apparently, it’s a relic of the era when customers couldn’t just whip out a smartphone and order the same item elsewhere at a cheaper price. That’s precisely what David did, anyway. [More]
Retailers Squeezed $25 More Out Of The Average Shopper With Extra Thanksgiving Sales
By November 26, 2012
The Black Friday creep seems to have paid off for retailers (even as it casts a dubious shadow over Thanksgiving), as shoppers shelled out about $25 more per person during this year’s Thanksgiving-centered sales last week. Of course in many cases, Black Friday wasn’t even limited to just Friday, with plenty of retailers hosting sales and opening their doors on Thanksgiving. Overall, shoppers spent about 13% more than we did last year. [More]
Why I Left Best Buy After Waiting In Line For Two Hours On Black Friday
By November 26, 2012
Like many people in his Connecticut town, Consumerist reader RC thought he would pop by Best Buy when it opened at midnight on Black Friday to see if he could land a deal. But either the store management grossly underestimated how many customers would show up or they have no idea how to manage the checkout process. [More]
Alleged Shoplifter Dies After Being Tackled By Walmart Employees Over Holiday Weekend
By November 26, 2012
Every year shoppers get amped up to shop the Black Friday sales, and it seems that every year, that energy unfortunately leads to a few tragic situations. Early on Sunday morning, a man who cops say was trying to shoplift two DVD players from a Walmart in Georgia died after he was apprehended by two employees and a contract security officer. [More]
Remember To Send Us Your Black Friday Photos And Horror Stories
By November 21, 2012
Given the sheer number of people who will be out and about this weekend, it’s inevitable that some of you will have experiences ranging from the ridiculous to the horrifying to the horrifyingly ridiculous. But don’t just keep them to yourself, share them with Consumerist. [More]
7 Things To Keep In Mind When Shopping This Weekend
By November 21, 2012
Though some of us plan on spending this holiday weekend the traditional way — hiding in our room, away from the shame of being caught drinking directly from the gravy boat — some of you will be out shopping and spending. And like any risky expedition, it’s best to go into Black Friday sales fully prepared. [More]
Ford Dealership Will Accept “Anything Breathing” As Trade-In This Black Friday
By November 20, 2012
For people who have been looking to buy a new Ford but don’t want to trade in their current vehicle and have some livestock they wouldn’t mind parting with, a dealership in Laramie, WY, may be the place to visit this Black Friday. [More]
Animal Shelters Make ‘Black Friday’ Literal, Adopt Out Black Pets For Free
By November 20, 2012
You may have noticed in the past few years that the staff and readers of this site are rather fond of animals. Specifically, cats, and the occasional dog. That’s why we wholeheartedly support a Black Friday promotion we can get behind that involves no doorbusters, no big-ticket item lines, and can even help you get rid of your leftover turkey this holiday weekend. We’re referring to the Black Friday weekend adoption promotions aimed at finding homes for black cats and dogs. [More]
Small Businesses Hoping To Cash In On Big Box Stores’ Early Black Friday Openings
By November 20, 2012
While Walmart, Target and other huge national retailers make the headlines every year for opening earlier and earlier for their Black Friday sales, a growing number of small businesses are following suit in the hopes of picking up the stragglers who are looking for things other than $79 laptops. [More]
Black Friday Creep: A Security Guard’s Perspective
By November 20, 2012
It’s hard to hear the word “doorbuster” without remembering the death four years ago of Jdimytai Damour, the 34-year-old temporary crowd control worker stationed at the door of a Long Island Walmart who was trampled to death when the crowd ripped the door off the hinges, clamoring for the best deals on flatscreen TVs as the global economy collapsed. [More]
3 Reasons Why 350,000 Signatures On A Petition Won’t Change Target’s Mind About Opening On Thanksgiving
By November 19, 2012
For the second year in a row, a Target employee has managed to secure hundreds of thousands of names on a petition asking Target to rethink its plans to start its Black Friday sale on Thanksgiving night. And for the second year in a row, Target is politely declining the suggestion and moving ahead as planned. [More]
Best Buy Online Sale Shows Company Not Quite Ready To Become E-Commerce Powerhouse
By November 19, 2012
Last week, new Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly said the company needs to make online sales a priority, as the retailer continues losing market share to e-tailers like Amazon and Newegg. But if this morning’s scheduled sale is any indication, Best Buy is not ready to compete with the big boys and girls. [More]
