Poor shopping experience from large furniture/home stores

[FarangFB]

I won't name the shops here because it could backfire. I don't know if I'm unlucky with but here a few of my experiences in some of the largest brands for shops that sell furniture and home appliances:

 

1- Tried to by a pillow once. There was big basket there with a huge number 399.- but I noticed the pillow looked a bit too fancy. Anyway, took it to the cashier and it was around 1,500b. I apologized, went back inside and assumed that the 399b pillow was the other one next to it  (still in the same basket). A lot less fancy, but still looked like worth it. This time I asked to confirm the price with an employee that was around, and she told me the price was 799b. I asked her to go look at the basket with me and point out which one of the pillows in there was 399b. She said "sorry mister not have 399b finish". 

 

2- Same shop, tried to buy an electric drill. I was going for a Makita or Black & Decker - they were both on display, but I couldn't buy them without potentially resorting to (verbal) violence. The employee next to me was acting like his life depended on selling me a drill from this Chinese brand (I don't recall the name now) which I never heard of. I insisted that I wanted one of those 2 brands and he simply wouldn't let me take it, trying to give me whatever reason he could to convince me that the Chinese brand was better/cheaper. I gave up and bought it elsewhere.

 

3- Another shop, trying to buy myself a small refrigerator. Looked around, I saw one I liked and asked the lady if they had it on stock. She said "yes have but not this color". I said no problem, let's go to the cashier and I'll take it. Then she said it had to be delivered next day, and I said I could fit it in the car. Turned out they didn't actually have it in stock and the fridge was in another branch about 10min drive from there. She wasn't happy when I said I would go buy at this other branch. Drove there, and unsurprisingly they didn't have it on stock too.

 

4- This one happened today and drove me to write this post: tried to buy some bedroom furniture. I saw an item that I'd say would be worth 3-4k maximum. The seller said 8900b, then I asked if he had any cheaper ones - he said that was the cheapest one in the shop and he immediately pulled his calculator and typed 7400b - special price for me. I said I'd check around and come back, then as I was walking away he ran after me and came with a different amount: 6200b. Got some really bad eyes from the guy when I refused. Now this is bull****, I understand the inflating and haggling thing if I'm buying a fake watch from a street vendor, but I'm at one of the main department stores in the country, can I PLEASE get a price tag with the correct price for the product? 

 

I'm already buying 90% of my furniture/appliances on the internet, and experiences like these are really pushing me towards 100%. I don't know if it's because I'm 40 and transitioning into a grumpy old fart, or are these shops really out of line with their services and inflating prices at will?

[The Hammer2021]

I once tried to but an air fryer but the shop was out of stock but my experience doesn't  sound as entertaining  as yours.

[FarangFB]

Just remembered another one from a high end furniture store:

 

There was a nice display cabinet there for an attractive price (around 4000b), but it had some damage on the side. I asked the seller if that was the one being sold and she said no, that I would get a new one (she checked computer to make sure). I happily paid, and next day she calls and says "sorry mister no have in stock but you can have the one from the shop (damaged)".

 

So far understandable, someone made a stock control mistake. However, I didn't want the damaged one and when I asked for the money back she said it needs to wait 30 business days. At this point I started to boil internally, it was absolutely THEIR mistake. I kept the rage inside and just converted this money in store credit I used to buy something else, but damn.

[richard_smith237]

Yup...  I know the feeling.... 

 

In HP... looking for water heaters... the one we had broke after 1.5 years... (Mex).

So, I look at others... Stabel-Eltron....   Staff are hanging around the stores like dealers and pimps... 

I slow and ‘hover’ at the water heater...  one guy moves in for the kill while a group of others play candy-crush, pop-pimples or pluck nostril hairs.... 

 

I ask... If they have the Stable-Eltron model but more than the 4500 watt one on display, I want a 9000 watt heater...  

 

Sales guy directs me to a different brand....  No... Stable-Eltron...   He’s really trying to get me to buy the other brand...  Mex !!!.... he’s almost blocking me from looking at Stable-Eltron...  I’m hungry and want a coffee so I walk off. 

 

I go to Au Bon Pain very close by....  There’s a promo... Sandwich and Iced Coffee...

I ask for the Sandwich and a hot-coffee, promo !!... Cannot !!!

Why not ?... Promo is for Iced coffee only....

grr...  No problem... 

OK... Sandwich and iced coffee....   once girl makes the sandwich, the other the coffee.

I watch the girl make the coffee..

She makes the double-esspresso shot into the paper cup.... she gets another cup fills it with ice..

Before she pours the espresso into the cup with ice... I ask her to stop... 

Thats fine... I’ll take my iced-coffee with no ice please !!! 

The penny-drops !

 

A small little victory...  I feel ready to take on the irritating staff at HP trying to give me any other product than the one I actually want...  the guy doesn’t like me after I walked of 30 mins ago... now he’s out of the way I find what I need myself... 

 

.... I’m sure they’re thinking us foreigners are so damn picky... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[scubascuba3]

Not unusual for items in supermarkets or 7 Eleven to be next to wrong price label or sale finished, that's annoying at the till, but to be fair I used to get that back home also.

 

My biggest annoyance is occasionally you get till staff trying to short change you, 100 short or give change for 500 when you give 1000. MrDIY, Burger King, golf courses in Sattahip

[Gsxrnz]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

Not unusual for items in supermarkets or 7 Eleven to be next to wrong price label or sale finished, that's annoying at the till, but to be fair I used to get that back home also.

 

My biggest annoyance is occasionally you get till staff trying to short change you, 100 short or give change for 500 when you give 1000. MrDIY, Burger King, golf courses in Sattahip

I always flatten out the note/s I'm handing over, make sure the cashier sees me scrutinizing and counting said notes, and then hold the notes in front of their face while telling them in Thai the amount of cash or the denomination I'm handing over.

 

ESPECIALLY in WS Gogo bars and gas stations. In a Bar, if you simply look at the bill and then stuff the bill plus your 1k note in the pot, You are saying  "please feel free to short change me".

 

Never been short changed yet. 

[CharlieH]

Pet hate, 2 for 1,  when it's actually double the price of one item on the shelf !

 

Most of the employees in the big stores are on commission that's why the drive for particular brands, or follow you around, I really don't like the trailing behind me and tell them I'll call them if needed.

[Excel]

1 minute ago, CharlieH said:

Pet hate, 2 for 1,  when it's actually double the price of one item on the shelf !

 

Most of the employees in the big stores are on commission that's why the drive for particular brands, or follow you around, I really don't like the trailing behind me and tell them I'll call them if needed.

I only allow the pretty ones to follow me then I slow down and ask them for something that they need a ladder to access ????

[theoldgit]

Completely off topic post reported and removed.

[scubascuba3]

1 hour ago, Gsxrnz said:

I always flatten out the note/s I'm handing over, make sure the cashier sees me scrutinizing and counting said notes, and then hold the notes in front of their face while telling them in Thai the amount of cash or the denomination I'm handing over.

 

ESPECIALLY in WS Gogo bars and gas stations. In a Bar, if you simply look at the bill and then stuff the bill plus your 1k note in the pot, You are saying  "please feel free to short change me".

 

Never been short changed yet. 

In agogos I always carry lots of change because the classic trick is they take ages bringing back change so you eventually walk out

[gamb00ler]

8 hours ago, FarangFB said:

I don't know if it's because I'm 40 and transitioning into a grumpy old fart, or are these shops really out of line with their services and inflating prices at will?

Not everyone progresses to grumpy old fart!

 

The challenges of shopping in Thailand was one of the main reasons we shipped a 20' container to our new hometown of CM in 2020.

 

The effort ???? of packing and unpacking probably also contributed to my loss of 10Kg of belly fat ????.

 

 

[bbko]

The art of shopping in Thailand is knowing when & how to bargain without turning the situation into an argument. 

Also, the power of a smart phone + the shopping apps goes a long way if you know exactly what you want.

[OneMoreFarang]

I am sure you worked out already that they want commission. And that is the only thing they care about.

 

Last week I had a good experience by visiting the show rooms of two brands for bathroom equipment. I got my personal tour with (in each shop) a competent girl showing me the items. They knew their products and answered all my questions.

That is what I will do now also for other products. Visit manufacturer showrooms and ask the experts.

 

In one of the showrooms which I visited the girl told me she will get a commission when I buy there. Fair enough, she earned her commission.

In the other showroom the girl told me they don't sell directly to customers. I should buy the products in one of the big shops (she gave me a list). And she won't get any commission, she has her salary.

 

It seems that is one way to get advice and detailed information.

[1FinickyOne]

6 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

I’ll take my iced-coffee with no ice please !!! 

The pepperoni pizza was always on sale and cheaper than a regular pizza - so, I would order the regular pepperoni pizza w/the pepperoni on the side... and they always smiled and gave it to me in a little bag...

 

But that was in USA...

 

and similar poor results from customer service who seem totally clueless as if there job is just to get off the phone quickly - 

[1FinickyOne]

2 hours ago, CharlieH said:

Pet hate, 2 for 1,  when it's actually double the price of one item on the shelf !

how about in the supermarket when they tape the items together and the one free is not the same item...

[SooKee]

2 hours ago, CharlieH said:

Pet hate, 2 for 1,  when it's actually double the price of one item on the shelf !

 

Most of the employees in the big stores are on commission that's why the drive for particular brands, or follow you around, I really don't like the trailing behind me and tell them I'll call them if needed.

Exactly.   I hate it when your'e in large stores be, they supermarkets or home/ DIY types, having to weave my way between the legions of staff blocking the isles but actually DOING nothing, chatting among themselves or playing on phones.  Problem compounded by the fact that many of the staff are largely clueless about what they sell, just want to tag onto you and trail you round to take you to the till and get their commission.  

 

I was looking for a bluetooth keyboard a few years back to use with a Mac Mini (rarely needed so the Apple one was massively over-priced for my needs).  Saw one that I liked the look of but on the box was a big sticker 'Not compatible with Mac OS'.  Just to test, I asked the staff tail if it would work with a Mac.  He said yes!  Interested in commission only.  No matter if you buy the wrong product and waste money because they lied or just don't know anything about what they are selling, the object is to get that commission regardless of the consequences for the customer.

 

That said, I have come across a few sales people from time to time who really did know their stuff and were really very helpful, but definitely in the minority.

[Will B Good]

4 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Not unusual for items in supermarkets or 7 Eleven to be next to wrong price label or sale finished, that's annoying at the till, but to be fair I used to get that back home also.

 

My biggest annoyance is occasionally you get till staff trying to short change you, 100 short or give change for 500 when you give 1000. MrDIY, Burger King, golf courses in Sattahip

Funny you should mention that.......wife bought something last night.....only 20 baht, but she only had a 500 baht note. They gave her change for a 50 baht note!

 

She said no....I gave you 500 baht......they never blinked an eye, just went and got the rest of the change.

 

I guess if they do this all the time and one in 10 fail to notice it is a nice little earner.

[proton]

Last big purchase at the Big store, fridge on offer today and tomorrow only. Mrs asks a few questions, well more than a few, gets the salesman to measure it up to check it will fit in the kitchen space, ok we will have one. The inevitable no have straight away, mrs says oh sold then all already, er no never had any was the reply. So you put special offer on even thought you do not have any, Held up at the docks was the excuse. Mrs goes into showing them up mode and he promises to get us one in 2 weeks at the same price which he did. Goes along with a list of salespeople standing by saying nothing while we decide to buy something they do not have for sale!

[FarangFB]

Another one I remembered, but this one happens when booking hotels online: 

 

- Room but no breakfast - 2000b

- Same room and FREE breakfast - 3000b

[scubascuba3]

3 hours ago, Will B Good said:

Funny you should mention that.......wife bought something last night.....only 20 baht, but she only had a 500 baht note. They gave her change for a 50 baht note!

 

She said no....I gave you 500 baht......they never blinked an eye, just went and got the rest of the change.

 

I guess if they do this all the time and one in 10 fail to notice it is a nice little earner.

Yes you know they've done it on purpose when they immediately give you more change without any discussion

[FriendlyFarang]

12 hours ago, FarangFB said:

2- Same shop, tried to buy an electric drill. I was going for a Makita or Black & Decker - they were both on display, but I couldn't buy them without potentially resorting to (verbal) violence. The employee next to me was acting like his life depended on selling me a drill from this Chinese brand (I don't recall the name now) which I never heard of. I insisted that I wanted one of those 2 brands and he simply wouldn't let me take it, trying to give me whatever reason he could to convince me that the Chinese brand was better/cheaper. I gave up and bought it elsewhere.

Maybe he is an employee of this chinese brand, so he will only sell you this brand. You should have talked to somebody who is actually employed by the shop itself and who can sell you any brand.

This is common practice at Homepro, Global House, Robinson, and even at AIS, True, Dtac shops, probably many others as well.

[In Full Agreement]

 

After reading  all these bad experiences and scams I'm wondering if I really  live in the same country.

 

[Lacessit]

I sometimes wonder if there is any motivation to close a sale, aren't the salespeople on commission?

 

Our washing machine carked it, we go looking for a new one and knew what we wanted. Go to first store, model we want is on the shop floor. Guy keeps trying to upsell us, no, that's the model we want. Can't sell it to you, why not? We don't have any in stock. It'll take a month to get new stock.

 

So what's the point of having something on your shop floor if you can't sell it? At this juncture, my GF loses patience and walks out. Not often I've seen a Thai do that.

 

Next store we go to, a saleswoman convinces my Thai GF the different brand she is pushing is cheaper, bigger, and with a longer warranty. Delivered to the house that afternoon.

[JimmyJ]

7 hours ago, Excel said:

I only allow the pretty ones to follow me then I slow down and ask them for something that they need a ladder to access ????

 

[proton]

Applies to restaurants as well. Many years ago at the flying chicken in Bangna, where for some reason they fired your roasted bird from a gun and it was caught by a guy on a unicycle. I think if he failed to catch it you got it for free. ???? This involved the large selection of ice creams must have been over 20 on the menu.

I decided on coconut, girl literally ran off comes back, no have. I will have the rum and raisin then, again came back with no have. Ok get the message what ice creams do you actually have then, runs off came back, vanilla and chocolate. Vanilla then, comes back with a tub of it rock hard like it had been frozen in nitrogen, cant dent it. No problem takes it away brings it back thawed out- after putting it in the micro wave!

[rwill]

I had a few times where I got more change than I should have. 

 

Also places like Homepro, Powerbuy and probably others you can sometimes get better prices buying online than in store with free delivery.

[ThaiSanookGuy]

  

16 hours ago, FarangFB said:

I'm 40 and transitioning into a grumpy old fart, or are these shops really out of line with their services and inflating prices at will?

 

 

yes, seems correct

[Bangkok Barry]

The OP isn't aware that, although an employee of a store may have a badge on saying they are working for that store, they are in fact employed there by a manufacturer, and that is why they push and push a particular product. My wife and I were looking at a product once and a 'shopper' complete with shopping bag got involved insisting on one particular and expensive model. She was such a bad actress it couldn't have been more obvious that she had been planted there.

We were buying another product one time and the salesman was good and we were convinced. "We'll take it", we said. "Sorry, out of stock". He spent a good 10 minutes 'selling' us something we were unable to buy. Brain dead. And I've lost count of the times I've seen something on display and wanted to buy it, only to be told it's out of stock. I've also lost count of the times I've asked why they don't sell the display model and just get the stupid Thai grin. And why display something to sell if you don't it have anyway? Another time I tried to buy a phone but it was locked in a display case and no-one had the key.

 

All in all. I've probably saved a return air fare to Europe not being able to buy something that is front of me. And can anyone tell me if other countries have price check machines scattered around supermarkets like they do here? If that isn't an admission that the store doesn't really know what it's doing and the price on display might not be the sale price then I don't know what does.

[Bangkok Barry]

3 hours ago, In Full Agreement said:

 

After reading  all these bad experiences and scams I'm wondering if I really  live in the same country.

 

How about this for a scam. My wife's wedding ring needed enlarging as, well, we get larger as time goes on. We took it to a store, got it back after a few days. All is well.

 

Except, one evening soon after we were in a place with UV lighting and we noticed some of the stones were a different colour. Turns out they'd replaced some of the diamonds with glass. Normally. how would you ever know?

Does raise the question, though, why people need diamond rings when glass looks the same....... 

[gamb00ler]

Through FB I queried a motorcycle shop about a new helmet liner.  Very short response.   "We're out of stock".  I asked will you be ordering more.  Answer:  "yes". I asked when will you order:  "check back later".  My next response was: "I'm unlikely to buy it from your shop because I may forget to check frequently.  Can you notify me when it's available?"   LOL.  no initiative on their part to close the deal.