Foodmart In Jomtien

[whatchamacallit]

So I was in a hurry and asked my friend to wait out by the parking lot whilst I ran inside to get a package of taco seasoning and a box of taco shells. I found the taco seasoning, no problem but for some reason the taco shells were not on the same shelves or anywhere near for that matter.

I checked a few more isles and still couldn't find it. But then I saw an employee (a girl) and showed her the taco sesoning package with pictures of the taco shells.

Pointing to the picture, I said "Where can I find this taco shells". She looked at me with a blank stare and said "No Have!"

I then replied "how can you say NO Have when you haven't even looked for it?"

With a little sinister smile she then replied "I am busy"........

[Thaifan2]

>>but for some reason the taco shells were not on the same shelves or anywhere near for that matter.<<

I WOULD GUESS THAT THEY REALLY WERE OUT OF STOCK !!1

[Traxster]

Usually they just say..'finnit' !!

and walk away..........

[whatchamacallit]

>>but for some reason the taco shells were not on the same shelves or anywhere near for that matter.<<

I WOULD GUESS THAT THEY REALLY WERE OUT OF STOCK !!1

thaifan... I CAN HEAR YOU JUST FINE.... CAN YOU HEAR ME????? - You'd guessed wrong!! They're not out of stock!!.... finally after arguing with her she pointed me to another employee (a man) and he found it in a different isle on the shelves

[luckyluke]

Nice topic. And now ?

[Upnotover]

"after arguing with her"

About what, her busy-ness?

[Yme]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7luMp6lb9M

[FarangBuddha]

Nice topic. And now ?

This and yesterday's tire blow-out on Kao Noi is as good as it gets anymore

Edited June 30, 2011 by FarangBuddha

[Theo007]

Personally I avoid that shop, grossly overpriced and unfriendly staff. What is the new mini supermarket like in Jomtien?

[surayu]

I regularly get those answers wherever i shop around, staff just seems not interested in selling their products, however, if they have no interest in their jobs, maybe they genuinely don't know if they have the stuff i ask for.

Usually, after looking by myself, i can locate what they say it was finish or even not sold there....i kind of lost any hope in having to rely on floor staff for any sort of usefull input...

[whatchamacallit]

"after arguing with her"

About what, her busy-ness?

bet.... you're the kind of pupil where the teacher always have to explain things slooooowwwwlly again and again......

[saengsureeya]

Nice topic. And now ?

This and yesterday's tire blow-out on Kao Noi is as good as it gets anymore

Responding to these posts is even better

[doggie888888]

I love it when the answer is Mai Meeeeeee even before you finish the question.

[Michaelaway]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

[ESB7]

Typical know it all foreigner.....rather than look for yourself or take the girls word, you prefer to argue......personally, I think its a great shop, everyone smiles, are all helpful and whoever makes those bears claws definatly gets a thumbs up from me, thay are the best thing I have tasted in years

[Jingthing]

As they are horribly overpriced (compared to the competition which is mostly not in Jomtien but now at least we have a Tops Daily) on most every item in the store, why shop there at all except for a convenience item? Still looking forward to a real supermarket in Jomtien. Foodmart is a tourist rip off operation for the most part. They are as exploitative as a vendor at a tourist trap selling water for 200 baht; why encourage them with our custom if we don't NEED to?

Edited June 30, 2011 by Jingthing

[sotsira]

I think most people only use Foodmart as a convenience store, if your going food shopping

then it's Tesco BigC or Makro for me.

[thaidiver]

As they are horribly overpriced (compared to the competition which is mostly not in Jomtien but now at least we have a Tops Daily) on most every item in the store, why shop there at all except for a convenience item? Still looking forward to a real supermarket in Jomtien. Foodmart is a tourist rip off operation for the most part. They are as exploitative as a vendor at a tourist trap selling water for 200 baht; why encourage them with our custom if we don't NEED to?

I'll second this comment. I live right next to this rip-off market and rarely buy anything there. If your expecting customer service than this is the last place to consider in Jomtien,

Edited June 30, 2011 by Rimmer
Expletive deleted

[JimSiam]

I find it a good place to shop, only the road works hinder it right now, they are open 24 hours and that comes at a cost, 7/11 aren't as cheap as the Tesco mini near me either, but that doesn't make 7/11 a rip off, a rip of is where you buy something that is fake or not really what it claims to be, so really they are just more expensive than other stores.

I hate the traffic when i go shopping and if i have to pay more to shop at midnight or 2am when there isn't any traffic then I am happy to pay extra, thats not a rip off, its a service.

It's also not a multi national or global chain and I would rather support a individual or a small business any day over those large chains.

[Jingthing]

So shop there, but I can assure you if Friendship or Foodland built a market close by, Foodmart would instantly lose over 90 percent of their business.

BTW, I don't find 7-11 a rip off, though I do consider Foodland one. Foodland present themselves as a supermarket and 7-11 is obviously a convenience store.

Edited June 30, 2011 by Jingthing

[JimSiam]

So shop there, but I can assure you if Friendship or Foodland built a market close by, Foodmart would instantly lose over 90 percent of their business.

BTW, I don't find 7-11 a rip off, though I do consider Foodland one. Foodland present themselves as a supermarket and 7-11 is obviously a convenience store.

I do and there are products that are actually cheaper than in friendship, but if i was worried about a few baht on Farang food, i would be buying 20 baht noodles on the side of the road instead of a steak from the US or Lamb chops from Australia.

The staff always seem very happy and helpful to me, the Thai manager is very knowledgeable and they have a great wine selection.

Parking is free at Foodmart too, unlike friendship who even charge you to do a uturn through their carpark.

Foodland seem to not have a lot of the outside brands as they manufacture so many things themselves with processed goods, they do have some items i cant get anywhere else.

[surayu]

i would be buying 20 baht noodles on the side of the road

Are you crazy? ..you can get a packet of MaMa noodles for less than 4 (four) Bahts

[JimSiam]

i would be buying 20 baht noodles on the side of the road

Are you crazy? ..you can get a packet of MaMa noodles for less than 4 (four) Bahts

Yeah, but then i need a kitchen, electricity too cook them, cleaning up and some shops like the pad thai near Chicaboom rock, so does the Sukhothai style pad thai outside family mart on pattaya tai across from the market.

[Jingthing]

On their pricing, yes, there are a few items that may be lower than other places. I think on average 7-11 is actually lower for the small set of items they sell that Foodmart. I wouldn't care about overpricing if I didn't buy a lot of groceries. But for people who do, shopping at Foodmart regularly would add up A LOT of money wasted over a year. Of course tourists don't and probably shouldn't care as much. For them, going all over town to find better values wouldn't be efficient.

Edited June 30, 2011 by Jingthing

[whatchamacallit]

Typical know it all foreigner.....rather than look for yourself or take the girls word, you prefer to argue......personally, I think its a great shop, everyone smiles, are all helpful and whoever makes those bears claws definatly gets a thumbs up from me, thay are the best thing I have tasted in years

Did you get on the wrong side of the bed this morning Which part of the story you need explanation? It's about service and attitude. In case you don't know, a supermarket is a service-oriented industry. So please don't tell me you accept these kind of lazy and I-don't-care attitude!! It's got nothing to do with with a know it all foreigner..... capish???

[Rimmer]

Thanks guys for that little exchange No more on that tack please.

[BugJackBaron]

Typical know it all foreigner.....rather than look for yourself or take the girls word, you prefer to argue......personally, I think its a great shop, everyone smiles, are all helpful and whoever makes those bears claws definatly gets a thumbs up from me, thay are the best thing I have tasted in years

Did you get on the wrong side of the bed this morning Which part of the story you need explanation? It's about service and attitude. In case you don't know, a supermarket is a service-oriented industry. So please don't tell me you accept these kind of lazy and I-don't-care attitude!! It's got nothing to do with with a know it all foreigner..... capish???

Sure some of them don't smile. After working for minimum wage and dealing with boorish, snotty, think-everyone-should-speak-english-fluently farang, who can blame them? And then there's the Russians

BTW, can you tell me one supermarket where they always smile and say "thank you" ? In America they often say "have a nice day" in the supermarkets - they have to - and it's as phony as a 3 Baht bill.

But as for Foodmart, it has a nice beer selection and one or two of the girls always serve me politely so that is enough for me even though I sometimes feel like i am just a walking wallet there too.

[Michaelaway]

I never wanted to jump on the anti-Foodmart bandwagon because, for 5+ years, I've found it a convenient resource for many useable products. I've just tried to stay away from items I know can be found significantly cheaper elsewhere. But, 2 days ago we needed butter so I nipped down to FM and paid the 94 baht they were asking. At Friendship yesterday, I noted their price for the same brand of butter: 78 baht. Sheesh, 16 baht price difference... time to fire up the bandwagon?

[mikebell]

I used to buy ready-made frozen Gourmet meals: Indian curries/chileetc. They've gone up to 135 baht last time I looked. For this I can get a fresh meal in a restaurant. So I've stopped going. They've lost 300 baht a week through greed.

Personally I avoid that shop, grossly overpriced and unfriendly staff. What is the new mini supermarket like in Jomtien?

[Spalpeen]

I never wanted to jump on the anti-Foodmart bandwagon because, for 5+ years, I've found it a convenient resource for many useable products. I've just tried to stay away from items I know can be found significantly cheaper elsewhere. But, 2 days ago we needed butter so I nipped down to FM and paid the 94 baht they were asking. At Friendship yesterday, I noted their price for the same brand of butter: 78 baht. Sheesh, 16 baht price difference... time to fire up the bandwagon?

Like Michaelaway I also used Foodmart for 5+ years and likewise I also tried to give them the benefit of the doubt and avoid jumping on the anti-Foodmart bandwagon. But the ill manners and sheer rudeness of some, not all, of the staff finally got the better of me. Why is it that some Thais assume that Farangs can't understand what they say about us behind our backs? After 5 years spending money and leaving tips I expect a certain amount of respect. If you ask to speak to the manager you'll get "Cannot, cannot, no have".

Anyway, money talks, and from now on my money will be talking to Tesco and Friendship.