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Ziggy

Mothercare murderous rant...

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Okie, I'm glad to see other people came here today too for a rant... makes me feel less bad about having one too...

Went to mothercare today to try and buy a small, light buggy... we had plenty of them for DD1, 2 and 3, but they are all not quite what I want, and I carry DD4 everywhere and decided I wanted a lightweight but robust buggy for her... my old ones are so old the frames are bent, the brakes don't work, and some of the bits were eaten by a hungry mouse...

Anyway, dragged DD1, 2, 3 and 4 to mothercare today... thinking good day for it, not a weekend... I got to the buggy display, and while carrying a sleeping DD4 had to struggle on my own to lift buggies off displays, check the brakes, folding system and so on... was there for ages, but staff, everytime I looked at them, just pretended to be very busy with something, though the store was empty, and in my view a customer carrying a baby in a shop meant for parents and babies should be offered some help... I know I could have gone to ask, but their avoidance technique got on my nerves, so I got on with it, enjoying messing their display up a little bit in the process... eventually I made my choice and went to speak to two members of staff who were obviously dealing with a phone query, though only one was on the phone, and the other could have helped, but pretended to wait for the phone staff... i waited, not saying anything, for a whole 7 minutes, before eventually the guy turned to me and reluctantly asked 'yes?'... I said I wanted to buy one of those buggies... not a particularly cheap one either, though that shouldn't make a difference anyway... he nearly sighed his reply... said he'd go check if they had any, with a 'don't get your hopes up' expression... came back saying, no, not that colour, you can have grey or patterned, but not that... I pointed there were two identical ones on display and was told 'those are display, not for sale'... now the grey model was on display too... four of them, identical, right next to each other... come on, don't tell me they don't sell them??? I could understand not selling one display model, but having four or five of them and not selling them???

I told him that for that price, I wouldn't settle for a colour I didn't like and he just said 'we have deliveries every day, just come back', by then I was fed up and decided I have better things to do with my life than keep trekking to mothercare to not be served properly...

I then went to ask other staff about watershoes... by which I mean those little slip on shoes that I've been buying from various places for years for my girls, that look like the same material as wetsuits, and are to protect little feet on beaches and stop slipping in pools... three members of staff looked totally puzzled... 'we've never had or heard of watershoes'... 'doesn't exist'...'oh, jelly sandals'... no, not jelly sandals, water or wet shoes... 'no one will know what you mean, never heard of that'... oh come on... I have seen them in every shop for years, from baby catalogues to matalan... and a place selling toddler stuff has never heard of them, just at beach and pool season???? and they seem to think I'm making it all up???

 

I hope never to have to go there again... that was bad.... am still fuming now...

 

Oh thanks everyone and anyone.... needed to let that all out...

 

Said pushchair is now being delivered by john lewis on wednesday, in the colour I want, and water shoes were bought from boots...

To make it all worse, travelled to post office to pick up a parcel that arrived while we were out on saturday, couldn't park, parked further out, walked, realised I'd left the royal mail card in the car, walked back to car, walked back to post office, picked parcel, and after all this post office and mothercare frustration, found another royal mail card for another parcel today...

Off for a large glass of wine...

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Yes last time we went to mothercare they were pants at service too,

 

Ash is a big boy and his cutrrent car seat is supposed to last until Aprox 3 yrs. Well he isn;t even 2 and 2 months ago moved to the top setting so being organised we went to investigate the market for next stage car seats.

 

Oh he has to stay in that he' s ok till 18 kg the size doesn't matter! We pointed out that the size does matter otherwisw why does it adjust and they way you want me to use this is going to compress my sons spine and in th eevent of an accident do more harm than good. they are weight tested he is fine!

 

anyway we went to halfords who were very helpful and friendly and couldn't do enough for us,

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I agree with that... been to Halford once for a bike for DD1, and the service was amazing... they'd done a couple of things wrong when I went to pick the bike ordered by daughter and OH, but were extremely friendly and efficient about putting it all right, and carried the bike for me to the car and loaded it for me as I was carrying a baby... the guy even laughed when I said 'I hope it will fit', as my car is pretty big (family of 6), and he replied 'my friends and I travel in a mini and we manage to fit some bikes in, so don't worry, I'll get it in'.... lovely service... :)

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Oh dear. Customer service in a lot of shops in shocking. Its really hard to shop when you have got to take the kids with you. Mine were always reluctant shoppers when they were smaller and this makes the job difficult to start with then to be faced with poor customer service and no help either. You would think a chain like Mothercare would make it their staff's mission to go out of their way to help Mums with kids.

Complain, complain, complain!!!

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:D Everytime something like this happens, anywhere, I feel like applying for a job there just to get to interview stage, and see all they require of me... to then at the end just say... okie, considering all this, how on earth do you explain the experience I had in your shop???

 

Wouldn't be fair though, the HR people are not the people who then get to control the quality of the service in the shops... after all at interviews people put on their best, but in those wide stores I guess workers get easily demotivated... not an excuse for not serving customers, but just a general demotivation...

 

I am thinking of writing to them, but in my experience unless you complain to ask for a solution (refund or whatever), it doesn't usually work... they'd put it on the 'ranting pile that requires no practical resolution'... but I do agree that they should help people who come in there with little kids... another couple was looking at pushchairs for their tiny baby, and got no help either... I am the kind of person who likes to think a shop for parents and kids should care... when really all they care about is making money (though it seems their technique is good for other shops, as I went to buy from somewhere else online, after visiting them to see and feel the product)

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Hi Ziggy,

Sorry to hear youv'e had an awful day. I know what you mean 'cos I had 5 in tow and it's hard work :roll::roll:

However........ :D done that an now we live here :!:

T'other day we were coming back to the UK for a visit. Knew I was going to get a package so asked my postwoman if she'd look out for it. I knew it wouldn't fit in my letter box. 'Not a problem' says she, 'I'll just keep it in the van 'til I see you're back home' No cards, no hassle....no probs!

Jackiex

 

:D:D:D

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Thanks for that jackiepoppies, you made me think of all the times when things go right.... I had a rant about post offices not long ago cause I got a parcel delivered to my local post office (not so local) and when I went to pick it up on the right date it wasn't there, and the guys there just shrugged and said 'it doesn't always come on the right day, you have to leave a couple of days after the date you said you wanted it'.... but on the other hand, my lovely postman gets out of his way to be helpful... he always leaves parcels for me (when he brings them) in a special box, occasionally comes back later to see if I've found it, and recently kept something that required a signature till the end of his round, then drove back to my house to see if I was back so I could have it on that day rather than have to drive to the pick up office... He also tells me about his kids' xmas presents and shows me pics of his pet rabbits and talks about my chickens... not bad for a city postman :D

He's a wee angel in postman gear...

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complain!

If the head office don't know about problems, they can't fix them.

Point out that there's nothing to stop you internet-shopping or going elsewhere, as you received no service at all.

Admittedly, you won't get anything out of it in terms of vouchers or whatever, but if everyone complained about really poor service then more shops would take action.

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