Off-Target?
Target has been flying high in recent years due to its nice selection of merchandise and well-designed stores, which are especially popular with women. Target has also benefited from some anti-Wal-Mart backlash.
I’ve been pretty critical of Wal-Mart recently, but at least Wal-Mart will let you make a return without treating you like a criminal. A recent experience in poor customer service left me feeling that Target is a little off-target.
My wife purchased some items for our baby Ella’s nursery that didn't quite work out. She wanted to return two curtain panels and a valance. She didn’t have the receipt, so we knew that we wouldn’t get our money back. No big deal. We thought we’d get a store credit. Here's what transpired:
“We’d like to return these items,” I said to the red-shirted teenager at the customer service desk. “And we don’t have a receipt.”
“I can't give you your money back,” he replied. “You’ll have to do an exchange.”
“Yeah, we figured,” I said. “That’s not a problem.”
He also informed us that this was only allowed if we hadn’t made more than two returns in the last 12 months, and that we were only allowed two returns, not three. “OK,” I said rather smugly. “She’s returning two items and I’m returning one.”
“I’ll need to see each of your IDs,” he replied, looking rather annoyed.
I started to get that nagging little feeling that this wasn’t going to go well.
After punching in enough digits on his register to program the Mars rover, he handed our IDs back and pronounced us clear for take off.
“You’ve got three items, totaling about $52, so, you’ll need to get $52 worth of merchandise from the same department,” he explained.
“You mean we can’t exchange it for anything in the store?” I asked.
“No, it has to be from the same department,” he said. “Sorry, but that's our policy.”
My wife, knowing that I have little tolerance for such things said, “It’s OK. Let’s just go and find something else for Ella’s room.”
We marched off to the domestics department, found some other items that totaled about $52, and returned to the customer service desk. The same red-and-khaki-clad teenager then informed us that we could only exchange an item for an item. So, we really didn’t have one $52 exchange; we had three exchanges that totaled $16, $16, and $20 each. Therefore, we could only get three items that were of those values or more and pay the difference. If the value was less, we were out the difference. “Uh, sorry I forgot to mention that the first time,” he said.
At this point, I’m afraid I lost it. “I know this isn’t your fault, but your policy is terrible,” I said. “I’m being treated like a criminal because I don’t have a receipt. I understand why you can’t give me my money back, but I don’t understand why I can’t exchange my merchandise for whatever I want in your store.”
“That’s the policy,” he said.
Well, it’s my policy not to shop at stores that treat me like I’m a criminal or an inconvenience. I understand that there are people who take advantage of return policies to steal from stores and there is a cost involved restocking merchandise, but that’s a cost of doing business that stores like Wal-Mart and Costco accept to keep their customers happy.
I’ll target my spending elsewhere.
Shortly after my Target experience, I attempted to return some telephone equipment Quality Digest had purchased from Circuit City and Best Buy. Because we had kept the equipment for about six months, I wasn’t expecting much, perhaps a store credit. Even though I had the receipts, both stores told me that their policy was no returns after 30 days. I realize that six months is a long time to keep something and expect a refund or even a store credit, but 30 days?
Even though Circuit City’s and Best Buy’s return policies may be more Draconian than Target’s, I wasn’t nearly as annoyed by them. I think it’s because it was absolute. There was no attempt to make me find items from the same department and spend exactly the same amount of money. Also, I expect electronic equipment becomes obsolete faster than curtain panels.
posted by Scott Paton @ 6:22 PM
22 Comments
22 Comments:
Scott,
I read Quality Digest and consider myself to be somewhat of a curmudgeon as well(well actually my wife thinks I am more of a curmudgeon than I do).
I can relate. I agree with your position on some of the big box stores and their policies, etc.
I gotta say this though: you use your position as publisher to air your position on things quite a bit. Maybe it's not as much as I think, but it just stands out. Now I don't know if I am disagreeing in general with you "abusing" your position or if I am just plain jealous. Truth be known I'd like to have a place to vent. Got a place for a manufacturing guy like me can rant? Looks like I am jealous huh?
Scott, please make sure I keep getting the magazine. I get so many requests to renew that frankly I forget sometimes. Now that is something I could rant about.
Carl Jessome
carljessome@ns.sympatico.ca
Scott,
I have to say that returning things anywhere is a pain.
In comparing Target and Wal-Mart, I had another problem.
I am from a small town, Wabash, IN. It is big enough to have a Wal-Mart. The baby formula we buy is about $23.00 in our hometown Wal-Mart. The same formula is only $16.00 in the Wal-Mart in a near by city. The Wal-Mart in Wabash would not match the price of the other Wal-Mart even with a receipt. They would match a competitors price, so we went to a Target about a hour away and bought formula. Our Wal-Mart will happily match the price, but only for thirty days. That means to get the cheaper price I would have to buy formula from Target once a month, and with the price of gas I am sure I would be losing money on the deal.
This just goes to show that many of the policies of these stores have gotten away from customer satisfaction.
Thanks for your articles I always enjoy them,
Kenneth Norman
Scott:
Shoplifting costs companies HUGE amounts of money. Stores must protect themselves and we consumers pay more for our goods to cover the cost of prevention and loss.
You could take steps to improve your return process by retaining your receipt for a decent period of time, perhaps two months or at least until after you have installed the goods and made a decision on keeping it.
As for your telephone equipment, is it morally right to return equipment you have used for six months and expect to get your money back for it? I don't think so. That means you rented it for zero cost.
And even if you never used it and you want to return it, that, to me, is an unjust hardship to expect a retailer to encur. They may no longer carry that item in their inventory; their quality system may require them to retest or reinspect before selling it to someone else. Will they have to sell it as "used" and at a reduced price after they have refunded the full price to you?
I agree that having to find matching-priced items in the same department is a bit much to redeem your credit. But I wonder why you didn't contact a manager. Many times, they can make sure you are satisfied, if a lower-level employee cannot.
Every retailer has a right to prevent theft. And thieves will take elaborate steps to enrich themselves while avoiding getting caught. And it's hard to tell the good guys from the bad just by looking at them. So we all suffer because of the actions of the dishonest.
I no longer shop at Wal-Mart because of their bad service. Twice I waited in a checkout line for 45 minutes. I gave them a second chance; however, I will not give them the opportunity to waste my time again. So now I go to Target where I never wait more than five minutes to check out and I have never had a problem returning anything.
Please keep a strong voice for quality service and goods and continue to remind people not to accept inferior quality. Too often we willingly accept lousey (fill-in-the-blank) because of the effort needed for demanding conformance. But on the other hand, you need to comply with reasonable requests to make your life easier, like holding on to important receipts.
Adhering To Inflexible Procedures Can At Times Create Confusion and Adversely Impact Customer Satisfaction
Dining out with a friend or associate can be an enjoyable experience even when the discussion is about work if the meal is delightful and the customer service is impeccable. The conversation tends to be focused on work related topics and the meal and service become secondary which makes for a successful meeting. Obtrusive or clumsy service or a poorly prepared meal can ruin a productive business meeting.
Recently, I had a luncheon meeting with a friend I had not seen in about a year. We had a lot of catching up to do on business issues and both of us looked forward to meeting. We agreed to meet at a large nation wide restaurant chain. I ordered first and requested a cup of soup and a small Greek salad. The waiter asked me if I wanted the soup and salad combo, which consisted of a bowl of soup and a salad. I passed on the combo. My friend ordered the combo but with a Caesar salad.
Several minutes later the waiter delivered my cup of soup and placed a Caesar salad in front of my friend. Both of us were obviously surprised and my friend inquired as to why he had received the salad first instead of the soup. The waiter politely responded that if you order the combo the salad comes first followed by the soup. Obviously if you don’t order the combo, as I did, you receive your soup first. Trying to explain to the waiter that since both of us wanted soup and salad it would seem appropriate and logical to bring both soups at the same time. Our protestations made no sense to the waiter as he kept mumbling something about how the combo is served – salad first. A lot of our “business conversation” over the next hour kept coming back to this rather ridiculous soup and salad fiasco!
This episode just points out the adverse impact one can have on customer service when rigid processing rules are carried out to the extreme. One can only imagine the presence of Combo Police in the kitchen making sure that no one has the audacity to break the rules and bring out the soup first when circumstances dictate such as in our case – we both wanted to eat our soup at the same time!
I had another similar confusing experience at a nationwide coffee shop several years ago. I had ordered a cappuccino and while it was being prepared I noticed a sign that read “Coffee refills .50 cents”. After I finished my cappuccino I went to the counter and asked for a coffee refill for .50 cents. The young lady who waited on me asked the manager behind her if she could comply with my request since I had not ordered a coffee originally but had ordered a cappuccino. Surprisingly the response was an emphatic “No”. Had I ordered a coffee I could have a refill for .50 cents but since I ordered a cappuccino I could not take advantage of the offer.
I countered that a coffee was only $1.35 while a cappuccino was $3.50. The answer was still “No”. I then asked how would one know if my empty paper cup contained just coffee or a cappuccino. Believe it or not, the manager told me that he would be able to tell since there would be foam in my cup. (This guy has obviously missed his true slot in life – he should work in a CSI lab. Anyone who can detect foam in a cup and then refuse to grant a coffee refill is detective material!) I then stated that I would wash out the foam at a nearby drinking fountain and return. This exasperated him and he reluctantly filled my cup with coffee after I paid him .50 cents.
Both of these episodes illustrate a need for customer service personnel to exercise a bit of common sense when dealing with customers even if it means deviating slightly from their rigid processes. The goal of customer service should be to “Wow” customers and not make them feel like they are on a game show – if you fail to adhere to their rules, you lose! In both of these instances I felt like I was on a segment of “Survivor”!
Bill Kalmar
Lake Orion MI
Director of the Michigan Quality Council (1993 –2003)
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Examiner (1996 – 1997)
Baldrige Board of Overseers (2000 – 2003)
Scott,
In effect, you are the like an automotive OEM attempting to use a supplier who is not certified to QS9000 or ISO.
The supplier not only adheres to a customer service policy which does not meet your requirements or needs, they have no intention of becoming compliant.
Whether or not this is bad policy depends not on the customer, but on the corporate strategy of the supplier. Target does not want to provide your level of customer service, but neither do they expect to get seventy-five bucks per article in the kid's department.
Considering your level of expectation, you should adjust your supplier list to de-list Target and upgrade Eddie Bauer to "Preferred Status". You will no longer shop around for the lowest bidder without considering the QMS. You might price Escada, but you will not rush to K-Mart when you need something in a hurry.
Your own QMS obviously needs a management review. You purchased product, but kept no records. In effect, you wish to return goods without an RMA. This is something I have found even the automotive OEMs will not do.
The response of your supplier will be one of two possibilities. The one will not willingly take back the product without a receipt because they have not developed QMS and have do not realize the potential value of customer service. The other will not willingly take back the product without a receipt because they have developed QMS and realize the value in precise and accurate two way communication.
Either way, your only alternative is a suppler with a corporate strategy that includes complete and total customer satisfaction, no questions asked. Keep in mind, though, that this surely means the cost of your demands, (and similar costs from people like you), are built into the price.
Try buying a few items at Saks Fifth Avenue or Neiman Marcus. Wait an embarassingly long time before returning the product. Don't give a good reason for the return. Imitate the lords of shopping; just sniff and say something along the lines of "I was tired of it...", or "it's icky...". I expect that customer service will prostrate themselves before you and return the full value in dollars, euros, or gold bullion if you wish.
Then, just as you are about to make a conclusion about the comparative quality of suppliers in general, make sure you compare the price tags.
Brian Rabourn
Quality Manager,
Laser Dynamics
Allendale Michigan
Scott,
I would like to share my story of Macy's return policy - void of common sense.
I purchased a sweater for my wife's birthday. She loved it but was too large so we went without a receipt to return it for a smaller one. The cashier told us that, per store policy, she would have to credit us for the return and then charge us for the new sweater - I thought "no problem". However without a receipt the best she could do was give us credit for the sweater at its lowest price during the past 30 days, this turned out to be $20 less than its current price. So I was now being asked to pay $20 to exchange a sweater for one exactly like it (albeit smaller)! Since this was “store policy” our plea for common sense was disregarded. Eventually the manager got involved and after a several minute discussion with her, our logic prevailed and the manager (in a huff) made an exception in this case.
There has not been another case since we have stopped making purchases from Macy’s.
Regards
Jim
Hey, Scott.
I agree with you 100%. I have been telling my wife, a Target customer, that I would never darken the doorway of another Target store as long as I was drawing a breath.
I purhcased a toilet paper holder to add to the decor of our childrens' bathroom. As I began in install the holder, I noticed that the set screw that secures the holder to the wall bracket was stripped out. The next day with receipt in hand, mind you, I headed back to Target expecting to do a simple swap of a defective product for one that was not.
I approached the customer service counter and explained to the associate what I received, and that I would like to swap it for another identical holder. She instructed me to get another one a bring it back to her so we could complete the exchange. After punching a few buttons, she told me that I owed her a dollar and some change. I reminded her that I was exchanging like products. She said that she was aware that they were the same. The first one I had purchased was on sale. The exchange would be full price. Now, I am an intelligent and reasonable person, but I could not understand the legitimacy of this "policy" to save my own life. After realizing that my attempts to explain how this did not make sense was being blocked by stubborness, I reluctently paid the difference and left... for good!
Keep up the good work, Scott!
I'm hearing a lot of Target stories here and direct-to-me e-mails. A lot of people have told me that I should have asked to speak to a manager. Why didn't the employee ask me if I wanted to speak to a manager? Also, a lot of people have told me that they did speak to a manager to no avail.
I do not shop at Target, Circuit City or Best Buy. The recent complexity in exchange rules "policies" is insane - Target is the worst. Keep up the good work !!
Target story:
Went in to buy a very specific CD player/radio. They had it on display but I could not find any boxed ones. I asked an employee about it and he told me that it was a discontinued product. I said that is ok, may I purchase the display model. I was told no. I asked why thinking maybe it doesn't actually work or something. This was the response, "We can not sell a display item until it has been on display for 30 days." HUH?? "How long has this DISCONTINUED item been on display?", I ask. "15 days." "No more will come in and be sold." "No." "But I am willing to buy this item right now and give you my hard earned money for it." "I can not sell it to you." Could this be true, could they really not want my money, would they really wait 15 more days and perhaps not be able to sell it then and I am willing to buy it now?? I left Target that day and have not returned.
Dining Out story:
I have celiac's disease and can not eat anything with flour in it. This, of course, makes eating out difficult but I try it anyway. What I have noticed much to my amusement is that when I ask for a chicken sandwhich without the bread, my meal takes at least 10 minutes longer to make than if I ordered the meal with the bread. Does it actually take longer to NOT put something on a plate??
Another story:
PetSmart price matches to their OWN website. Why they just don't charge the website price in the store, is beyond me. But I print out the page each time and get the price match (at times saving over $15 an item). Crazy situation but money is money to me.
Last item:
I do know that if I think I am going to return something from ANY store, I always read or ask about their policy before I purchase the item. If I think I can abide by their rules, then I purchase the item. If I can't, I move on.
Scott,
I have been enjoying your columns for years and feel you are right on the money most of the time. To most of us, customer service is what makes or breaks the retail relationship. Still that does not mean the customer doesn't need to do his or her part. Read the receipt. It usually states what the return period is. Keep the receipt for at least as long as the return period. Do not remove tags or open packaging until used for the first time. When giving gifts, always include a store generated gift receipt and make sure the giftee knows its there.
As an aside, I am sure that when they decide to do a movie of your life, they will ask Dennis Miller to play the lead role!
Your article both cracked me up (in a sick and wrong way) and angered me beyond belief. I do not understand where customer service has gone, but it is certainly not part of our culture.
When I had my son a year ago, I had a registry at Babies R Us. I was told it was THE place to register, so as such I registered no where else. At the first baby shower I receive many multiples of the same item (not unusual, I remember how my wedding went with the registry), but also received MANY items, TOO MANY in the smallest sizes and some I just simply didn't need.
As in most cases I received few receipts with the gifts. While I did keep a list of who gave what, I did not necessarily want the shopper to know I was going to exchange the item, and felt foolish asking for receipts. Some gifters noticing the duplicates graciously supplied gift receipts but the majority did not, and I did not ask. I figured with a registry I would not have a problem with returns.
I headed off to the store for the first round of returns, at least it went smoothly even if I had to accept the "discounted" prices. In today's society that seems to be the norm. After my last baby shower however, I went to make another return and was rudely told I could not because I had returned "too many" items; That it was a theft protection policy. I explained that I had a registry with the store, and these items were clearly on the registry. To not allow store credit changes seemed silly (I think my vocabulary may have been a little stronger then) - yet I was turned away.
I wrote the store manager and regional manager notes about the reception I received from the employee, how I was treated like a criminal and how with my registry I should not have been discriminated against. I also explained that I had personally spend thousand's of dollars there outfitting the nursery. I receive nothing in response, so I sent another note to their corporate office. I did receive a phone call of inquiry, but nothing more. I never received an apology, but was again told of the policy. At least this time it wasn't done "rudely".
I ultimately had my husband and mother returned the items for me, and still received store credit, but that's fraudulent as well. So what's worse, not allowing someone to fairly return something that was purchased or misrepresenting yourself to get what you want, regardless of the policy. I tell EVERY new mother-to-be this story. I can't say that it is effecting anyone out there, however I can say that I feel a bit of revenge. I will no longer shop at that "big-box" baby store.
Scott, you are seriously ON-Target as far as that store chain is concerned. My wife will shop there still, but my former life as a quality consultant (I'm involved in Safety Management now) precludes me from patronizing a store where the return policy isn't just Draconian, it's an out-and-out travesty. Wal-Mart's clerks may not always be on the ball, but they are friendly and you can return almost anything without a hassle. Thanks for the good column, and keep up the quality work.
I agree with you about returning items to most companies now. Gettin service is much harder though. However, you may be stretching it a bit on the six months deal.
My latest issue is with Pitney Bowes. I have rented a postage machine from them for several years. I finally got fed up with trying to do business with them. I could not figure out which Pitney Bowes I was supposed to deal with. They set it up that I had to get postage from one division and buy ink cartridges and supplies from another division. I don't remember which division I paid the rent. These divisions certainly do not talk between their silos. Anyway, when I tried to find out how to return the machine, it took many phone calls (and many minutes on hold) to finally find someone that could help me. She told me to return the recently purchased ink cartridges to one division and she gave me the address. Then she said she would send me a box with a pre-printed label to return the machine. If I followed the directions that came with the box, it would expedite my getting the refund. The day after I received the box, I shipped the machine back after following all the directions. Then about three weeks later I received an invoice for $1000 to pay for the machine they said they had not received within 10 days of sending me the box. I had to work with the post office to find out that the day before they typed the invoice they had received the machine. When I called (again several people before getting the right division) I was told "Well it takes a week or so to get these back into inventory." When I questioned why they sent out the invoices so quick then, I was told she didn't know because that was programmed into the computer.
Then about a month after that, I had not received my refund, so I called again (many minutes on hold) to find out that I had to formally request the refund in writing after they got the machine. I sent a letter to them requesting the refund and added a few comments about being customer focused. While I had this service person on the phone, I told her about my unhappiness with having to spend so much time with Pitney Bowes to just return their machine. She said she was only following policy. I told her that I would promise to tell all my clients that I consult with and at least 1000 other people about the poor service I had been getting from Pitney Bowes. Her comment was to do what I had to do. She did not seem to care much.
Scott,
Regarding "Off Target", I think a company is only as good as the people they hire. You can have the greatest company in the world, but if you run into one bad customer service rep, your whole impression of the company becomes based on that. Of course you could argue that if they are so good why would they hire a bad CSR? Being human, we all have our good and bad days.
I too went to Target along with my wife. She bought a curtain rod that was about an inch too short, which we discovered AFTER I had installed the hardware on the window. My wife took the curtain rod...no other pieces, no box, and certainly no receipt to customer service at Target. I told her ahead of time she was nuts, but she told the customer service person she just wanted to get the next longer size rod, she didn't need the other stuff that came with it in the "super-hard to open plastic packaging". It took a little while, but the CSR managed to see her "logic" and figured out a way to make it happen in spite of company policies. At the end, she said that she had probably broken every rule in the book, but my wife left happy and I left amazed!
Just one other person's experience at Target.
I have also had a negative experience in trying to return something to Target. My husband and I received a TV/VCR combo (this was 7 years ago) from my parents as a Christmas gift. We already had enough televisions and VCRs for our needs and so, attempted to return it to Target in exchange for something, anything, else that we could use. We were told that they would not take it back without a receipt!!! I explained to them over and over that it was a gift and we did not have a receipt, but they insisted. I had to do the embarrassing task of asking my parents for the receipt in order for us to exchange it. I refused to shop at Target for at least five years afterwards.
Scott,
As a long time reader of Quality Digest, I'm stumped. Why all the criticism of low cost junk stores?
Personally, Wal-Mart and Target don't exactly scream quality with the products they sell, yet you continue to bash them. Maybe you need to visit a man's store more often.
After 28 frustrating years in the quality field, is this what it's come down to...? My god man...take a break!
Mr. Paton,
I agree with you. Retail stores thatclamor for your business all too often treat you like an illegal alien at the customs counter after you make the purchase. My biggest gripe is with CompUSA - the absolutely worst customer service and the most inconvenient policies of any retailer with which I have ever dealt. Discount Tire is another outfit that is worth slamming because of thier poor customer service. Use your platform as you see fit - we need more people exercising their voices about poor quality in customer service.
Best Buy and Circuit City cheat people in subtle ways too. They always advertise special prices with mail-in rebates attached. Sounds good, but they don't refund sales tax (8.25% here) and also take up to ten weeks to refund the money, but that's not the worst part. Since one can't return a product with the UPC cut out, one should wait until the end of the return period to send in the rebate in case the product is defective, but there's a thirty day limit on mailing in the rebate forms too. So either forfeit the rebate or risk not being able to return a piece of junk.
At Best Buy's checkout, they ask for your phone number to reference the purchase in case you forget your receipt, so that's a pretty handy invasion of privacy there.
In conclusion, there are no (or very few) good companies, just companies that screw over consumers in a way that you can be comfortable with.
Scott,
Your article was certainly on target. The problem is that these non-customer focused policies are becoming the trend at most retailers, i.e. Masrhalls, TJ Maxx, Burlington, etc. Even with a receipt, retailers are requiring returns within 30 days. You would think these mass-retailers would take some hints from the benchmarkable retailers like Nordstrom and Saks who welcome returns preferably with receipts, but in the case of Saks, they take returns without receipts no matter how long you've had the item. They make some profit by re-selling the gently and in a number of cases, not-so-gently used merchandise in their in-house stores that are also open to the public. What a novel idea!
Target's return policy is the main reason I seldom shop at Target. They should really be more flexible.
My wife just left me your “Off-Target?” piece last night, so I had to write you. It's a long story, but I'll keep it as brief as possible.
I was getting married, so I opened up a registry at Target to promote a store I previously enjoyed more than most. On the registry I put a King-sized comforter that we both liked.
A relative, one of the FIFTY people we referred to Target to make purchases on the bridal registry, purchased a Queen-sized since the store was out of King and they didn't want to show up empty handed. They, like most people unfortunately, don't keep even gift receipts. Sucks, but it happens.
I took the Queen in and exchanged it for the King. (Side note- as a bridal registry customer, they up your “refund without receipt” dollar allowance to $200, as opposed to the $75 limit on normal customers.) So basically, I used $130 of my $200 limit to get what I should have had in the first place. They in return got a sealed, brand-new, never been touched item back to sell again.
We bring the new item home, unzip bag, it's much too thick for our liking. Looks great, too heavy for us. Back to the store. Can't return it because it'll put me over their $200 "without receipt" limit. That alone seemed odd since it's the exact same item, still in their product line, brand-new, etc. So, I contact their headquarters who says to insists they’re not working with me, and to get the original receipt from the purchaser… who won’t have it.
Embarrassingly, I contact the purchaser who brings all their credit cards to a nearby store to track down which it was bought on, they look it up, and print the receipt for us. Cool! Not really... the receipt shows a Queen was bought... we're holding the King we wanted. Back to the store for like the 8th time in all this. The receipt is good, but since it's the wrong item, further paperwork showing the initial exchange needs to be shown, but since that paperwork shows the registry was used, and we've only got $80 left in our limit, they can't do it... I would have taken the $80 and called it even.
Now I'm stuck with a brand-spanking-new, never-before-used, too-thick-for-us, $130 comforter that I don't want. They could give me $80 in store credit for it, hell I'd take less at this point, and they would have a resellable, current product line item. So, I do what any frustrated consumer would do. (BTW, if this didn’t work, my next move was to write a very nasty letter, slip it in a Christmas card and ship it AND the comforter to the CEO as a holiday gift)
Fortunately, my first move accidentally worked to my advantage. I tried returning it at 7-10 other Targets; at this point it had become a game to me. None would budge an inch for me, citing policy, until one evening I happened to go in to a store very late in the evening. I bombarded the girl (like I did everyone else) with my frustration and a ton of paperwork showing the trail of this thing. After 30 minutes of explaining, bickering, talking to her manager, etc. I decided to finally take their advice and get anything else from that department, because that’s all they would do for me. Since my item did not have a UPC any longer (must be at a Target counter somewhere) she makes me go to the department and grab a 2nd one of the King comforter, plus what I want. I bring up the Queen by mistake (honestly), she gets confused with all the paperwork I’ve tossed at her, ends up using the Queen receipt to issue me a gift card for full value (I do have the receipt after all) and lets me exchange for the different model. Of course, having a receipt for that, I return it the next day.
Bottom line… I ended up with more money than I started with, they got all their comforters back, and I won.
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