We wanted to take advantage of the nice weather and spend a Sunday outside as a family so we decided to head over to Afton Apple Orchard. When you first walk up there is a long series of windows where you can taste the apple varietals and then pick up your clear bags for apple picking as well as plastic dishes for picking raspberries. At no point is there any signage or instructions that you should pick apples first or that you must pay for your raspberries before going to pick apples. (this matters for later)
Once you pay to enter Afton Apple Orchard there are signs that say that you must pay before eating apples and that they reserve the right to inspect backpacks and strollers. Okay, fine, I get it. You want people to pay for what they pick before they leave or eat any of it. Totally makes sense.
So we walk in and my daughters immediately want to pick raspberries, which are in a field right next to the gate. So we spend a half hour picking raspberries and fill two of the plastic dishes, which have no lids. Then we decide to go pick apples.
The thing about Afton Apple Orchards is that it's huge (over 200 acres) and you really do need to ride on the hay ride if you want to make it out to the orchards. Also, at this point, I assumed that it was okay to pay for everything we picked at the end IE the raspberries and apples together.
So we get on the hayride, which is packed with about 60 people and a woman rushes over and yells at the driver to stop because we have raspberries on the hayride and raspberries are NOT allowed on the hayride. So we get off the hayride. So we're already embarrassed because we just got pulled off the hayride in front of a 100+ people, but we're good sports. Again THERE ARE NO SIGNS that say you can't take raspberries on the hayride, but I'm like - oh, they probably don't want raspberries flying everywhere on the hayride - again, totally get it. Again, at this point no sign or employee has told us that we have to pay for these raspberries before we pick apples, the lady just said no open raspberry containers on the hayride.
So, I'm like, I have a solution! I'll just use one of the apple-picking bags to put the raspberries in and put them in my backpack so they don't spill on the hayride. That seems like a solution that is in the spirit of not spilling raspberries all over their hayride or apple orchard.
So I put the raspberries in my backpack, in front of 100+ people, mind you. I wasn't being sneaky about it AT ALL. And we go back to wait for the next hayride.
At this point a burly ginger man lumbers over to me and says, "Hey, what did you do with those raspberries?"
ME: I put them in my backpack
Burley Ginger: Did you pay for them?
ME: Um, no, I didn't realize I was supposed to.
Burley Ginger: You have to pay for them before you go to the orchard. Putting them in your backpack without paying makes it look like you're trying to steal them.
ME: *Gobsmacked* Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I'm happy to pay for them before we pick apples. I just assumed that we pay for everything we pick at the end.
Burley Ginger: No, you need to pay for those before you pick apples. Otherwise it looks like you're stealing them.
ME: *getting angry and incredibly insulted* Okay, I'm happy to pay for them, but how was I supposed to know that I need to pay for them before picking apples?
We exchange a few more words.
Burley Ginger is starting to walk away
My husband at this point interjects, "Some signage around here would be helpful."
Burley Ginger turns back around and gets in my husband's face.
Burley Ginger: *Getting louder and more agro* Look! I'm just following company policy!!
My husband reiterates that it's not clear what the company policy is and it's rude to accuse us of stealing.
Burley Ginger: I'm not accusing you of stealing!
ME: You told me three times that it looks like I was stealing.
Burley Ginger: I'm not yelling!
I'm not really sure why he needed to insist that he wasn't yelling. Neither my husband nor I accused him of yelling.
Honestly, the whole interaction was so bizarre and horrible customer service. And this exchange, again, took place in front of at least 60 people waiting for the next hayride so I was mortified.
I didn't want this to happen to anybody else so I went into the retail store and asked to speak to a manager. I told her what had happened without naming the employee and pointed out that they have a system problem if people have no idea what your company policies are.
She told me that the day before they had people stealing from them left and right, which is why they had to put up the signs saying that they have the right to search strollers and backpacks, but even those signs are confusing because they're on the gate when you enter, so I assumed it was more like a security thing.
Anyway, I let her know what a terrible experience I had, she seemed slightly comforting but ambivalent at best and now we'll never go back. read more