I have shopped at the Winnemucca Big R store for many years and have spent many thousands of dollars there on fencing, hardware, feed, propane, etc. They do have a good selection of items, but their customer service has been steadily going downhill for awhile. I live on a ranch that is 2 hours from town and go into town an average of twice a month. Yesterday, I went into the Big R to buy some chicken fee, rabbit feed, and to exchange an outdoor thermometer that was defective. I specifically requested 2 bags of mini-pellet layer chicken feed. Apparently, the cashier rang up 1 bag of regular chicken feed. I discovered the mistake when the bags of feed were being loaded into the pickup truck. I had to go back inside to have them correct the mistake. While I was inside, the guy that was loading the bags came inside and said that the bags had been loaded. It wasn't until i got home and unloaded the feed that I discovered that instead of chicken feed, 2 bags of Hay pellets for horses had been loaded. Now I have to go back. Also, when I requested an exchange for the defective thermometer, the cashier informed me that I had waited too long to return the item. Big R had a policy limiting exchanges to 30 days. I requested to speak to a manager, but when the manager arrived, she stated that it was a strict return policy, no exceptions. She couldn't do anything because it was a "corporate" policy. When I mentioned that I was a regular customer, she said too bad, but she couldn't do anything for me. When I pointed out that there were other stores in town the that sold feed, hardware, propane, etc. and there is a Tractor Supply store in a nearby town, she said that it was entirely my choice to shop elsewhere. That was the last straw. They didn't care if they lost a long-term customer over a cheap made-in-China thermometer. This is very symptomatic of the current state of the store's customer service. It used to have a "small town" vibe where friendly employees knew your name, were helpful and were competent. Now it's "corporate" with strict rules for uniformity across multiple stores and not empowering employees or store managers with the leeway to make decisions to enhance customer service. Oh, and one other comment. On a previous visit to the store to buy some tubes of caulk, the cashier informed me that she couldn't put them in a bag because "the bags were too thin and the tubes would rip through them". Another indication that "corporate" is doing things on the cheap. read more
