I have to knock off a star for the rude and disrespectful staff in the tire center. I have had several negative encounters with them, which I've had to bring to the attention of store management.
Not only do they have rude and nasty attitudes, they are arrogant and condescending towards female customers. They suck their teeth and get offended when asked a question (as if they're being inconvenienced), and the male staff members I've encountered (especially the tire center manager) take a condescending tone when asked them to put air instead of nitrogen in tires.
On more than one occasion I've been subjected to an unwanted 'science lesson' from a condescending member of their staff. I get the nitrogen vs. oxygen thing and all the supposed benefits to the tires and the blah blah.... however, at the end of the day, this is MY vehicle: MY personal property, and ultimately I have the final say in deciding what I want in my tires. Instead of simply honoring my request, or informing me that he would be unable to fulfill said request, the tire center manager went as far as to outright lie to me and say that the tire center did not have a machine to put air in tires on site, only nitrogen. I was here a few months ago to get air put in my tire, so I know that what he said was not true. (And when I spoke to the store manager about this incident, she confirmed that there is indeed an air machine onsite.) For whatever reason, this guy just plain didn't want to do what I ask.
After repeatedly stating in my preferences to him, he proceeded to aggressively pitch me on nitrogen (including another unwanted 'science lesson'). When it was obvious that I wasn't sold, he then began to raise his voice and argue with me about my preferences.
"I mean, why you want Air instead of nitrogen?"
"You just don't understand the science behind it."
"If your tire gets low you can just put regular air in it... it's not like it's gonna blow up!!
(if that's that the case, why won't you just put air in it in the first that?!)
"I mean, there's really no such thing as regular air anyway. You don't even breathe pure oxygen... there's nitrogen in the air you breathing right now"
(Like, wtf does that have to do with my tires?!)
On and on he went with this BS.
Were I male, I assure you we would not be having this kind of conversation. However, I can assure you that I will be aggressively following up with store management to ensure that other customers won't have to put up with this same condescension.
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This is my preferred Costco in the DMV area. Costco is knowing for parking clusterfu-ks, but this one manages traffic very well. They even have police directing and controlling traffic on its busiest days. The gas station area is also managed very well. The lines appear long, but they move quickly and smoothly, and there is always someone right there to help.
The fact that this location sells alcohol (and LOTS of it!) is reason enough to make it my favorite. It is a great place to stock up if you are hosting a gathering, or if you just want to refresh your own personal stash. And some of the Kirkland Brand booze and mixers are not bad (except for the spiced rum. That ish is nasty!). But more than that, it sells a wide variety of high end goods that you would not expect to find in...Costco. Every now and then you will find unusual things for sale like high end designer bags... or, ya know, a $275,000 piece of jewelry. It's a crap shoot, but it just adds to the allure of this location.
Then of course there are the staples: the delicious samples, the crisp, fresh produce, the delectable baked goods, the dazzling electronics. The ever-changing inventory is reason enough to warrant frequents visits.
Compared to some of the other stores in the area (*cough cough* Gaithersburg and Pentagon City) this one is very well run. read more