I wouldn't go as far as another reviewer and say that Jay Street is operated by 'a bunch of scam artists', but I think their quality control is lacking and the owner knows nothing about customer service.
I went to pick up an N64 from the Colonie store, and was informed they didn't have one, but that their Crossgates location did. On my way out the door, the employee stopped me and said, "Oh man, there's one right here! Sorry about that!" So, he sold it to me.
Plugged it into the living room set, no picture. Hooked it up to the TV in the bedroom, and still nothing. I called the Colonie store and was informed I could bring it to Crossgates for an exchange.
At Crossgates, we had them test the replacement consoel before we left. Well, that one didn't work either. So, of course, without a working console in hand - which is what we were paying for - a refund was in order.
The Crossgates clerk actually argued that all sales were final, and said something along the lines of, "You must have wanted one when you bought it..." Well yeah, sure. A WORKING one. Anyway, after some arguing, he granted my wife the refund. Needless to say, we weren't happy to argue for the refund given the circumstance.
So, I went to Jay Streets Facebook and shared our experience. The owner promptly, and kindly responded in record time, inquiring about the necessary details. Upon explaining evereything to him, he basically told me that his Crossgates employee was in the right, and that I should be happy because he actually did me a favor by processing the refund.
Come again?
Yep. Despite the fact we had to fight just to get a refund on a console we paid for and couldn't obtain one that worked... we were supposed to be happy. Not only that, but the guy in Colonie did us a massive favor too, because he sold us their test unit. I actually DO appreciate the fact he did that for us - but I had no idea that's what he was doing at the time, but it still doesn't negate the rest of the experience.
So I argued back and forth with the owner, and he eventually turned into a keyboard King Kong and began to call me names and resort to other such low means of communication.
I told him that bad worth of mouth travels far more than those of a positive experience, and I would do my part to tell my friends and family what kind of place Jay Street was. It should have went without saying, but I did make it a point to tell him I wasn't impressed with how they ran business and apparently didn't check their products before selling them, and that I'd never do business with them again, especially with how out of line the owner was being. It was honestly the most unprofessional individual I've ever encountered in retail.
Somehow, it made sense for him to try and turn the tables and tell me I was actually banned from his shops... even though I had already decided, and told him I would never return again anyway.
Of course, the conversation was promptly removed from his page so nobody could see how little they care about quality control or how he treats his customers, so he must have known how bad it would have looked for his business if others saw the exchange.
So, don't read Robert's review here and assume that the verbal assaults he took from the staff were 'outrageous' accounts that never happened. The owner doesn't take customer complaints on the chin... he instead feels that he needs to go on the defensive and start attacking the customer. It's his business and he can do as he pleases... but then people like me are also likely to go to an online forum such as this and share their negative experience, hoping others will think twice before giving business to a shop that only gets the business it has because of their locations are in high traffic malls.
If you want alternatives to Jay Street Video Games, one I cannot recommend enough is Forgotten Freshness in Mechanicville. The guy is knowledgable and friendly, and won't try to BS you into a sale. Consoles that come in are looked over and cleaned inside and out and verified to work before sale. If an old NES game like the gold cart The Legend of Zelda comes in, he'll replace the internal battery - which was required for game saves - before selling. He'll also raise or lower the prices fairly according to the condition of the product. In short, great selection, great staff, great (fair) prices.
Replay in Clifton Park isn't bad, either. It's always worth a look if Forgotten Freshness doesn't happen to have what I'm looking for, although that's rare.
Stay far away from Jay Street Video Games. They obviously don't test stuff before they sell it, and staff are rude... owner included. By the way... that N64 I believe went for $60 or $70 without a game... Replay had one that worked for $40, WITH a game. That should be an indication of how Jay Street's prices are... read more
