Terrible customer service.
I should've known when I walked in last week and was met by two scowling young clerks that things weren't going to go so well...
First, I asked for two gallons of SuperPaint. I was told that they were out and was directed to select a different base. I selected Duration and requested that one color be "flat" and the other be in "eggshell." Something about the sullen demeanor of the staff told me to repeat my "eggshell" (three times) request to make sure it didn't get confused. After receiving my paint and heading back to my car, something told me to check the sheen. Low and behold...they were both "flat."
I returned to the store and told the sour-faced staff that I asked for "eggshell." Thankfully, they took back the "flat" gallon and agreed to replace it with "eggshell," but definitely not with a smile. When I was handed the new gallon of paint, I looked at the label, and instead of "eggshell," it said "satin"! Stunned, I showed the can to my uncle: "It says satin." To which the clerk behind me replied, "Satin is egg shell."
"Wait! What? SATIN IS EGG SHELL?!?!"
For confirmation, I looked to my uncle -- the guy who has been painting houses for more than 20 years -- who subtly shook his head no. "I've never heard that before," he whispered. We thought that maybe this was a Sherwin Williams thing, because "flat" is not "eggshell" at Benjamin Moore...or at any other paint supplier he knew. But we accepted this explanation, went home, and painted my accent wall in a sheen obviously more glossy than eggshell.
After a day with the glare of my accent wall bugging me, I did some research on the SW website and found that Duration does not come in eggshell. Maybe satin is SW's equivalent to eggshell, I thought. Then I looked at Cashmere...and there was eggshell. So, instead of telling us that "satin is eggshell" -- which is not true according the description of the sheens online -- our clerk could've simply told us that Duration doesn't come in eggshell, and that if we wanted that particular sheen, we should buy Cashmere instead (at the same price point).
Later, when I needed exterior house paint, I decided to go to the Cherry Hill, NJ store. The customer service was like night and day. I was treated by a friendly, smiling staff that actually OFFERED TO HELP ME, gave me product explanations, and who went so far as to even enter my name and paint choices into a database for future purchases.
So I won't be back to this Fishtown location. I will drive way out of my way, cross a bridge, and even pay a toll coming back to avoid dealing with this store's angry-at-the-world clerks that seem to get my order wrong more than the McDonald's next door. read more
