I went in to The Stock Shop today on the recommendation of a friend, who was with me. She is a dog breeder, and gets all of her supplies, vaccinations, etc from there, and recommends to all of her clientele that they get their pet supplies there as well. She stayed in the car since she had her daughter with her, and we didn't want to disturb a sleeping infant.
I was going in to purchase a replacement rat for my son. His died last night. Since our house hold has lost 2 dogs, and another pet rat in the last few months (all from old age), his 4-year old heart has been broken enough. So, since his pet rat was just a simple colored beige rat, I thought I could replace her and spare him more upset so quickly.
I ran in real quick, and tried to find a similar-looking rat amongst their feeder rats. While picking up one at a time, to see if they were docile enough to be a pet, one got away from me and ran under a shelf. I apologized profusely, and felt terrible. The young lady assisting me got perturbed, and told me I should look elsewhere. Feeling awful, I chose one quickly and went to stand in line. I remembered we were out of food, so I ducked into the small pet feed aisle to grab a small box of food. At that point, the young lady that had been assisting me came up to me and said "I informed my manager what happened, and since you lost the rat in the store, they need you to pay for it in addition to the one you chose." I said ok. And she said "I'll wait up front by the cashier so that they know."
So, since I didn't have much money this week, I couldn't afford to pay for 2 rats, plus food, so I put the food back. I couldn't buy a pet that I didn't have food money for, so I waited in line for 10 minutes to pay for the rat that got loose. With, of course, the sales associate waiting up there for me to make sure I didn't try to sneak out without paying for it. When It was my turn to check out, I told the cashier that a rat got away from me while I was trying to pick one, so I am going to pay for it, but that I can't afford the 2nd rat as well, since I need to buy food also. I could afford one rat, plus food, but not 2 rats, plus food. So, I then asked her to put the one I had been holding back. She looked at me funny, and I explained that I was only trying to avoid having to tell my son that his pet rat died, which is why I came in looking at them. She said "Ok." and rang me up. I paid her for an animal that was still in the store, and walked out in tears.
I got in the car where my friend was waiting, and she asked what was wrong. I told her and she was livid. She had originally planned on going in there after I was done to grab some things she needed for her pups, but she said "I'm not going in there again. They just lost a longtime customer, as well as all the business I send their way."
I get that there's a "you break it, you buy it" kind of thing going on, but...I was just surprised at the coldness of the employees. It truly was an accident, and I felt terrible. I'm a single parent, and just wanted to get a pet for my 4-year old son to keep from having to give him bad news. So much for that idea.
There were many other folks in there today, so I'm sure many other folks have good experiences there, but their customer service in general seemed to be lacking. No compassion, or relatability. Good customer service means more to many people than a lot of businesses and associates realize. When I have it, I'll spend more money on what I need at a more expensive shop if the owners/staff treat their customers well, especially if it's a Mom & Pop kind of place instead of a major chain.
After today, The Stock Shop will not be a place I spend my extra money. But, I'm just one person, and if their treatment is any indication, they don't need my business, anyway. read more