So I had to update my review since the merger of Walgreens & Rite Aid has taken place... I've heard lots of complaints, but from what I can tell & my own experience it's only the nightshift that I've had problems with... (Day shift is great & I recognize some of the employees from the former Rite Aid too, so that's not the problem.)
I'm giving a neutral (3-star) rating for now; we'll see if they take the feedback as intended - an opportunity to make improvements - or continue the long slide downhill? For those new to my reviews, my policy is that I if I give a 1-star review, it means I had to take the extra step of notifying the police, the health department, or corporate HQ (& in this case it would be corporate), which is a worst-case scenario & I do try to avoid it. Note to Mgmt: I can & will give an updated, higher-star review if there are noticeable improvements. Your ball.
As a preface, I've had a problem in this town since Day One since I had the misfortune (& it really is a misfortune) of moving to the one town in Georgia where I have a lookalike who is apparently a not very nice person (cough cough shoplifter cough cough) & everyone assumes I'm HER, even though I make it perfectly clear time & again I'm from California (hello, can't you hear my accent?!) Yeegads, I moved to Georgia, because I thought people would be nice (LOL), but it's been a nightmare of mistaken identity & undeserved hostility. (Thanks a lot Thomaston.)
So now you will immediately understand the ramifications of my recent nightshift experience... One night I was having a scary diabetical moment & I had run out of potassium (which I usually order by mail), so I went to the one pharmacy I knew would be open at that hour to see if I could find some... I was greeted in unsmiling almost inaudible monotone by the front of store cashier, but not offered any help (of course) & this person has such a "flat aspect" (look it up) that I was literally afraid to ask.
After wandering on my own, I eventually found the supplement aisle, which is right across from the pharmacy counter & manned by a woman who was on the phone at the time I arrived, but who made no effort to ask if I needed assistance after she got off the phone & in fact disappeared. (Keep in mind I am the only customer in the store.) So I was having a center-of-field blurry-vision diabetic moment (exacerbated by fluorescent lighting!) & had a hard time reading labels & signage & so was having a hard time locating the potassium, which was spread out in different locations by brand.
Then a different woman came out of the pharmacy area, or maybe it was a back office (not sure which) & kept straightening out bottles that didn't need straightening on the shelves to either side of me. (A+ for acting ability!) This went on for several minutes & she kept scooting uncomfortably close to me, but without ever acknowledging my existence, nor offering the help that I so desperately needed. (I've worked in retail & I've seen employees do this as a means of attempting to intimidate a known shoplifter into not shoplifting.) When I realized what she was doing, my blood pressure shot up & I felt like I was going to pass out. I turned & looked at her like "What the?" & she smirked to herself & scooted off without a word to parts unknown.
I was livid, but I purchased a bottle of potassium anyway (after finally locating one with the lowest sale price - not easy when you can barely focus on the small lettering!), because I really needed it & then left. Once outside it occurred to me that Walmart might have potassium? They did & their regular price was even cheaper than Walgreens sale price! So I immediately returned the Walgreens potassium ON PRINCIPLE, because they had unaccountably treated me like trash & didn't deserve my business. I was really tired & just wanted to go back home, but I couldn't in good conscience let it slide YET AGAIN, because I've lived here 4+ years now & there's been no sign of this awful town-wide behavior letting up. read more
