Black Friday Stories

Joined: 15 May 2008 Posts: 251

Any stories? BTW, if you have any stories from years prior, please mention them as so.

This year: woke up at midnight to go to work(actually had insomnia, so I had next to no sleep.) I was actually scared for a change to be outside at night time. There were actually people outside at that hour, including people with little children and strollers. At 4:00 AM, there is only the clubgoers, cabbies, occasional people from who knows where, and panhandlers who all just got out of prison and are trying to get to New Jersey, even though they told me that story two days in a row.

Entered work at 1:30 AM to sign floor for morning specials. Surprisingly, the store manager did not say anything about my clocking.

Assisted in maintaining the floor. It was actually a little slower this year than years prior, and most of them were actually nice to me (could be because I actually did my best to be nice to them for a change.)

There was one customer who I asked if she had any shoes she wanted returned. She pointed to the box behind her, which I ran back. An hour later, she is upset that her shoes are gone because I ran them back. Thankfully, I found them. Her response (in Spanish and a bad joking sense) was that she should wring my neck/decapitate me. Dumb lowlife Hispanic (umm, wait, I'm Hispanic right? Did I just type that?)

Come 12:30 to remove the morning special in time for 1:00, most of the customers were decent with me. There's just too many of them. I wish I were Moses at this time. I would just part the main aisle like the Red Sea. While I'm removing signs (mind you, I'm tired and cranky,) customers are asking me for shoes.

Do you need INFORMATION?
Yes, I'd like these shoes..
INFORMATION!!

I had a fun, but tiring Black Friday. Can't wait to not do it again next year.

BTW, Black Friday 2004, a customer had a siezure on the selling floor. A sales associate attempts to ensure the customer is okay. Customers are going to the sales associate, who is kneeling on the floor, asking for shoes.

Joined: 03 Jan 2008 Posts: 1217 Location: ole wrap stand

I just love to watch all those bed in the bag people going crazy for those 39.99 specials and watch them buy them by the MOTHER LOAD and asked me could I used my COUPONS.. Doh!

Joined: 09 Aug 2008 Posts: 364

My experience this year wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, and was better than in other years.

One pleasant surprise was hearing that our main competitor down the mall, who opened an hour earlier than Macy's, had their ENTIRE REGISTER SYSTEM CRASH just after they let the first customers in. All purchases had to be keyed in BY HAND. It took nearly 45 minutes to get everything back and running. Needless to say, those customers were relieved to find us up and running and ready to take care of them. I know that a significant chunk of our early morning sales came from disgruntled shoppers at the other store. I had more than a few guests say that Macy's had the friendliest, most attentive staff in the whole mall. No shit.

Hee. Very Happy

My biggest problem was dealing with the damned coupons. AGAIN. Having to explain the exclusions, what an EDV was, no stacking offers and/or coupons, no coupons on the morning specials .... blah blah blah. Most of my customers are actually used to this, so they just put away their deck of Macy's coupons and swiped their Macy's card. (I also opened another four accounts.)

The mess, on the other hand.... I'm in shoes, too, and it was impossible to keep up with trying to keep the displays intact, or at least off the floor and out from under the chairs. I wish I had a dollar for every abandoned and half-empty beverage container I nearly tripped over. We wound up just getting a cart and sorting a heap of shoes into zones and tried getting them back, but customers would literally DIG THROUGH THE SHOES AS WE WERE SORTING THEM AND WALK OFF WITH THEM. Then, twenty minutes later, we'd find the shoes under a chair again. Our offstage team was AWESOME, however. They not only kept up with our piles of drops, but they helped find shoes and even brought them out to customers. They're amazing!

But yesterday I don't know how many times I told a customer something like "I'm sorry, but I only have this available in a seven. We're sold through on the other sizes."

"Well, do you have it in a six?"

"Um.. No. I only have it in a seven. There are just two sevens left."

"What about an six and a half? Do you have a six and a half?"

"No."

"When will you be getting more in?"

"We won't be."

And... like it's off a script... wait for it... there's always this:

"Can't you just call some other stores and see if they have it?"

I just shake my head slowly, saying nothing but not breaking eye contact, until the message finally sinks in the customer's dense lil' noggin.

Hey, but the commission I made in just one day will pay my month's liquor bill. Just about.

I won't do this again next year. I'll make it a point to fall off a ladder or something.

Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2008 2:45 am Post subject:

In retail it pays to break a leg on Thanksgiving!

Then again, I know some retail managers who would literally tell you to wheel yourself in, they will open the back door for the iron lung!

Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2008 4:10 pm Post subject:

Personally I'll go with my burnt liver since I'm still heavily hungover from Thanksgiving.

Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2008 10:10 pm Post subject:

Thats no excuse! Stop at the grocery store and pick yourself up a new lung and get to work five minutes early to make up for the time it took us to hear your excuse.

Joined: 03 Jan 2008 Posts: 1217 Location: ole wrap stand

Iam so sorry...but the my secret bar..under the ole wrap stand is mine right now..Dont feel like sharing right now.. Evil or Very Mad

Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2008 2:15 am Post subject:

The Ole Wrape Stande Pub is mine! Mu ha ha ha ha! I snuck in on Thanksgiving day when the store was empty and emptied it out! The security guard tried to arrest me till I explained what I was doing! We shared the goods and then I got on the next Delta Flight home!

Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2008 3:27 am Post subject:

I have a good Black Friday story; I was off, and I slept in all day.
Yeah, THAT'S a good one!

Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 1:12 am Post subject:

I sense somebody has a much longer nose now than they did before!

Joined: 03 Jan 2008 Posts: 1217 Location: ole wrap stand

Joined: 30 Nov 2008 Posts: 919 Location: CA

Our scheduling was so messed up. Most of the crew, seasoned employees and newbies, all started B4 10 am, so after 6:15, I was by myself until 10 with a brand new, first-day-on-the-job employee. It was tough, not to mention that we don't have enough parking so we are shuttled in.

boy do I have stories

Posted: Fri Dec 05, 2008 1:15 pm Post subject:

Sounds bad. Where are you located?

Joined: 12 Dec 2007 Posts: 884

Posted: Sat Dec 06, 2008 1:41 am Post subject:

Today we were way understaffed for the ODS. It was irritating. Why should I suffer b/c someone didn't predict that we would be busy for a ODS in December???

Joined: 12 Dec 2007 Posts: 884

Joined: 03 Jan 2008 Posts: 1217 Location: ole wrap stand

Like I say before ..there is no place like home...TEAM WINS with my schuedle..its flexible to your personal needs

Joined: 30 Nov 2008 Posts: 919 Location: CA

Posted: Sat Dec 06, 2008 3:01 pm Post subject:

They just want to save money. They're trying to save that last bit of the budget for their bonuses, while WE are the ones suffering, and we don't get any bonuses!

Joined: 30 Nov 2008 Posts: 919 Location: CA

Our store did over $900K on Black Friday and our department (childrens) did about $50K. We can't do that much $$ in 3 months! Now, they are cutting hours because they say they are not making their sales? We don't have a fitting room person, just seasonal recovery; and you know they just fold tables. We still have 3-4 "Z" racks of go-backs from two weeks ago. 1 1/2 baby racks full of "parts". It's BAD! I'm finally realizing that if the management doesn't give a crap, why should I?

Posted: Sat Dec 06, 2008 5:29 pm Post subject:

Wait until they start cutting hours and letting people go come January.

Joined: 09 Aug 2008 Posts: 364