NO More Free Samples For You

[tabs]

Earlier this year a new Mexican super market opened here in LV. As one walked in it has a great Produce section of good quality at unbelievably low prices, a Bakery,a 100 foot long Meat Counter, a Deli, a Tortilla factory and a nice Restaurant. One of the nice extras was the Free Samples that they offered a small sample of your choice of 3 or 4 different cakes handed out by an employee at the Bakery, at the Deli a sample of Mexican Cheese, a girl handing out a small Taco by the Meat Counter, and by the Restaurant another girl handing out a small Taco with Chicken and a basket of Chips with 6 different kinds of Salsa.

So every week or so I would head on down and load up on the fruit and veggies. Usually spending between $15 and $30. I would also go for the Free Samples. Since I am diabetic, it generally was the only time I would partake of a cake sample, Tacos or Chips as they are high in Carbs. It basically is a treat for myself. This was my usual on going pattern.

Well several Sundays ago I am partaking of the Chips and Salsa, when a Hispanic gentleman walks up and stands between myself and the Chips. I wait patiently for him to move. He doesn't, so I move around to his right side, grab a chip and am about to dip when he says to me, "You have been on security surveillance." I ask him, "Are you store security?" He says, "No I am in charge here, and no more free samples for you."

I am stunned, not quite knowing what to make of this??? For this guy "in charge" to have come down from his office means that they must have been surveillance of myself on multiple occasions and became recognizable. "Ohh here comes the Sample Guy again, here to hog up all our Chips and Salsa." "SO NO MORE FREE SAMPLES FOR HIM!"

So I go to the checkout, where they UNDER CHARGE me for some Avocados. I bring it their attention and pay the extra $1.33 that is due them. At that time I also find out that the guy who told me no more free samples is in fact the Store Director..At that time I tell the Checkout Manager, "Tell your Store Director I was honest with him." Then I left.

I then headed off for Costco for some further grocery shopping and of course their free samples...On the way out of Costco I found a $5 bill laying in the Parking Lot..now that must be some kind of Karma there...

Anyway that evening I sent off an e-mail in my immutable style to the President of that Mexican market chain..which btw wasn't replied to.

Dear Mr XXXX:

Having been in the grocery business, one fully understands the value of customer loyalty and repeat business. It is for that reason one wishes to to bring to your attention an incident between myself and the Store Director one Mr Manny GXXXX at your DXXXX Store in Las Vegas. I have been a regular (weekly) customer of that store since its opening earlier this year and it is with both shock and dismay that Mr GXXXX on Sunday afternoon (11/13/11) would not only chastise myself but also tell me that I had been under repeated Security surveillance for no other apparent reason than partaking of the FREE SAMPLES that your store offers. What this chastisement amounts to is a handful of Tortilla Chips and a few Tablespoons of Salsa. If that were of such concern to your store operations one would think that a far more efficacious manner of handling the situation would be to post a sign limiting the Free Sample to one per customer instead of having a Store Director get involved in such a manner.

What this incident does in affect is sour if not destroy that warm feeling one has when shopping at your stores. What one hopes is that no further incidents of this nature occurs when shopping at your stores. Your reply is eagerly anticipated in resolving this matter.

Thank You




While it would have been nice to get a response from the head office it wasn't the desired effect of the e-mail. What was the desired affect was that the Store Director get a call from his superior asking WTF happened with that Sample Guy? There was no way that an e-mail could be ignored, for two simple words.. potential lawsuit....the head office had to find out what happened..and the Store Director would have to explain himself...

[masraum]

Really? You're "one"? Hahahah.

You may get a response back anytime in the next couple of months. Many folks don't sit around checking their email and responding right away. It's not that unusual for responses to be days or even weeks out. Not to mention, if they have a publicly available email address, then they probably get an obscene amount of mail, of which 99% is probably crap, so your note is the proverbial needle in a haystack.

I suspect a written hard copy letter would get better results.

On the matter of the free samples, wow, weird. I understand that grocery stores have a very low margin. I believe Whole Foods has signs that say something like "Please, no grazing" in some areas of their store.

Were you grazing or sampling?

[nostatic]

best. thread. evah.

[sammyg2]

Chips and salsa nazi: NO CHIPS FOR YOU. NEXT!

[trekkor]

Samples are a write off.

The store made a mistake and should compensate you somehow to show that they want your business. ( coupon/gift card )

If a store is concerned about samples, they should stop offering them.


KT

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Maybe it wasn't the free samples but the 15 pounds of margarita mix, avacados and tequila you had hidden under your coat that drew the attention of security (?)

Seriously, 15% unemployment in Las Vegas and idiots like this can not only find jobs but waste time enforcing arbitrary salsa rations?

Just weird all around.

If the samples don't get eaten they get thrown out (health codes require this iirc). They'd prefer this?

[RWebb]

did you write Charlie Rose about this?

[Gogar]

Perhaps you will see the err in your ways when they remove the free samples from the store completely.

Thanks a lot, fatty.

[tabs]

Originally Posted by RWebb

did you write Charlie Rose about this?

WOW thats is a good idea..I din't even think of that!!!!

[daepp]

Oh my - wife and kids had a weekly ritual of making there way through Costco free samples on Friday afternoons. That was an early dinner for the family for many years.

Of course, we also dropped a few hundred dollars there every time!

[tabs]

Originally Posted by masraum

Really? You're "one"? Hahahah.

You may get a response back anytime in the next couple of months. Many folks don't sit around checking their email and responding right away. It's not that unusual for responses to be days or even weeks out. Not to mention, if they have a publicly available email address, then they probably get an obscene amount of mail, of which 99% is probably crap, so your note is the proverbial needle in a haystack.

I suspect a written hard copy letter would get better results.

On the matter of the free samples, wow, weird. I understand that grocery stores have a very low margin. I believe Whole Foods has signs that say something like "Please, no grazing" in some areas of their store.

Were you grazing or sampling?

A Certified Hard Copy....

I know the game real well...

99.99999% of e-mail is written by the...illerate, inarticulate and incoherent

Unless you are a Media outlet with mass viewship that gets thousands upon thousands of e-mails a day...an articulate well spoken e-mail stands out among the dross like a sore thumb...even in the mass media envirnoment it does tend to get through.

Sampling evrything but the Chips...where I was sublimly grazing away like a Steer in a pasture full of its favorite flavor of grass. Or mutiple flavors of Salsa in my case. It amounts to about 5 or 6 chips more or less.

[KFC911]

Tabs - The "Master Sampleteer" ...too funny!!!

[azasadny]

So, you're the guy that ruins the "free sample" thing for the rest of us.....

Send a snail mail and if you don't get the response you want, shop somewhere else...

[trekkor]

protest out front...


KT

[UconnTim97]

Occupy the parking lot.

[Zeke]

Funny thread. Last time in Costco there came to be a line at one of the food sample tables blocking the aisle. They were swarming. I bet 1% bought the product.

The guy in the Mexican market was insulting and rude. That is all that needs to be mentioned in a letter. If they give a damn they will contact tabs for the complete version and send him a gift certificate to bring him back to the store. He will buy more and they will make some of their money back. More visits and they are back in black.

As consumers we need to know when to move on. If there was only one Mexican products store in all of Vegas, I'd be a little surprised. If that had happened to me, I'd be all over Yelp and any other sites I could find. I'd probably post a video on YouTube of some woman and all of her kids chowing down at the same free sample station just to cement my point.

In fact, it's a little silly to blank out their name here. Let the ax fall. I tend to cause a little damage when I am slighted.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by UconnTim97

Occupy the parking lot.

Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!!

[scottmandue]

*cough* perhaps you should work on your tan *cough*

Yes I know that sounds terrible but have found growing up in SoCal being blond/blue eyed can be a disadvantage sometimes.

[tabs]

Cardena's Market....

30 stores based in Ontario, CA

And I loved their store, beyond the free samples. I was telling people about it.......NO MAS

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

*cough* perhaps you should work on your tan *cough*

Yes I know that sounds terrible but have found growing up in SoCal being blond/blue eyed can be a disadvantage sometimes.

I was thinking the exact same thing.