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Being in the city, I don't expect great customer service. There's exceptions. Trader Joe's tends to have exceptionally good/friendly service 80% of the time I'm there and I can't recall a single bad experience.
I'm not particularly picky about service but there's one store that really stands out in terms of negative experiences...
Whole Foods. After repeated experiences with Whole Foods, I would pinpoint it as the store with one of the worst customer service in the private sector within NYC. Their cashiers go out of their way to be rude. No hello/hi or any form of acknowledgement, randomly begins to sing and make inappropriate jokes to nearby coworkers, and if you make a small request such as two separate bags--I've had multiple employees try to ignore me until I asked the 3rd time (and then they bite back with attitude) or claim they didn't have a lot of bags left. They act like they're too good for their jobs, like they're enraged they have to do basic duties.
I've asked friends and it seems like some of them have experienced similar disgruntled employees at Whole Foods but also at other grocery stores too. One friend in particular mentioned she specifically walks a couple blocks more to the Key Foods with self check-out so that she doesn't have to deal with cashiers who have attitude
Anyway, curious if anyone else has noticed this and are there actual steps you can take to ensure complaints about terrible employees are sent to the right people who can take action?
The difference between Whole Foods and Trader Joes is like night and day. I have only once had a cashier that was so extremely bad I felt like complaining about at Whole Foods, but in general, yes, their attention to the customer is nothing like what you get at TJ's.
I think the difference is in where they are hiring their cashiers from. Whole Foods gets them from low income neighborhoods in the outer boroughs where they are not socialized properly and taught what it takes to be successful in jobs and in life.
TJ's on the other hand, hires people who are motivated and creative and have a life outside of working at a grocery store. It's their day job. Last time I was in TJ's, the cashier asked me what I had done that day. Luckily I remembered to ask him as well (as opposed to assuming he was at his cashier station all day) and he told me he's a student at the Joffrey Ballet School. Many of them have interesting stories about things they are passionate about. In addition, they are attentive, don't make mistakes, and know how to expertly pack a bag.
Yes many of the Whole food employees are terrible! I go to several whole foods in the city and no location is better then the next. Most often the employees don't say a word to me. No hi, bye, would you like a bag, my total, not one word. Often they are chit chatting with their co workers. Which I get, you want to enjoy your job and friends there. I have worked retail and customer service. You chat until when a customer comes, you stop. When they leave you pick up exactly where you left off on your conversation. It's not difficult.
The difference between Whole Foods and Trader Joes is like night and day. I have only once had a cashier that was so extremely bad I felt like complaining about at Whole Foods, but in general, yes, their attention to the customer is nothing like what you get at TJ's.
I think the difference is in where they are hiring their cashiers from. Whole Foods gets them from low income neighborhoods in the outer boroughs where they are not socialized properly and taught what it takes to be successful in jobs and in life.
TJ's on the other hand, hires people who are motivated and creative and have a life outside of working at a grocery store. It's their day job. Last time I was in TJ's, the cashier asked me what I had done that day. Luckily I remembered to ask him as well (as opposed to assuming he was at his cashier station all day) and he told me he's a student at the Joffrey Ballet School. Many of them have interesting stories about things they are passionate about. In addition, they are attentive, don't make mistakes, and know how to expertly pack a bag.
What a narrow minded thing to say. You could use the same language to describe someone who’s never had to work a day in their life and was raised on the UES, too. Or Greenwich. Smh.
"worst customer service in the private sector within NYC", Don't think so if anything Wholefoods would be the least, have you been in NYC long enough?
Your chains from McD's/Burger Kings being the worst to your eat ins like AppleBees/Buffalo Wild Wings being a little better but not really. But people that serve you food should bend over backwards for you just in my opinion, non chain places to eat are just border line nice at least here in NYC. Cashiers I don't care to much for them, your pretty much handing them over your money and being on your way, as long as they are not ignoring you which has happened than I would complaint...but Trader Joe's does have the nicest cashiers.
What a narrow minded thing to say. You could use the same language to describe someone who’s never had to work a day in their life and was raised on the UES, too. Or Greenwich. Smh.
It seems narrow minded, I agree. But unfortunately I had a job one time where I dealt with this exact population ( trying to help them find low level jobs) and the attitudes, excuses and incompetence were unbelievable. It’s amazing that some of them even got hired at all. So yes, I’m biased.
And sure, there may be pain in the ass rich people from Greenwich or UES who would also make terrible cashiers. But that’s a moot point since that’s not who we’re encountering at Whole Foods cashier stations in the city.
What a narrow minded thing to say. You could use the same language to describe someone who’s never had to work a day in their life
That is true. I know people who never had to work for a living and they are just as much in their own little world & just as aggravating to deal with albeit in a different way.
That is true. I know people who never had to work for a living and they are just as much in their own little world & just as aggravating to deal with albeit in a different way.
If they haven't had to work a day in their lives, then what are they doing at a $15/hour Whole Foods cashier job?
Even if there may be one or two who have fallen on hard times and are forced to accept this type of job, are you saying that's who we would normally encounter at the checkout?
I shop at several Whole Foods in Manhattan, and it wasn't always like this. I've been shopping at Whole Foods since the first one opened in Union Square and also frequent the one at the Time Warner building and the one in Chelsea on 7th Avenue from time-to-time. There aren't too many that I haven't been to.
I think part of it is what was said before... The type of people that are hired. Quite frankly they are poorly raised and from the hood - absolutely no manners. You should not have to train your employees to greet customers or say "Thank you", but they have to do this at Whole Foods. I mean talk about a lack of people skills. I sometimes find myself shocked at just how rude some of them try to be. It's a reflection on how some parents raise their kids in our City.
Additionally, Whole Foods has now become a symbol of this sort of snobby high-end place, which I resent because it was not like this when it opened originally. It was always focused on the food first and foremost. I shop there because I care about what I eat and I can find things there that I never thought would be sold here in the US from Europe and elsewhere, so it resonates with me because I can feel comfortable expecting to find organic and high quality, healthy food options instead of things filled with all sorts of ingredients that I have never heard of, or strange chemicals. It's basically a specialty store that focuses on organic, GMO-free, vegan, vegetarian, eco-friendly and imported items. However, I now see all sorts of people coming in there, not because they give a damn about their health, but because it has become a status symbol, so now people come in there just to walk around and gawk at the customers that shop in there, OR the one that really gets me, they go into to by "healthy" food, but step out and stick a cigarette in the mouth and immediately start puffing away - the hypocrisy isn't lost on me.
This whole status symbol shift has led to a sort of resentment because there are of course people of means that can afford the more pricey items, and so the people working there, some of them literally resent the customers that shop there, and it's unfortunate. It is very obvious at times too. When I shop at the Upper East Side or Tribeca locations, this becomes very evident. The workers show such hostility and resentment. It's like they see these people walking in that are in expensive neighborhoods and they view it as the people with $$$ buying whatever the hell they want while they as workers are here struggling. For what it's worth, many items are as cheap if not cheaper than other stores and better quality, but it has been given the name "Whole Paycheck" primarily because of the specialty items that are offered.
I have complained about it in fact because I cannot tolerate such rudeness when I am patronizing a business. Not only are some cashiers rude, but I find that the stock people are especially horrible. They will walk right in your path or block you from shopping, so you have to either wait for them to finish restocking OR move out of the way for THEM while you're the paying customer. It's really ridiculous. I make a point now to not move when I am walking with my cart. There is no reason for them to be anywhere near me when there is plenty of room in the aisle. I had one worker walk right into my cart, and I didn't say sorry either. He expected me to move out of his way when I'm trying to shop when the entire aisle is open. Absolutely not when you are being a jerk and doing it for spite.
If they haven't had to work a day in their lives, then what are they doing at a $15/hour Whole Foods cashier job?
Even if there may be one or two who have fallen on hard times and are forced to accept this type of job, are you saying that's who we would normally encounter at the checkout?
I can't understand this train of thought.
I think we’re talking about the attitude/lack of worth ethic, not the specific job itself. I get your previous point though. I lived in a rough neighborhood where the attitudes you encountered were prevalent. I just hate to paint everyone with the same brush. It’s a dangerous rabbit hole.
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