OT: Grocery Greetings



<RJ> wrote:
>
> One of my favorite pastimes has been "doing inventory"
> at the local hardware store.
> You browse the shelves, finding all sorts of solutions
> present or future house problems.
> More often than not, I'd come home with a sack full
> of hardware and .... always another screwdriver.
>
> But the local ACE store must have a shoplifter prob.
> The employees follow you around..... constantly !
> "Can I help you" ? "Looking for something?"
> Turn too quickly, and you'll knock one over.
>
> After the second or third visit, I gave up.
> I don't go to that ACE store any more.
>
> <rj>


We don't support stores which behave similarly. It's ridiculous,
sometimes.

-L.
 
Dimitri wrote:

> I'm glad that steps are being taken to curtail shoplifting, not only
> don't I mind the security checks at the door, I welcome the practice...
> things like printer ink cartridges are expensive enough, I don't want
> to be forced to also pay for those taken by thieves. The stores call
> shoplifting losses "shrinkage", which is paid for by the honest
> customers in the form of higher prices... I recently read that average
> stupidmarket shrinkage is now at about 25%... which amounts to about a
> 50% increase over the past 5 years. When you note higher food prices
> it's not so much that the items cost more, it's mostly to cover the
> cost of shrinkage... each time someone swipes something from the
> non-prescription drug asisle the price of bread increases... do you
> really think that loaf of bread should cost the same as a toothbrush,
> you're paying $3 a loaf to cover the stolen toothbrushes that normally
> sell for $3 but actually cost only 10¢. Shrinkage also encompasses
> items stolen by store employees, another large segment.


I worked part time at in a department store while still a student. Duringthe
time I worked there a local newspaper wrote an article about shoplifting and
relied heavily on their interview with the security staff of our store. They
told the reporters that most shoplifters were 14-16 years of age. To thebest
of their knowledge, that was probably true, because those who the thievesthey
were able to detect and catch.

The security staff reported to the store's assistant manager, a beady eyed
little weasel who I never cared much for. It seems that his security staff got
a little better than he had thought they were. They caught him with a who car
full of stuff one night. He had pulled his car up to a loading bay and was
filling it up with his loot when they caught him.

The biggest thieves are sometimes the employees. Ever notice the location of
security cameras in stores, pizza joints and donut shops. They are directed at
the till and the employees.

Shrinkage is more than just the stuff that is stolen. It includes defective
items, items returned in bad shape, items damaged in the store. I workedin
Sporting Goods, Seasonal, and Toy Departments. When people are looking for
green Christmas tree bulbs they will tear open packages and switch the bulbs
around. The rest of them end up as shrinkage. People open up packages tosee
what the product looks like, and then they take an unopened box instead of the
one they opened. The opened product usually ends up shrinkage.

The worst was the toy department at Christmas. Parents send their kids into
play while they are out doing their shopping. The kids would open up boxes and
play with the toys inside. Sometimes the toys ended up back in the box, but most
often they did not, and that box and its contents were.... shrinkage.

Someone opens up a package of sheets that won't fit back into the packaging....
shrinkage. A shopping cart bumps into a stack of glasses or dishes....
shrinkage. A clerk needs tools to assemble a bicycle or a BBQ.... shrinkage.
 
On Wed, 23 Mar 2005 11:22:06 GMT, Rhonda Anderson
<[email protected]> wrote:

>More stores than not here have electronic gates as you go out the doors
>that should beep if you're absconding with merchandise (and haven't
>figured out how to remove the gizmo that beeps).


<snip>

I made it out of Macy's the other day with a dress that had had the
security tag removed, waltzed out the door and home. Started to try it
on again at home when I realized there was a *second* security tag on
it (???) - hadn't set off the buzzer at Macy's on my way out earlier
(???). Did when I came back to have the security tag removed today.
Buzzed big. No one turned their head, no one inquired as to what
caused the noise...just went up to a clerk with my receipt and told
'em what happened. End of story. <head shaking>

Wait a sec: if the buzzer didn't cause anyone to flinch and there's
this Dana Buchman outfit I really can't afford, maybe I oughta
try...or not <g>

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA


"If the soup had been as hot as the claret, if the claret had been as
old as the bird, and if the bird's breasts had been as full as the
waitress's, it would have been a very good dinner."

-- Duncan Hines

To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"
 
In article <[email protected]>, Terry Pulliam
Burd <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> Wait a sec: if the buzzer didn't cause anyone to flinch and there's
> this Dana Buchman outfit I really can't afford, maybe I oughta
> try...or not <g>


Go for it. How do you like your chicken soup? And what ARE the
visiting hours?
--
-Barb, <www.jamlady.eboard.com> Sweet Potato Follies added 2/24/05.
"I read recipes the way I read science fiction: I get to the end and
say,'Well, that's not going to happen.'" - Comedian Rita Rudner,
performance at New York, New York, January 10, 2005.
 
"Dave Smith" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> Don't get me wrong. I appreciate kind words. I prefer sincerity.

I too prefer sincerity, however in this rushed world of ours sincerity can be elusive. I myself have caught myself conversating without sincerity. (kind words but not as sincere as I should have been.) For example you run into someone you haven't seen in awhile.."Hi ______ how are you?" I'm expecting them to say, "just fine" and either move on in the conversation to another subject or make my quick exit. I knew this one woman that always stopped and had a sincere conversation no matter how busy she was. You could feel her sincerity and I do admire that quality.
 
aem <[email protected]> wrote:
>Went to the market today with a longer list than normal so I found
>myself in every section of the store, spending more than twice my
>normal time. No fewer than six employees greeted me: "Hi, how are
>you? How're you doing? How's it going? How are you? Can I help you
>find anything? Is there anything I can help you with?" This is before
>I got to the checkout line where the checker thanks me by name (off the
>receipt) and the bagger asks if I want help out. I am so friggin sick
>of this fake personalizing of what is in fact an impersonal business
>transaction I could barf. I have lived in a small town, so I know what
>genuine personal recognition is, and this corporate management-directed
>bonhomie is not it. So here are my questions.
>
>To whom do I express my preference not to be spoken to unless I ask a
>question? And, if enough people stated a similar preference, could we
>get them to stop? -aem


Dress up like you're blind.

--Blair
"No, wait, that makes them shout
at you."
 
Naomi wrote:
>
> What I *really* don't like, though, is getting sales pitches.


EVERY time I'm in our local KMart (whihc is a lot since I get my Rx
there) someone approaches me to sign up for their "contest" to win
windows for my house. It's to the point where I just start laughing
when they walk up. Sometimes the same person will approach me 3 or 4
times.

-L.
 
Tina Marrie wrote:
> Ions ago, I did "mystery shopping" at a Kroger. The corporate stores

require
> their employees to communicate with you if you within so may feet of

them.
> The corporate office then hires "mystery shoppers" to visit the

store, every
> department to check up on these requirements. The rules are many and

yes
> annoying. If a mystery shopper comes into the store, and they are not

spoken
> to, the "spy" then takes down their name and department (located on

name
> tag) and puts it into the report. Of course the low paid worker then

gets
> called in to the office after the report has been released...
>
> So annoying as it may be, many of these workers rely heavily on this

job to
> support their families. Take it with a grain of salt.
> "jmcquown" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:eek:4_%[email protected]...
> > aem wrote:
> >> Went to the market today with a longer list than normal so I found
> >> myself in every section of the store, spending more than twice my
> >> normal time. No fewer than six employees greeted me: "Hi, how

are
> >> you? How're you doing? How's it going? How are you? Can I help

you
> >> find anything? Is there anything I can help you with?" This is
> >> before I got to the checkout line where the checker thanks me by

name
> >> (off the receipt) and the bagger asks if I want help out. I am so
> >> friggin sick of this fake personalizing of what is in fact an
> >> impersonal business transaction I could barf. I have lived in a
> >> small town, so I know what genuine personal recognition is, and

this
> >> corporate management-directed bonhomie is not it. So here are my
> >> questions.
> >>
> >> To whom do I express my preference not to be spoken to unless I

ask a
> >> question? And, if enough people stated a similar preference,

could we
> >> get them to stop? -aem

> >
> > It's a store policy. They are paid to be polite and greet you.

And they
> > aren't paid very much. However, it does get annoying. Just say

"hi" and
> > offer me a cart or a basket, then... go away.
> >
> > Jill
> >
> >


Kroger is union so I doubt their employees are worried very much over
losing their jobs because of a bad mystery shopper review.
 
Melba's Jammin' <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:

> In article <[email protected]>, Rhonda
> Anderson <[email protected]> wrote:
> (snip)
>> More stores than not here have electronic gates as you go out the
>> doors that should beep if you're absconding with merchandise (and
>> haven't figured out how to remove the gizmo that beeps). Even the
>> supermarket I use has these at each checkout, as do most large chain
>> stores. In addition, most large chain stores (e.g. Target)

>
> Is that my red and white bullseye logo Target store? If so, wow!
> They don't do that here! They've got the electronic gates, but no one
> checking bags at the doors. (They check bags at the baseball stadium
> on the way in -- make sure there are no bombs or contraband beverages,
> I think).


Target has a red and white bullseye logo, yes. I don't know if it's owned
by the same company as the US Target. With both having the same logo, I
suspect it probably is.

There was an announcement here recently from one of the cinema chains,
stating that they would be enforcing their regulation that the only food
that could be brought into their cinemas was that which had been bought
at their candy bar. I wondered at the time if they were going to start
checking bags as patrons entered. Don't know, as the cinema in Penrith is
part of a different chain (they don't mind if you bought food elsewhere
as long as it's not hot food, and no glass bottles). Cinema candy bars
charge exorbitant amounts for popcorn, drinks, icecreams, lollies - so I
usually take my own.

Rhonda Anderson
Cranebrook, NSW, Australai
 
In article <[email protected]>, Rhonda
Anderson <[email protected]> wrote:

> >
> > Is that my red and white bullseye logo Target store?


> Target has a red and white bullseye logo, yes. I don't know if it's owned
> by the same company as the US Target. With both having the same logo, I
> suspect it probably is.
>
>(snip) Cinema candy bars charge exorbitant amounts for popcorn,
>drinks, icecreams, lollies - so I usually take my own.
> Rhonda Anderson
> Cranebrook, NSW, Australai


And I always cough loudly when I open my can of TaB. :)
--
-Barb, <www.jamlady.eboard.com> Sweet Potato Follies added 2/24/05.
"I read recipes the way I read science fiction: I get to the end and
say,'Well, that's not going to happen.'" - Comedian Rita Rudner,
performance at New York, New York, January 10, 2005.
 
On Thu 24 Mar 2005 07:25:11a, Dog3 wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> "Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in
> news:D[email protected]:
>
>>
>> "Dog3" <uhoh@ajfl;ajklsd;ajlds.nutz> wrote in message
>>>> Try a sly wink and a kissy face in the direction of the false
>>>> sincerity.....usually scares the hell out of them, especially if they
>>>> are younglings and you are, alas, a middle aged, slightly lumpy
>>>> adult....makes them wonder what they started and probably couldn't
>>>> stop. -Ginny
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> ROFLMAO... This just might work. Too funny.
>>>
>>> Michael

>>
>>
>> I'd try it myself, but the guy might just wink back at me.

>
> I've winked at many men and they've been flattered ;) Just not str8 men,
> well some str8 dudes have been flattered but not too many.
>
> Ob Food:
>
> Tis time for breakfast:
>
> Eggs over easy, 1 slice of bacon and tater tots.
>
> Michael
>


What is the fascination with tater tots? Many people like them. I can't
stand them.

--
Wayne Boatwright
____________________________________________

Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day.
Sam Goldwyn, 1882-1974
 
"-L." <[email protected]> wrote in message

<snip>

>> 1. The are talking about averages.
>> 2. The type of the store is very very important and the loss

> percentages
>> vary greatly with the type of store.
>> 3. Inventory Shrinkage is a complex and very broad definition. A

> grocery
>> clerk checks out a friend and charges him $1.54 for a $12.00 package

> of
>> steak. Is that shrinkage? How about the head chef taking a few

> fillets
>> home? The mom and pop store owner that pockets some sales without

> ringing
>> them up so he can have some tax free income. The bar owner that buys

> a good
>> customer a drink. The deli clerk that hands the kid a slice of

> bologna.
>> Which of these are shrinkage? All?
>>
>> Dimitri

>
>
>
> Yes because they all affect the prices charged the consumer. Still
> doesn't give the store owner the right to treat everyone as criminal.
> It's part of the slippery slope of the erosion of personal rights in
> this country.
>
> -L.



Oh yes it does as long as his store is private property.

This is still a free country and you have freedom of choice. You are free
not to patronize any private establishment. And that is a absolute RIGHT!

What are you thinking of? Where is the rights of the OWNER?

Whew!

Dimitri
 
Dimitri wrote:

> 3. Inventory Shrinkage is a complex and very broad definition. A grocery
> clerk checks out a friend and charges him $1.54 for a $12.00 package of
> steak. Is that shrinkage? How about the head chef taking a few fillets
> home? The mom and pop store owner that pockets some sales without ringing


Now there is an item that has to be a major factor in reported shrinkage. There
is a certain type of corner store where the owners rarely ring up sales.
Sometimes they go through the motions of entering the sales into the register
but they never ring it up completely. They probably ring up 25% of their actual
sales. That makes it look like there is a hell of a lot more shrinkage than
there really is. Not only are they not paying taxes on their profits, but they
have been charging sales tax to their customers and re pocketing that.

For some reason, our provincial tax payers are reluctant to go in and
investigate complaints when you refer to them as Korean corner stores. You have
to name them specifically.
 
On Thu 24 Mar 2005 10:37:55a, Dog3 wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> Wayne Boatwright <[email protected]> wrote in
> news:[email protected]:
>
>> On Thu 24 Mar 2005 07:25:11a, Dog3 wrote in rec.food.cooking:
>>
>>> "Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in
>>> news:D[email protected]:
>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Dog3" <uhoh@ajfl;ajklsd;ajlds.nutz> wrote in message
>>>>>> Try a sly wink and a kissy face in the direction of the false
>>>>>> sincerity.....usually scares the hell out of them, especially if
>>>>>> they are younglings and you are, alas, a middle aged, slightly
>>>>>> lumpy adult....makes them wonder what they started and probably
>>>>>> couldn't stop. -Ginny
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> ROFLMAO... This just might work. Too funny.
>>>>>
>>>>> Michael
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I'd try it myself, but the guy might just wink back at me.
>>>
>>> I've winked at many men and they've been flattered ;) Just not str8
>>> men, well some str8 dudes have been flattered but not too many.
>>>
>>> Ob Food:
>>>
>>> Tis time for breakfast:
>>>
>>> Eggs over easy, 1 slice of bacon and tater tots.
>>>
>>> Michael
>>>

>>
>> What is the fascination with tater tots? Many people like them. I
>> can't stand them.
>>

>
> Tater tots are easier to do than hash browned potatoes. For a quick
> breakfast, tater tots are easier. Besides, I smother 'em in gravy.
>
> Michael
>


LOL! Gravy...that's even worse! <g> Never understood why anyone put gravy
on something crisp.

--
Wayne Boatwright
____________________________________________

Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day.
Sam Goldwyn, 1882-1974
 
Wayne Boatwright wrote:
> Dog3 wrote :
> > Tater tots are easier to do than hash browned potatoes. For a quick


> > breakfast, tater tots are easier. Besides, I smother 'em in gravy.
> >
> > Michael
> >

>
> LOL! Gravy...that's even worse! <g> Never understood why anyone put

gravy
> on something crisp.
>
> Wayne Boatwright


I like sour cream on crispy potato latkes... is sour cream considered
gravy?

Sheldon
 
"Dave Smith" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Dimitri wrote:
>
>> 3. Inventory Shrinkage is a complex and very broad definition. A
>> grocery
>> clerk checks out a friend and charges him $1.54 for a $12.00 package of
>> steak. Is that shrinkage? How about the head chef taking a few fillets
>> home? The mom and pop store owner that pockets some sales without
>> ringing

>
> Now there is an item that has to be a major factor in reported shrinkage.
> There
> is a certain type of corner store where the owners rarely ring up sales.
> Sometimes they go through the motions of entering the sales into the
> register
> but they never ring it up completely. They probably ring up 25% of their
> actual
> sales. That makes it look like there is a hell of a lot more shrinkage
> than
> there really is. Not only are they not paying taxes on their profits, but
> they
> have been charging sales tax to their customers and re pocketing that.
>
> For some reason, our provincial tax payers are reluctant to go in and
> investigate complaints when you refer to them as Korean corner stores. You
> have
> to name them specifically.




Not to practice one-ups-man-ship many years ago there was a wholesaler -
(location and industry guarded) who on the weekends operated a "cash and
carry business for church organizations etc. for some reason the "sales"
were reported as "shrinkage" and some people went to Federal Prison for, you
guessed it, income Tax Evasion.

Dimitri
 
In article <[email protected]>,
Dave Smith <[email protected]> wrote:

> Damsel in dis Dress wrote:
>
> > The welcomers at our store just sit there like lumps. I smile and say hi
> > each and every time we walk into the store. This one greeter just scowls
> > at me. Not sure that that's preferable to receiving unasked-for help.
> >
> > >Have someone working on the
> > >floor who can help me when I need help. Treat me with respect when I come
> > >in through the doors, instead of having a phoney smile and want to staple
> > >my bags closed with a tag on so that you won't have reason to think I have
> > >shoved things into my bags without paying for them. I refuse to enter a
> > >store where they take pre-emptive steps to prevent me from shoplifting
> > >when
> > >I had no intention of stealing anything.

> >
> > Where does that happen? :(

>
> The only stores around here that have welcomers are the Walmart stores. If
> you
> walk in with a bag from another store they want to staple it closed.
> Obviously
> the intention is that if the bag is stapled closed you can't stick anything
> in
> and sneak out without paying. I prefer not to deal with stores are assuming
> that I am there to steal.
>



Next time you go there. Take a large bag from an office supply store
with just a stapler in it.


Charleson Mambo

--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To confuse, inveigle, and obfuscate.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>
> LOL! Gravy...that's even worse! <g> Never understood why anyone put

gravy
> on something crisp.
>
> --
> Wayne Boatwright



Because not everybody has exactly the same tastes as you? How's that
for a reason? Good enough?
 
In article <[email protected]>,
"Sheldon" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Wayne Boatwright wrote:

(snip)
> > LOL! Gravy...that's even worse! <g> Never understood why anyone
> > put gravy on something crisp.
> >
> > Wayne Boatwright

>
> I like sour cream on crispy potato latkes... is sour cream considered
> gravy?
>
> Sheldon


No. Not even close. Not even if you've stirred it to soup.
--
-Barb, <www.jamlady.eboard.com> Arizona vacation pics added 3-24-05.
"I read recipes the way I read science fiction: I get to the end and
say,'Well, that's not going to happen.'" - Comedian Rita Rudner,
performance at New York, New York, January 10, 2005.
 
On Thu 24 Mar 2005 04:52:43p, Mad Dan wrote in rec.food.cooking:

>
> Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>>
>> LOL! Gravy...that's even worse! <g> Never understood why anyone put
>> gravy on something crisp.
>>
>> --
>> Wayne Boatwright

>
>
> Because not everybody has exactly the same tastes as you? How's that
> for a reason? Good enough?


Smartass! I never said they had to.

--
Wayne Boatwright
____________________________________________

Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day.
Sam Goldwyn, 1882-1974