I can hear you...[Or was that the point?]

[Aimz]

When I shop at WM, Freshco or No Frills, I price match. It is clear that I am going to be price-matching on account of my flyers, coupons, and PM list, all of which are usually in my hand.

I will never understand why people feel the need to get in line behind someone who clearly is going to take a little longer in the checkout process, and then shuffle about, grumble under their breath, sigh out loud, and mutter to themselves and those within earshot.

I do my best to make the process flow as smoothly as possible by placing my coupons with my products, knowing which product is being matched with which flyer, and pointing it out to the cashier to save time. I know how it is when cashing out takes much longer than expected and I really don't wish to make things harder on other customers. And I usually ignore the blatant rudeness that select members of the population choose to display.

Today, however, I was tired of staying silent. There was a woman behind me who was clearly not thrilled to be behind me, even after I made sure to put the divider down so she could begin unloading her cart. The cashier was a tad unexperienced and was taking longer than usual, and the woman behind me took that as her cue to start talking about how "this was ridiculous." I asked the cashier to hold on one second, turned around to make eye contact with the older woman, stated, "saving money may be ridiculous in your eyes; but it is absolutely not ridiculous to me," and calmly turned right back around. The woman did not say another word. Then, for good measure, I took my time with the rest of my transaction (which wasn't hard, given the cashier's speed).

Again, I get it. You pop into the store for a few items and then spend twice as long as it took to gather those items, waiting to pay and leave. But if you're in such a rush, stick to the express lines. And if you're shopping at a store that has a PM policy in place, be prepared to wait a little bit. Grab a magazine, play with your phone, maybe just start a conversation with someone around you. And if you really must make your annoyance known, take the issue up with WM management for having 22 checkout lines, and only choosing to keep 5 open.

I know that there have been similar threads posted in the past, but I think we're all entitled to rant in our own way once in a while, and I'd really like to hear how other SCs have been dealing with the huffs, puffs, and grumbles as of late.

[jessep13]

way to go for sticking up for yourself! I had a lady once at metro, ( they take so long to put in coupons) say " if this is gonna take any longer i may have to move to a different checkout, but it was said with the usual eyerolling and snarky attitude. I laughed and replied, oh im just getting started! needless to say she did not move checkouts and i did not hear another peep out of her.

[YOU AND ME]

I think they should have a cash opened for just couponers like us,i usually don't say much but a few times i had to say something .In generally people are patient,a few weeks ago i was at Metro using at least $75.00 in coupons and the fellow behind was very patient he said i see you saved a lot of money on your groceries good for you.As i was leaving i heard him remark to the cashier,that was one smart cookie,you don't know how that made me feelturned around and smiled at him

[walkonby]

How silly of that woman to have picked today to be impolite! I bet she had plenty to say when she got home though. You handled it very well.

[frugalmom]

I HEAR YA! I too try to ignore the comments but its hard. Sometimes I go through the checkout twice if I have alot of coupons to use so as not to overwhelm the cashiers and make people upset....but not always as that just TAKES MORE TIME! Also sometimes I'll actually go through the express lanes at WM with a few more items than 10 or 12 so as not to have anyone fuming directly behind me. Nobody has ever complained when I've done this.

[MomOfOne79]

Glad you stood up for yourself! I usually make a point to informing the customer behind me that I will be PM'ing and have coupons and that they may want to choose another checkout. I have only had one man start to moan when the c/s had to be called for an override and his wife just elbowed him and said "honey, she told us what she was doing, that was nice, and you chose to stay in this line." I thanked the wife, and carried on. Never really had a major problem as I usually shop @ RCSS where they always have lots of checkouts open.

[KK7]

I actually warn people I am using coupons and price matching before they start unloading this usually helps the process lol

[Shwa Girl]

take the issue up with WM management for having 22 checkout lines, and only choosing to keep 5 open.

You got it!
The stores are staffing tills with less cashiers and longer lines.
So the best thing to say to the grumbler behind you in line is, "Wow, there aren't enough cashiers, eh?"

Think I will e-mail the stores next time I am there when there is 2 cashiers but 15 tills that can be opened.
This does not happen in the U.S. They call for back up right away.

[salady]

Whenever I have huffers and puffers in line behind me, I just turn around and give them a BIG SMILE to let them know I really don't give a flip what they think. That shuts them up.

[MrsSaver]

One time, after a lady behind me was huffing, puffing and grumbling underneather her breath I turned around and said "Enjoy paying retail. I didn't." Normally, I don't say anything but sometimes it needs t be said.

[Lynx123]

I HEAR YA! I too try to ignore the comments but its hard. Sometimes I go through the checkout twice if I have alot of coupons to use so as not to overwhelm the cashiers and make people upset....but not always as that just TAKES MORE TIME! Also sometimes I'll actually go through the express lanes at WM with a few more items than 10 or 12 so as not to have anyone fuming directly behind me. Nobody has ever complained when I've done this.

I try to use the express lanes as much as possible and when I price match I just go directly to customer service and do it there.

[wolfwoman]

I have been very lucky not to have this problem. Just once a man behind me was shuffling, shifting his weight and looking at his watch but since he didn't say anything, neither did I. I actually did have 2 people behind me and 2 ladies at the next till watch me intently as I put coupons through. All of them were very surprised to see that I received an overage. 1 young lady said "Good for you" and actually applauded me. Times like that certainly make up for the Grumpy Gus'es of the world.

[DianneS]

I also tell the people behind me that I will be using coupons and it could take a while, so they may want to choose another line. I don't think it's fair not to forewarn them -- and if they have been forewarned and choose to say then that`s their problem. When I am at Superstore, I almost always use the self check-out....less stressful for me and for other customers. I was in a line a few weeks ago and the customer in front of me was ticked at the lady in front of her, saying 'she has a coupon for everything!! So I showed her how much I would be spending out of pocket that day and by the end of the conversation, her husband had his pen out and was writing down...smartcanucks.ca

[Aimz]

way to go for sticking up for yourself! I had a lady once at metro, ( they take so long to put in coupons) say " if this is gonna take any longer i may have to move to a different checkout, but it was said with the usual eyerolling and snarky attitude. I laughed and replied, oh im just getting started! needless to say she did not move checkouts and i did not hear another peep out of her.

Nothing like an empty threat, eh? Sometimes you just have to reply, and if you can do so with a smile, even better.

How silly of that woman to have picked today to be impolite! I bet she had plenty to say when she got home though. You handled it very well.

Oh, I'd second that bet. Definitely picked the wrong day

I HEAR YA! I too try to ignore the comments but its hard. Sometimes I go through the checkout twice if I have alot of coupons to use so as not to overwhelm the cashiers and make people upset....but not always as that just TAKES MORE TIME! Also sometimes I'll actually go through the express lanes at WM with a few more items than 10 or 12 so as not to have anyone fuming directly behind me. Nobody has ever complained when I've done this.

That's actually very considerate of you. But I wish it didn't have to come to that; your time is valuable as well.

Glad you stood up for yourself! I usually make a point to informing the customer behind me that I will be PM'ing and have coupons and that they may want to choose another checkout. I have only had one man start to moan when the c/s had to be called for an override and his wife just elbowed him and said "honey, she told us what she was doing, that was nice, and you chose to stay in this line." I thanked the wife, and carried on. Never really had a major problem as I usually shop @ RCSS where they always have lots of checkouts open.

Oh for sure, informing the person behind you is usually the best thing to do. In this case, I was already engaged with the cashier and focusing on ensuring my coupons were going with the right products, ironically, to move the whole thing along faster.

You got it!
The stores are staffing tills with less cashiers and longer lines.
So the best think to say to the grumbler behind you in line is, "Wow, there aren't enough cashiers, eh?"

Think I will e-mail the stores next time I am there when there is 2 cashiers but 15 tills that can be opened.
This does not happen in the U.S. They call for back up right away.

I was just in the U.S. a few weeks ago, and the differences are definitely noticeable. It's crazy when I see lines that extend to ridiculous lengths, with plenty of staff (including supervisors) around, and no one bothers to open up another lane.

Whenever I have huffers and puffers in line behind me, I just turn around and give them a BIG SMILE to let them know I really don't give a flip what they think. That shuts them up.

Ha! I can picture their righteousness deflating at the sight of your grin.

I have been very lucky not to have this problem. Just once a man behind me was shuffling, shifting his weight and looking at his watch but since he didn't say anything, neither did I. I actually did have 2 people behind me and 2 ladies at the next till watch me intently as I put coupons through. All of them were very surprised to see that I received an overage. 1 young lady said "Good for you" and actually applauded me. Times like that certainly make up for the Grumpy Gus'es of the world.

For sure - I've had the most awesome people behind me as well. One woman pretty much beamed at me when she realized I was entitled to SCOP and heard me asking for it.

I also tell the people behind me that I will be using coupons and it could take a while, so they may want to choose another line. I don't think it's fair not to forewarn them -- and if they have been forewarned and choose to say then that`s their problem. When I am at Superstore, I almost always use the self check-out....less stressful for me and for other customers. I was in a line a few weeks ago and the customer in front of me was ticked at the lady in front of her, saying 'she has a coupon for everything!! So I showed her how much I would be spending out of pocket that day and by the end of the conversation, her husband had his pen out and was writing down...smartcanucks.ca

Way to turn the situation around I would love to spread awareness and share the wealth of information rather than spread negativity, but some people just don't give out that approachable vibe. At all.

[nonprofitjen]

I am glad you have a welcoming place to vent some frustration. I really appreciate how you handled the situation.I am from a smaller centre, where you often run into people you know, so I appreciate the fashion on how you spoke your mind. I often take a look at somebody's cart and see if I have at least one coupon to match their purchase... they kind of laugh but always take it, once I explain it's like I'm givng them money.
I seem to get more upset about Walmarts pricing not being correct though... does anybody else have the problem where they are sure the price is ringing in wrong, but there is nobody responding to calls to price check? I ended up paying for two things that I knew were the wrong price, then went around grabbing the price tags and bringing them to customer service....BTW, they will only SCOP if YOU ask them, not proactively, and then with two different items shrimp and deodorant, they wanted to only do it for 1 product. My biggest problem of course, is not about my over-paying, but what about the hundreds of others that don't keep that close of an eye on the prices? It's not right!