GREAT 'WHAT SHOPS DON'T WANT US TO KNOW" HUNT

daisey_3

Hi Guys,

New to this and had to say how great this thread is.....

As i was a manager of a shop for a few years i probably know lots of secrets....

I just can't think of any......:rolleyes:

I was reading on the front pages of this thread about 'mark ups'

In my experience..... most firms i have worked for ( clothing) use a mark up of 2.5% although this is not discussed with the supplier you buy the stock from and the suppliers are not allowed to recommend a price you should sell their product for..... we generally used this mark-up.

So even at Sale times they are still making profit off these items as not untill the end stages of a sale do they get to the 'real prices' as i like to think of them .... and just want rid of stock and sell them around the price they bought them for....( prob still make their money back ) but it clears the stock holding areas as the new season stock will be due to arrive

someone also mentioned earlier about working at Burtons for a while.... and the alarm tags being left on.... and having your petrol paid for returning to the store.

This has happened where i've worked too......... and i've done similar things to compensate people who have been inconvenienced. I have even driven myself or even paid for a member of staff to go in taxi to them with a removing device AND offer them a discount off what they purchased.

So.... my point is........ you can get discounts and other things if you have been inconvenienced as .....

'Its good practice'

xx

rchrisp

Sainsburys in the past have always been excellent with full refunds if discounted items are scanned at the original price. got a free bottle of Persil once worth £3.25, even when i took it back three weeks later, after checking my receipt when i got home.

Have had no problems with Tesco either, when things have scanned differently from the shelf price.

shammyjack

trevored wrote:

Hi
I'm intrigued to know what happens to all the DVDs that are donated to charity shops. Every time I enter one there are plenty of Cds & videos but never a sign of a DVD!

Is there something the Charity shops are not telling us?? Any one in the 'know' who can enlighten me? Or maybe DVDs are rarely donated?

(I trust this is the right forum for the enquiry)

Most charity shops have an eBay dept and this is where they sell the donated DVDs .


shammy

DKLS

gcn504 wrote:

Is there anyone around who used to work at DFS? I've found a new sofa which has been reduced in the sale (when are they not on sale you may ask?). However, I priced it all up and intend to return to possibly purchased said sofa having measured up at home. I like a barter so does anyone know if they'll take anything extra off: also being leather I'm expecting them to hit me with the "you must have it Scotch guarded" argument.

Anyone have any insider tips?

Just had an interesting conversation with a furniture designers (sofas mainly) he used to design and make in the UK hence charging £3500 for a 3 seater leather sofa, Now he can have the exact same thing made in China, from the sample he sent even had the same leather fault replicated that the one had that he shipped out china!, shipped over here and taxes paid for .... wait for it £180 each!!!!!, and he now sells for £1500each, I had to admire him for his cheek. And this is a small ish company imagine, what the likes of DFS would be paying for the bulk orders that they would be capable of putting in.

jojo27_2

What a great thread...just thought I'd add a couple of useful tips that I have found out.

In Macdonalds if you knock over your drink at any point in your meal. Just tell them and they will give you another one free. Great if you thirsty....just order a small....drink up and then tell em you knocked it over!!! Tut Tut!

Also if you need to take anything back to Boots, but don't have your receipt, they will try and tell you that they can only give you vouchers. However, their training manual states that they must give refunds even without a receipt. I know because I used to Mystery Shop them and this was one of things I had to look out for!

Also for Boots....I'm on a roll now.....if you buy something which states that it is suitable for sensitive skin or you are advised that a product is suitable for you and it gives you a reaction, they will happily refund you! I know this because I have sensitive skin and told the make up counter that I was reluctant to try that brand, they assured me that it would be ok for me but if it wasn't I could get a refund on it and likewise anything I tried from the store.

Hth Jojo

timn64

Bit of a complicated one but when looking at their prices the 'pence' figure relates to the amount of commision the sales person gets. It was a few years ago I was there but at the time it varied from 92p Highest commision (think it was around 10%) to 99p (1/4%). They also added 91p which was no commision. 95p means it is discontinued (either by manufacturer or millers) and you can generally get a very good discount.

The sales person will always push you to the highest commision item which gives you greater barganing power as they are going to go out of their way to help you and get you as much discount as they can. The downside is that they will always push you towards these products even if they are not the most suitable for you!!!

One more thing. Their warranty targets are 9% and their warranties were always pretty poor when I was there. They have so many exclusions on them that it wasn't unusual for them to refuse repairs!!!

mattbee12

BHS recieve lots of new stock items before a sale is about to begin, these sale items are stored in the back, they are overpriced and generally of poorer quality (on the home department ie cheap cushions, rugs and beddings), these items are then discounted to up to half price which is still more than they are worth.

For example we sell bottle openers for £4/£5 all year.....the summer sale begins and we receive new stock of £8 bottle openers discounted to £4!...wheres the bargain?

The best way to get true bargains is to select items which are regular stock, that youve seen before and are now half price.

If buying lighting and the staff say they have no stock of a light always ask them if the light is discontinued......if so it is usually a cheaper price and they can sell the display light which is your cue to barter (damaged packaging....a bulb out....scratches...dusty...u name it! lol)

Also if buying expensive items always ask when the stores next 20% choice day is...if its relativley soon ask the staff to save the items for you to buy on that day.....most will.

If you dont have a choice/gold card...open one a week or two before the discount day, theyl give you a temporary card....wait for your plastic card to come through the post...buy on the discount day (20% for your first £0-£50 spend, 25% discount thereafter) then pop into Evans, top man, top shop, dorothy perkins and pay off in cash or with a debit card. NEVER PAY INTEREST ON STORE CARDS...ALWAYS PAY THEM OFF AS A PRIORITY.

Oh and if you do open a gold card near a manager always try and get something for nothing....even an OK magazine or bag of sweets...BHS have gold card targets to meet and get desperate!

Another tip....most BHS restaurants will reduce hot meals to £2.99 after say 2pm (although choices may be limited) and will always refund/replace meals that dont meet your satisfaction. Oh and cold drinks are very over priced so take your own in.....breakfasts are good value.

If your spending over £50 and taking goods abroad you can claim the VAT back....ask at customer services, most will have a sign up to tell you its possible.

Hope this helps someone.

Matt.

Turbo_Gran

Another Macdonalds saving for oldies taking holidays abroad eg: America,Canada ,Australia & may be some other countries too.
When making your purchase ask for senior citizen discounts,we have found this to sometimes be as much as 50per cent!
Worth a try
Happy hols.
Ho I do love being retired!!!!

descartesmum

Tesco is again on their, 'We are only taking 2 coupons from people' kick. They are being strict because the cashiers that I know and will usually take all I have, will only take 2.

tonyg_2

This thread is great - but probably needs a very short (1 line per interesting post) index as the first post at the start.