The A & P Shocker

A few months ago I experienced a real shocker and it is one that I would like to share with you. Maybe someone out there can help by providing a proposed solution. My shocker for this week centers on the A & P store in my neighbourhood.

I have been a loyal customer of my neighbourhood A & P grocery store for over 20 years and up till about a year ago, customer service for special needs persons and seniors was very good but things began to change and here is the rest of my story.

Whenever I go grocery shopping at A & P, which is about every other week, I always phone ahead a few days prior to ask for customer assistance and up till last November the folks at A & P had been very good in providing me with excellent customer service. However, in early November of last year, things began to change. I had made my customary call and was reassured that I would be given assistance upon my arrival but lo and behold when I arrived, I was in for the shock of my life.

First, the lady standing at the customer service desk said that they had no record of my call but that she would ask the manager to find someone to help me. When the manager arrived things began to deteriorate very quickly. In front of a group of school kids she said to me in a very loud voice: "Why didn't you call before you came! We don't have anyone to help you!" When I quietly informed her that I had called a few days before arriving on this day, she seemed to calm down a bit but she had already done the damage. She had dared to yell at me in front of a group of youngsters and what an example to set for these young citizens of our country. I was totally humiliated and added to this, some of her employees standing close by witnessed the entire episode.

Things did not improve after this and by early April of this year I had had enough. Things came to a head in early April when one day when I went to do my biweekly shopping, I was told that there was no one there to help me and I was left standing at the customer service desk. I had to ask a friend to help me. When I phoned the A & P head office to talk to the customer service office, I experienced my second shocker and this one really sent me reeling.

I spoke to a customer service supervisor whose name was Judy and I told her about my concerns.

The conversation started out well but very quickly disintegrated into a shouting match and here is why. When I told Judy that I had no one to help me because I lived alone and did not have any family or neighbours around, her response was: "We are not in the business to help people. We are in the business to sell groceries. Go to social services and find someone to help you."

Judy added insult to injury when I told her that I was prepared to go higher in order to have this matter resolved. Her response was: "Why, are you planning to take us to Human Rights?"

I subsequently wrote a letter to Mr Eric La Fleche, a high ranking official at A & P and his response was to ask another official to respond to me. I received a prompt response with two $25 gift certificates along with an apology but what bothered me greatly about this response is that A & P told me that Judy was only trying to help. What an utter insult to my intelligence! In my opinion, Judy should have been disciplined for her inappropriate and unprofessional manner. She should have been suspended for a week without pay and her pay should have been donated to a just cause. However, A & P felt that they had done enough to address this matter by writing me a letter and giving the poor blind lady, me, two $25 gift certificates. Did they do this to shut me up you think?

I am sorry A & P, two $25 gift certificates can never make up for the humiliation and hardship that was caused by Judy, and Barbara the manager of the A & P store in my neighbourhood. What makes this story even sadder is that Barbara is the mom of a special needs son and one would have thought that she of all people would have shown more compassion. In my letter to Mr La Fleche, I stated that much sooner than later, seniors and special needs persons are going to become their bread and butter consumers due to a rapidly aging population and that it would probably be a good idea for A & P to keep this in mind. For these are the consumers who would choose to shop at those establishments that provide quality customer service. Regretfully, Judy scoffed at me when I mentioned this to her. My statement seemed to waft right over her head.

Regretfully, there are not many grocery establishments in Toronto that provide delivery services these days. Yes, there is Grocery Gateway but in order to take advantage of Grocery Gateway one has to buy a certain amount, there is a minimal fee for ordering, and one has to order every two weeks and has to be able to accommodate the delivery day as set out by Grocery Gateway.

At the end of October A & P will be changing their name to Metro and I sincerely hope that along with the name change they will see the light and make a concerted effort to provide quality customer service to their loyal customers and those who are unable to shop independently.

I am planning to visit my A & P or should I say Metro neighbourhood store to see if things have changed since April. I have not tested their services since writing my letter because I have been traveling a lot. I plan to test the waters in early November and fingers crossed; I truly hope that things have changed.

This problem appears to be a common one here in Toronto for many blind and visually impaired persons. I have spoken to several VIPs and they have all confirmed that their neighbourhood A & P stores have not shown much willingness when it comes to providing customer service. It is no easy matter to go grocery shopping without a pair of eyes to help but when one is humiliated and insulted as I was? It begs the question: What ever happened to compassion and understanding? Or maybe there never was much of that to start with.

I'm Donna J Jodhan your free lance writer and reporterwishing you a terrific day.

If you require accessibility, research, and writing services visit
www.sterlingcreations.ca

If you require translation and language related services visit
www.translationpeople.com

If you visit www.untappedwealth.com/businessdesk.html you will learn the latest news on very important issues as they happen and you can check out my weekly feature called important answers to consumers concerns.

You can also check out my blogs under the category access and accessibility at
www.numpadplus.com/blog

To reach me please send an email to info@sterlingcreations.ca and I would also be delighted to send you a copy of our latest newsletter.

More commentaries.