633582 Thu Jul 02 17:47:13 -0700 2009 22 32 Chains 0 4825929 Want an exercise in patience or frustration (whichever way you lean)? Shop at Albertsons and try to participate in their bizzarro world 10 for $10/ buy a combo of ten items of selected variety and certain size sale. No they cannot be satisfied making their poor customers use a card to receive special deals. They make them go through a special kind of torture and jump through flaming hoops to save 25 cents on a jar of peanut butter. In a time where businesses are eager to get and retain customers WHY is this store chasing away people and driving them to Safeway. Am I alone? Anyone else have a local grocer that treats their customers this way? Swipe your customer "Appreciation" card here and wail away! OK - I feel a little better now! Thu Jul 02 17:47:14 -0700 2009 137755 Sal Vanilla 1 4826135 I guess I don't fully understand your point. I shop there and buy thier 10 for 10 value items. You don't have to buy 10 of each item and when they have Rosarita beans 10 for 10, there is a savings. Danny Thu Jul 02 18:59:56 -0700 2009 4825929 42143 Bakersfield Hound 2 4827008 I love Albertsons, 10 for 10 isn't hard and like BH said you don't have to buy 10 Fri Jul 03 07:32:07 -0700 2009 4826135 232829 kchurchill5 3 4827794 I misstated the deal. It USED to be that way - 10 for $10. Now we have to buy selected items that when you reach $10 you then get money off. So you have to have the right size, right product and variety and tally as you go and MAYBE it rings right at the register. Sorry for the confusion. Fri Jul 03 13:49:28 -0700 2009 4827008 137755 Sal Vanilla 4 4827815 I have to admit, I have not done the 10/10 in a while. didn't know the change. Normally most of their items are something I use, but not all the time. Last time I think I bought 2 of 2 items and 3 of another and 3 misc. But they are not always things I can use. Just depends. I can understand now with the confusion Fri Jul 03 13:57:59 -0700 2009 4827794 232829 kchurchill5 1 4827000 You don't actually HAVE to buy ten of anything... it's their fancy way of saying 'one dollar sale'. I only ever buy what I want. The thing that really drives me barmy is when they sell icecream as 'buy one get one free' and you have to get two cartons of exactly the same flavour or you can't get the sale price! Which means that I either don't buy it, or I stick to neopolitan or vanilla because who really needs two cartons of 'super-choc-cherry-chip' at a time? And awhile ago they had lunchmeat 'buy one get one free' but unless you bought a whole pound you couldn't get it at all - what is a family of two supposed to do with two whole pounds of ham?! It's their loss really because instead of buying my usual 1/2 pound I didn't buy any. Fri Jul 03 07:28:58 -0700 2009 4825929 67657 Kajikit 2 4828469 I've only seen the ice cream that you have to buy the SAME BRAND, not the same flavor. Danny Fri Jul 03 20:51:08 -0700 2009 4827000 42143 Bakersfield Hound 1 4827431 Don't get your toga in a knot, each item is a buck. Fri Jul 03 10:12:38 -0700 2009 4825929 149836 cstr 1 4827448 I assume you are talking about the Mix & Match sales where one does indeed need to buy 10 items in order to save some amount (usually around $5) off the total bill and thus get the "sale" price on each item. I have a love/hate relationship with those Mix & Match sales. One the one hand, I save a ton - if I do it right. And therein lies the rub. Albertson's seems to have the toughest time keeping their cashiers and registers consistent. Sometimes I don't have an issue. Sometimes the register doesn't have every item in the ad programmed as part of the deal. And sometimes, you get wonky cashiers that tell you that you have to have 10 items from one price point category even though the whole sale is called MIX & MATCH. Yes, I share your frustration. But, thankfully, metro Phoenix is apparently one of the hottest grocery markets in the country, so I rarely go to Albertson's (the few that remain here). Fry's, Basha's, Fresh & Easy, TJ's, Marketside, WM, Costco, Sam's, the Ranch Markets, etc. Lots of competition here. Fri Jul 03 10:17:55 -0700 2009 4825929 173425 Jen76 2 4827802 Yes, that is what I was talking about. Thank you. Trader Joe's is 1.5 hours from my house. A family outing to go and stock up. One of the bad things about living in a remote area. Fri Jul 03 13:51:09 -0700 2009 4827448 137755 Sal Vanilla 3 4828360 Yeah, I do like living in the midst of many options, except when I get rear-ended in the parking lot, like today. Sigh. Fri Jul 03 19:40:26 -0700 2009 4827802 173425 Jen76 1 4829961 Nothing could drive me to Safeway - I can't take the constant greeting and being asked if I need help finding things. If I ever need to go into one, I keep my sunglasses on to avoid eye contact with the staff. Sat Jul 04 16:19:16 -0700 2009 4825929 263884 azveggieguy 2 4837607 "Nothing could drive me to Safeway - I can't take the constant greeting and being asked if I need help finding things." What bugs me is the cashier using you last name to thank you. First off, it takes way too long for he/she to figure out how to say my last name, secondly, I don't need it announced. Annoying. That said, I refuse to patronize any Albertson's. There are never enough cashiers, the produce selection is horrendous, and the customer service is ridiculous. I'll take Von's any day. Tue Jul 07 16:09:48 -0700 2009 4829961 260770 woodandfine 3 4838069 You got that right, my last name is long, not at all hard to pronounce but they screw it up (25% of America can't read) and I don't want it announced either. Almost everywhere you go they are into all this over the top, syrupy sweet "Are you finding everything OK?" fifteen times in 10 minutes. I'll ask if I need something, I really will! Tue Jul 07 18:59:32 -0700 2009 4837607 140140 mrbigshotno.1 3 4838264 Who do you think owns Von's.....Safeway. Tue Jul 07 20:09:14 -0700 2009 4837607 42143 Bakersfield Hound 4 4838444 "Who do you think owns Von's.....Safeway." Yes, and? What is your point exactly? I don't have a problem with Safeway. Tue Jul 07 21:45:04 -0700 2009 4838264 260770 woodandfine 5 4841771 My point was that the stores are similar in operation and the way they handle customers. Von's in Bakersfield have remodeled some of the stores and that they are always asking if you have found everything and if you need help and at checkout say thank you Mr. Whoever. Sounds that same as you described about Safeway. Wed Jul 08 19:51:48 -0700 2009 4838444 42143 Bakersfield Hound 3 4843694 XH got custody of the Von's card so I just use his phone # at Von's or Sateway (when in Northern Cal) and am always startled when the cashier calls me Mrs. so and so Thu Jul 09 12:09:21 -0700 2009 4837607 109905 laliz 1 4830875 Sal, Albertson's used to be in Houston a long time ago. The layout was snazzy, but hard as heck to figure out. I shopped there a few times, but got turned off by the fact that if it was a 2 for $4 deal, you had to buy 2. Also they never rang up with the correct price. I would guess that at least 15% of the items rang up higher than what it said on the shelf. I guess enough people had it because the next thing that happened was they ALL went away! I would rather go to a Safeway myself (if we had any!) Sun Jul 05 09:39:53 -0700 2009 4825929 80937 danhole 1 4834491 Sal, Albertsons is a frustrating pain in the ***. I only buy meat there and whats on sale. If a person bought all their stuff there theyed be paying basically double. Our sale flyer comes out on Wednesdays. If they have a smokin' deal on anything or a great 10/10 deal they are out around 2pm first day of the sale. Furthermore they are a union shop, the employees are making a decent wage but they are pissed off and indifferent to customer needs. My first exposure to albertsons was in 1979 when my work took us to Seattle, I was awed at what a great store it was. I got transferred to the east coast and was away from them for 15 years, when we came back out west I noticed right off the bat it wasn't the same. What ever is? Mon Jul 06 15:30:07 -0700 2009 4825929 140140 mrbigshotno.1 2 4834691 My albertsons is never out of anything and always stocks up. The seafood is great. I don't mind. Mon Jul 06 16:42:26 -0700 2009 4834491 232829 kchurchill5 1 4835353 You're definitely not alone. I work in the grocery industry and Albertsons pricing has driven more customers away from just you! Mon Jul 06 21:19:44 -0700 2009 4825929 81356 aimeekm 1 4838121 I have an Albertsons by me, but can't be bothered to wait in line there, never enough cashiers. I don't think it's all that cheap except for their fish maybe. However, the fish needs checking because it's not always fresh. Tue Jul 07 19:18:09 -0700 2009 4825929 22559 smartie