Sour shopping

I just love to shop in all the Lopue’s stores.  No matter which branch I go to, there’s always a friendly face that personally goes out of their way to help me find what I’m looking for.  If I want to be alone, they disappear just as fast.  Since it’s summer time, I would like to commend the supermarket at Lopue’s Mandalagan.  Disturbed at the sight of discolored Selecta Ube-Macapuno ice cream upon reaching home, I sent my driver back to exchange the ice cream.  Not only did they give me a new gallon of ice cream, they sent a team of Selecta people to apologize for the spoilage.  That’s the reason perhaps, why I see old friends, relatives and socialites whenever I shop at Lopue’s.  It’s service at its best!

That’s not exactly what I experienced last week when I went shopping at a mall’s supermarket.  It was almost dinner time, I was tired and hungry.  With barely 10 items, luxurious nonetheless, I chose the shortest lane.  Much to my distress, the wait lasted for more than 20 minutes and I fumed as I watched the next lane zip by.  Even a latecomer on the other lane was bagged out before our lane started moving.  I sighed with relief when I noticed that my watercress was not yet weighed and sealed.  I asked the girl behind me to keep my place as I zipped away for my salad.  I came back and found my place still intact. Then, the hunger pains struck!

Still in a good mood, I sneaked out of the line again and darted to a nearby stand and pulled out a bag of chips, made it two when I saw my favorite “vinegar and salt”.  But why was the line not moving?  Eating my chips, I went up to the cashier and saw that she was having problems registering a credit card sale.  Ummmh.  I could see everyone’s face in our lane going sour—like my chips!  Then, the girl in front of me just dumped her basket on the side and left.  I felt like doing the same but, there were just two clients ahead of me. 

When I finally made it to the cashier, I gave her my Platinum American Express since it registers fast on any machine.  It did.  Then, when she started trying to punch in the sale, her cash register kept on bouncing back the transaction to “press any key to complete transaction”.  I suggested calmly that she should try another cash register on the next empty lane, perhaps?  She looked up at me and said, “It’s your card, sir.  Equitable won’t accept it.”  And she was already holding my slip, ready for signing!  I gave her a primer on what a Platinum card entitles a shopper to—besides the “bigger credit”, there is no credit check, we are not supposed to wait, in fact, it gives you Premiere, VIP privileges globally!  Meaning, my credit is quite good, if not excellent!  That’s why; I was given PLATINUM instead of Silver and Gold!

Tired, hungry and fuming, I went to the Customer Services right in front of me and demanded for a floor manager.  Instead, I was given an assistant supervisor, who must have been a glamorized inventory clerk.  He gave me a stupid look, grunted some words, and asked the cashier what was wrong.  Of course, the cashier said that the transaction kept on bouncing, and he just looked at me as if to say, “Well, did you understand what she just said?”  I blew my top!  Instead of being placated with profuse apologies, it was my card’s fault!  My Platinum American Express Card was not good enough! 

Dear readers, I really get embarrassed when I get mad!  I lose my cool, I become an ogre, I become someone juvenile and most of all waste that energy which could be given to a more worthy cause.  At my age, I reserve my wrath on the devil, himself.  It’s not a power trip.  It’s plain disgust at a system that doesn’t work.  What’s worse is I’m paying for this service.  And nowadays, I’m paying prime money for goods that I get cheaper in Paris or New York.  Hey, Bacolod is supposed to be Number ONE as the Most Livable City!  What’s up with the service around here? Or, are we being taken for a ride by all these “modern” supermarkets who can’t even give us conveyor belts for checking out our groceries? Prices are zooming up.  I’m not complaining, yet, but for the meantime, do give me service, and I mean PLATINUM!!!*