My displeasure with Macy’s is long-standing and didn’t begin with the current credit card issue. In fact, when Macy’s purchased that Chicago department store icon, Marshall Field’s, in 2005 I vowed I’d never set foot in any store with Macy’s name on it.
And I haven’t. Well, actually I have, but I’ve never purchased anything there until this past January. I found the merchandise cheesy, the displays tacky, and the staff uninterested in service.
But I’d been looking long and hard for joggers – that contemporary term which has displaced sweatpants. Joggers that fit and were reasonably priced. And I happened across some on the internet, paying little attention to the source of the product.
Which is how I came to order three pair from Macy’s, all of which confirmed my original opinion of the store. I sent them back, expecting the same kind of refund I’ve gotten from Wal-Mart, Joseph A. Banks, and my local grocery store (which certainly operates on a smaller margin than Macy’s).
Instead, I got a gift card. It is bright red with the phrase “Happy Returns” printed across the bottom. In four point print (which is barely readable) the various provisions for using the card are explained. And one of them says that the only way to use it is until the cash value is exhausted. There is no option for going to Customer Service and asking for my money in cold, hard currency.
Earl and I once opened a new jigsaw puzzle we’d ordered and proceeded to put it together. After a frustrating week, it turned out there were 21 pieces missing. We slipped white paper under the puzzle, and I wrote the numbers in the white spaces before photographing the entire thing and sending it to the puzzle company. I wanted my money back, but the puzzle company sent a mealy apology instead and gave me a certificate for another puzzle.
Macy’s has used this same tactic, but my reaction is the same. I bad mouthed the puzzle company ad nauseum and plan to do the same with Macy’s. What I do about the gift card in the end remains to be seen.
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