Because I'm not great at advocating for myself or at talking to other human beings, I asked my husband to handle this situation for me as it spiraled out of control. His solution was this entertaining letter. If I never get the chairs I ordered, I'll at least have this to laugh about. And who am I kidding? I don't need dining chairs anyway. I consume every meal standing over the kitchen sink, eating the scraps that the Dearest Daughters left on their plates.
Greetings Target Guest Service,
I worked at T-317 in Chico, California for many years (Employee #11233764) and served as a Cashier Supervisor and a Level II in the Lingerie, Hosiery, Jewelry Department, so I’m intimately aware of how important Guest Service is to Target.
Having this background and firsthand experience helping Target Guests for years, it was very disappointing to have recently experienced a Guest Service interaction and attempted transaction that failed on multiple fronts.
The Breakdown – A Four-Part Mini-Series
Part I: The Order
On October 17, we found a lovely set of dining room chairs on Target.com that we wanted, so we placed our order and requested it to be shipped to our local Target (T-1428), in San Leandro, California. The Charlie Modern Wingback Dining Chair – Textured Gray (Set of 2) for $170.00 were actually on sale, so with the 48-hour sale price and our REDCard 5% Discount, the total with tax came to $142.12 (an awesome savings of 22%) – I know, we were pretty blown away too! Order #102665657801 was scheduled to be delivered to Target San Leandro Bayfair between 10/22 – 10/27. It almost seemed too good to be true, order online, pick up locally and still get a bargain #SignMeUp
Part II: The Delay
So, on the day that we’re expecting to be able to pick up the lovely Charlie Modern Wingback Dining Chairs, we received an email from Target.com that shared, “We’re sorry, but your Ship to Store item(s) may not be available for pickup by the in-store arrival date you received with your original order. New in-store arrival date(s) are included below.” The delayed item(s) would now be set to arrive to the Target San Leandro Bayfair between 10/27 – 10/29.
Part III: The Lost Shipment, the Gift Card and the Cancellation
We put on our patient pants and looked forward to the chairs’ triumphant arrival … that never came. We called Target.com on 10/29 and they shared that the order had been delivered to the store on 10/26 and we even had a case number (#07612476) and Marcus sent us a Target GiftCard for $10.00 via email for our “inconvenience.”
We spoke to Target San Leandro Bayfair on 10/29, and they shared with us that they were very sorry but they had never received a shipment of two dining chairs for us. Then very next day, 10/30, we received an email from Target.com that our shipment on 10/17 was cancelled. That means that not only had Target.com been lying to us for a week that the shipment was “on its way,” “delayed,” “delivered” in the end, it was cancelled completely. Meaning, the two dining chairs weren’t coming to Target San Leandro Bayfair, nor were they being sent to our house. #NoWhereToSit
Part IV: The Guest Service Call with James
We were pretty upset at this point, so I called Target Guest Service to talk through our options and see what James, (Call Confirmation #07612476) might be able to do. I provided our case number that Marcus had provided (listed here for your convenience #07612476) and walked through our steps of ordering, waiting, frustration, disappointment and utter shock. We were basically told that this happens sometimes. People order things on Target.com, they are supposed to be shipped to a physical Target store and they just never arrive. Ever. It’s like something folks like James and Marcus know about but somehow it’s acceptable because, well, it happens. I asked if there was a way for us to simply have the two dining chairs now to be shipped to us directly and James told me that we’d have to place another order since our original order was cancelled … by Target.com. I asked if he thought that was pretty messed up and he shared that he didn’t disagree with me. When I then asked if there was anything he could do for our inconvenience, he said there was nothing he could do. And when I asked if there was a manager I could speak with, he shared that “there wasn’t” and then a bit later shared, “I’m just one person. I’m not very high up. If you want someone else, you’re going to have to email someone.” At that point, I just knew it was a lost cause and that Target and James had shattered our dreams and our belief that Target would do the right thing. #ASpikeLeeJoint
So that leads me to where we are now. Me, writing an email. Us with no dining chairs. And don’t forget … I’m just a Target Guest, writing Guest Services, asking them to help us.
Please feel free to email me back or let me know what day/time and phone number would be best to reach you.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
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