Oh, Zellers Canada How I loathe thee.


shovel

So today I went to London with my 50% off coupon that I printed off, only to be humilated and leave the Zellers store feeling like a criminal. I printed this yesterday evening and had planned to buy myself a pair of earrings. I live one hour from London. Add that to the 45 minutes I spent looking at items and waiting a while for an associate to even come the the jewel counter. Thats 1.45 hours of life wasted. Wasted because when I went to use my coupon, I was informed that Zellers has revoked the offer.

Excuse me? Revoked? I have the offer right here. I was then told that they decided that it was no long valid on sale items. Hold up? No longer valid? Are you kidding me? Since when?

I was treated like a piece of trash, by the (apparent) manager and was basically called a liar. As it was “impossible” for me to have printed this last night. So I shouldn’t even have a 50% off coupon at all. Well I did. I had no intent to act maliciously with the coupon, nor had I even heard of this “change” to the coupon. Not only that but who runs this place? Finally this week Zellers brought traffic into their quite and lonely stores and perhaps earned more faith with shoppers. How do they embrace this change? Squash it by infuriating and belittling their customers. Great move Zellers, dig your hole deeper. I should of just went and bought a shovel and handed it to the manager. I can understand it has been a very popular coupon for them, but it was pulled because it was too popular? Who is your marketing team? It wouldn’t take a baby genius to know that this was going to drive the most traffic to Zellers ever. I don’t get you Zellers corp. I really don’t. There is no way this was a “mistake” your rep on Facebook posted over and over, yes it’s valid on sale items. Let me check with head office. Yes it’s valid. Over and over.

I have never felt so badly treated in all my life in a store. Why not at least honour those customers that were trying to honestly use the coupon. As for the “notices” posted… I was told all they had was a notice posted at the front entrance door. Nothing at the mall entrance. Nothing with the flyer stands etc.

I have talked to Customer Support and I’m awaiting an outcome. As it stands right now they need to make this right with me or I will never support or step foot in their chain again.


277 responses to “Oh, Zellers Canada How I loathe thee.”

  1. Rad says:

    Omg…:( I had a similar experience today! I hate Zellers even more now!!!

  2. wendyjane says:

    Right on sista! I was planning on using mine on Fridays’ 50% off winter boots for my 5yr old who grows like a weed (for next years boots) Instead my money will stay in my pocket for Superstores’ next big blowout of boots etc.

  3. Love to Travel says:

    Well, it’s only one more year before they are gone – can’t wait.

  4. Sandra says:

    Keep fighting!! I couldn’t believe when I read their notice that they were no longer accepting the coupon that they had advertised and posted for us to print. I guess they were losing too much money? Should’ve thought of it before they posted the coupon.
    I still have a coupon and will go buy something and raise a stink just for the heck of it. They HAVE to honor what the coupon says, they can’t change the game plan half way through. NO WAY
    So keep fighting for your rights and then never shop there again.
    ‘Nuf said.

  5. Karen says:

    Oooohhh…. seriously… that coupon is still valid, just not on sale items… you should get copies of the coupon to everyone you know and sebd everyone to that store, lining up to buy something stupid like toothpaste. At all different checkouts. Over. and. over. LOL

    There is no excuse for being treated rudely by staff. But if the Facebook ads are any indication, management knows the chain is going down and they just don’t care anymore.

  6. lorressa says:

    there were flyers all over the store in winnipeg mb downtown location ! i was like really ur taking back what u said that lame! i still used mine but didnt get as good of deal! to bad

  7. julyprincess says:

    @Sandra +1

    I too went to Zellers today. So disappointed. First of all, most of the stuff is on sale so this vastly limited my choices as to what to buy. Secondly, the regular priced items are so overpriced that I have seen them for a way cheaper price when they go on sale even if the 50% discount is applied. What a waste of time.

  8. Sheila says:

    Please, please, don’t shot the messenger. I too think this is ridiculous. What kind of company issues a coupon and then changes the terms? But please remember this change comes from some ‘suits’ at head office. Not the poor cashiers and managers who are taking the abuse at store level. I doubt any of them think this is right or fair but there is nothing they can do. I feel so sorry for them. Let’s aim our disgust at Zellers head office.

  9. Jessica says:

    I know some people will tell us to stop being babies about this, but honestly, it’s the principle of the situation. They should have to honour their coupons as they were stated, and also try to be honest with their customers. It was a mistake? That you somehow didn’t notice until today? Come on now. It’s obvious that they didn’t like how many times it was used, and that it was surely being abused by some, but that’s also kind of on them. They could have set it up so that it can only be printed by each person once. That’s happened to me several times before, and often when my printer decides to stop working at that moment so that I miss it entirely… I couldn’t get to the store until today, but fortunately (I guess) I saw the update here before I bothered to go. How fair is it that so many missed out because we couldn’t get there sooner? And how fair is it that people wasted their time and gas to get to a store today, only to find out that they suddenly wouldn’t honour the coupons? It really seems like they would have been better off cutting their losses and just leaving the coupon as is for the next couple of days, rather than angering the customers that they actually still have left. Won’t they be clearing out their merchandise in the not-so-distant future anyway?

  10. Shannon says:

    Damn, it’s one thing to post a coupon with wrong information, it’s another when the people working there give you a hard time and don’t own up to the store’s mistake. I hope you get a response! Here’s hoping Target turns out to be better.

  11. love88 says:

    It was their mistake, they have to pay for it! They should have a hundred people checking what they advertise before they even print it out!

  12. Sally says:

    I agree Sheila, I even told the associate I knew it wasn’t her fault but I wanted to speak to the manager. It was the manager who said I was lying that i had printed the coupon off etc. Shes the one whom made me feel like dirt. If she truly is a manager it is of no surprise to me why they are going down.

  13. Patricia Wellington says:

    I totally agree, I got the same thing this morning when I bundled my son up and out we went to get a coffee maker for my mom. How horrible.

  14. Janetta says:

    I headed over to my local Zellers tonight and was able to use the 50% off coupon. The employees there really have a “I don’t give a sh*t” attitude there and even let a lady in front of us use 6 coupons in a row!
    I plan on going with my mum tomorrow afternoon and will raise hell if they say that I can’t use the coupon. Haha, I have time like that. Great PR, Zellers!

    To me, it seems like they offered the coupon to move all the stock they had left. They won’t be restocking, is the message I got.
    Rumor has it, they (my location) will close in June/July.

  15. ltfrombc says:

    I had a bad experience with Zeller in 1998. I tried wrote to Customer Service twice and I was totally ignored. I made the decision at that point to never step foot in Zellers again and I have kept that decision. This move by Zellers does not suprise me – they do not have a good reputation with respect to their customer service. I will be happy when they leave and Target comes in to replace it…2013 cannot come fast enough

  16. mastersaver says:

    +1 this was a disaster i was so excited to pick up a duvet today but learned of the change to the coupon. Looked around the store and couldn’t find much that wasn’t on sale, picked up a pack of k cups and left.
    I guess this is the luxury that they have of not caring what their customers think of them.
    On that same note the lady in front of me had an item with no barcode and the cashier told her that noone would go get another for her she would have to do it herself then voided all her items and put them back in the cart.

    Zellers, i was just starting to forgive you for all the bad things that i experience in your store then…you find a way to do it again. So i once again renew my pledge to never shop there.

  17. RedEng says:

    Every time I go to Zellers I say never again, but eventually I wander back in. Sheila is right it’s not the cashiers fault (most of the time). Their computer system is wonky and the cashiers are not trained on how to handle manufacture coupons and more surprisingly HBC coupons. As much as I hate to see Canadian companies dissolve into American companies, it’s time for Zellers to accept new management.

  18. Bytown says:

    Well if Target is to take this store over next year, I would advise you to cc a copy of your complaint to Target. Let them know about the Zellers Manager that treated you badly. At best, Target won’t be keeping him as store manager when they take over.

  19. Josee says:

    Well I will visit my zellers store tomorrow and if they won’t accept it They will definately hear about the “false advertisement” clause!

  20. Martie says:

    I didn’t even bother to use this coupon. Using coupons at my local Zellers has always been a headache, and I’d rather take their flyers and pricematch elsewhere to use my coupons. What you’ve expressed is my any day/everyday experience using coupons at Zellers. So I’m not surprised they reneged on this offer. Par for the course at Zellers!

  21. Casey says:

    Reading this makes my blood boil!! Good luck and thanks for saving me a trip there, I’ve always hated Zellers but was going to make a special trip just for the coupon. Good luck to Sandra too, go get ’em Ladies!!!

  22. vibrantflame says:

    Oh, I hear you! I was tempted to try to use the coupon, but figured it wouldn’t be worth a half hour drive to “try” to use it, and likely not be able to. After reading several complaints on here, I’m glad I didn’t bother. I haven’t stepped into a Zellers in a long time, and don’t intend to either. I don’t know what it’s a combo of, but Zellers has given itself a very bad reputation and they don’t seem to care much about improving it…

  23. Stahr says:

    @ Bytown Target is not automatically taking on Zellers employees. My friend works at Zellers and was told that they have to submit their resumes online to Target just like everyone else who wants a job there. So this horrible manager may not be working there in the future;)

    @ Josee the fine print lets them get away with it. It always does. Funny enough, the fine print specifies (even though the bold lettering says opposite) that the coupon cannot be combined with any other offer….Somebody is going to get canned over this massive fail.

  24. carrie says:

    There there…I know how you feel…
    Thank you for sharing the experience though so we won’t fall into the same trap.

  25. Marina says:

    I am glad you contacted Customer Service. You are a good writer; I am sure you communicated yourself well to them. I hope you get a worthy response.

    Add me to the list of people who can’t wait for Target!

  26. test says:

    i heard about the changes, unfortunately for me i didn’t get to snag a 50% off sale. however i went in and purchased something at regular price with 50% off… so they didnt let you use the coupon at all?!?

  27. Blair says:

    Similar experience for me as most of you. So I ended up going to another competitor store that said they took competitor coupons. I ended up with a super deal and now a new store that I will be returning to a lot more often because they treat people right and honour their printed policies.

  28. tomcat says:

    Does anyone have an email address that we can send our complaints to at had office? I just got home from my local store and couldn’t believe how rude the cashier was. Unfortunately, I had not read this post yet and wasted over an hour going to get my deal. I will not be shopping at Zellers again. Terrible customer service.

  29. tomcat says:

    Sorry “head office”

  30. TaraF says:

    Sadly, it doesn’t surprise me with Zellers. I have a HUGE hate-on for this store and well this is a good reason why. When I went in today the only “corrections” were listed on the till as you were about the check out! I laughed at the cashier and said, “I understand this is not your fault but this truly is BS”. There is a reason Zellers won’t be around much longer. Bring on Target!

  31. Eric says:

    I was going to pick up an ottoman tomorrow, but since this no longer applies to sale items, I guess I won’t be buying it there. Honestly though, Zellers has really been going downhill over the past decade or so. They’re horrible when it comes to price matching anything, the stores look so messy 9/10 times I’ve visited one, You can’t find anyone to help you and when you finally do, they usually don’t know a thing about their department (I had to search for 20 minutes today to get someone to go on cash so I could buy dish washer detergent). Oh, and we can’t forget about the expired food items at certain locations as well.

  32. redhdlois says:

    I am so glad this made it to the media….unfortunately, the general public will believe that it was a “misprint” and not understand the extend of this. I emailed Zellers today, noting that I would not be making a correction to my email 4 days after the fact.
    I never patronize that store, due to a variety of issues, but thought, ok, this is a good enough incentive to get me in the store….NEVER, NEVER again!!!

  33. Jennifer says:

    I completely understnad your frustation. I have been okay with this coupon but had a problem a little bit ago with a carseat they had on sale. 4 emails, 5 phone calls and a letter to the Canadian Ad Standards later I was given a brand new carseat at no cost because I made such a huge stink. It’s bad you have to go to those lengths to work with them. After this fiasco I’m sure I will nt be shopping there anymore, even once converted to Target

  34. bcwillow says:

    I too am frustrated with lovely Zellers. Today I went there with two kids (four and two and a half). Went through finding things I thought would be great – decent prices and wondering what I’d use my great coupon for .However, when it was time to check out, there were TWO cashiers for at least thirty people. Even though they paged for more, no one came. I looked down in my cart and decided those princess jammies just weren’t that important. I parked my cart, passed on my coupon, and left. This was the Tillsonburg store. We’re getting a Walmart instead when it goes. I just may like that…

  35. parislove says:

    The only good thing about Zellers is being able to PM their flyer at Wallmart…bring on Target!

  36. Katherine says:

    In response to Bytown:
    “Well if Target is to take this store over next year, I would advise you to cc a copy of your complaint to Target. Let them know about the Zellers Manager that treated you badly. At best, Target won’t be keeping him as store manager when they take over.”

    I have a friend who works at Zellers who tells me that none of the employees will be kept on to work at Target. If they do want to work there, they will have to apply new like everyone else. There will be no special treatment for those who are working at Zellers now.

    My guess is that’s why a lot of them have the “I don’t give a sh*t attitude”

  37. Sherri says:

    I also have lost all respect for Zellers. I will not shop in ANY Hudson Bay store by choice!
    They loose more and more of my respect each time I hear a story like this!

  38. me says:

    ZELLERS has ALWAYS been like this…….I have NEVER met a friendly store manager who knew how to deal with a complaint add that to the line ups at the tills OMG it takes FOREVER to check out…….they are like Kmart that way NEVER have enough cashiers and work the ones they do have like dogs…I havent been in a Zellers store in over 10 years and never will be…….

  39. Olga says:

    Had a bad experience as well today… Whoever said don’t shoot the manager, there are 3 different Zellers in my area and one of them still accepts the coupons because the manager decided to take that loss to keep her customers happy… Unfortunately, the one I had to go to – the manager was quiet rude, and after arguing for a bit she did a price check to see if she could “let it slide”… apparently there is a limit? that is just not fair! so maybe it comes from higher up but managers certainly play a role… I’m not ever going to Zellers again, I will happily price-match any good deals at Walmart!

  40. Evan Gelman says:

    wow that’s crazy

    I bought a duvet that was 60% off and then was missing pieces so the took an additional $12 off, followed by my 50% facebook coupon, and then an additional 10% for an SPC card.

    both people at customer service knew about the coupon and laughed cause I was the only person to say “cucumber” as it said to do so.

    I bought it on December 28th, and have enjoyed it ever since!

  41. cupcake17 says:

    And you wonder why Zellars hitting the road and Target is taking its place. I can’t tell you how many time Zellars treated me and my hubby like crap. Please don’t get me going on the “sale” signs, lets just say they are always in the wrong spot and they never honor when they are wrong.

  42. Cdn Ginger says:

    As someone who works the jewellery counter at a Zellers I’d just like to point out that you shouldn’t consider buying the jewellery at Zellers anyways. The gold is low quality, and its over-priced. We have 50% off sales all the time, but the prices are raised ridiculously high to compensate. Even with your additional 50% off the sale price, it’s still cheaper to buy earrings elsewhere.

    Also, ByTown, emailing Target won’t make a difference. The managers aren’t being re-hired unless they have a university degree (which most of them don’t). Complaining to head office doesn’t help too much either, since they aren’t going to start firing managers when they’re so close to closing.

    Janetta, Zellers will still be restocking. Its going to be business-as-usual until we close, then all our stuff is being sent to the stores that aren’t shutting down. There won’t be any blowout sales, no major clearance, nothing.

    Most of us employees really don’t care. we’ll still give you guys deals when we can, and we give you a break whenever possible. What you need to realize is that management is breathing down our necks too. You think Zellers treats you bad as customers? Try working there.

  43. rizza says:

    It has to be that this happened to you because the items you picked were already on sale. I just came from there and I was able to use it just fine.

  44. Angela says:

    Myself, I am only too glad to see them leave! Their stores are always a mess and there is never anything in stock. I did print mine off last night and went with my family (Brandon, MB store) and we each used one on a sale item…Guess we were lucky?

  45. Andra says:

    I also hate Zellers. Last time I went in there the flyer said “all boots on sale”. Except for the pair that I wanted to buy apparently!!! I asked for a manager and somebody came up and also proceeded to insult me. I took my items placed them on the counter and walked out. This time I will not be going back.

  46. Webbygrrl says:

    Bring on Target! Can’t wait. Adios, Zellers!

  47. leni says:

    I wonder how the bay’s head office would feel about being flooded with complaints about their fellow Hbc store. I’m guessing they wouldn’t be thrilled about zellers further tarnishing the hbc reputation. Just a thought.

  48. firstelektra says:

    I had the exact same experience as well today, so humiliating. And, on top if it, I was also trying to price match the Glade Sense & Spray that was on sale at Walmart for $5, and the cashier said that because the “regular” price of the Sense & Spray in the flyer shows as $9.88, and the one on their shelf is $9.99, she couldn’t match it to the sale price….. really?? And here I thought price matching meant matching it to the price the other retailer is selling it for… no?? Am I going crazy, or is that not how it works. Needless to say, I walked out empty handed. Insanity, that’s all I have to say. I will be calling their head office, as well as bringing my hubby back to Zellers with me tomorrow (little extra manpower), and getting the Glade Sense & Sprays… and that will be the last time I will ever set foot into their stores. Good luck to all!!

  49. Katherine says:

    Wow Cdn Ginger, It’s hard to read “You think Zellers treats you bad as customers? Try working there.”

    I hope things go well for you and all the other good people that work there.

  50. Manu says:

    I’m so sorry about experience if it wasn’t for your site I would have never even been able to find out about the deal. I went to Zellers yesterday with my friends and we each came out with something at a good price. Although i must admit a few of the cashiers had no idea what the coupon was about or wouldn’t accept smartphone coupons when other people have been able to use it. They are just so disorganized. My dad went today not knowing about their “correction” and was treated horribly. I feel sorry for all the people that never got the chance to take up on this opportunity and hope Zellers does something to fix this

  51. Larry says:

    Everyone, please be patient !

    In a few months this wreck of a store and the incompetent staff on board will be either looking for new jobs or taking a pay cut with their “new employer”.

    Tellers like “Shanti” at Erindale Zellers hAVE A PART TO PLAY IN THE DEMISE OF THIS CHAIN …………..

    In my books, Target will be no different than Zellers if the same staff remain .

  52. Shopping Shelley says:

    I lucked out , I used mine yesterday and got a gold chain that was originally priced for $868 for $217.
    Here is a thought, maybe we should clogg up the head office phone lines with our complaints. Maybe we can get a couple of those executives that make over $100/hr on the phone and just keep them there for a few hours. I am sure they will quickly realize that it is cheaper to honour the coupons than have to pay an executive the big bucks to listen to us. 🙂

  53. dena says:

    Same experience here in BC, 15 minute drive to the store, even longer picking out the piece of luggage we wanted. In our case, the man ahead of us in line had the coupon and was told the new restrictions. We all just threw up our hands and walked away. We have really tried, but think we’re at the end of the road with Zellers. How many people across the country have wasted time and energy because of this coupon and their ineptitude.

  54. Sally says:

    Rizza, fact of the matter is they changed what the coupon was valid on and I was told I wouldnt of been able to print it off when i did anyways, basically a thief.

  55. Digi says:

    I saw your post on their wall, Sally. Liked it for you.

  56. Astrogal says:

    I hate stores that give you a hard time when you are trying to use their own legitimate coupons and treat you like a criminal or thief. Zellers sucks, plain and simple. It feels scuzzy in there, it has the feel of a glorified dollar store similar to K-Mart in the States. Can you believe there is a store lower class than Wal-Mart? They probably don’t care about customer service anymore as they are sinking faster than the Titanic. Can’t wait for Target to come in as long as they sweep away with the current HBC-Zellers management

  57. SeriousSally says:

    That is one HUGE stinkin’ backfire. Yes, Zellers, you’ve certainly confirmed it, YOU SUCK…oh well, I can use my printed coupon to line my compost bin.

  58. love88 says:

    I would like to suggest that everyone should e-mail the company to complain!

  59. test says:

    he called you a thief! i hope you got his name and reported him! that’s horrible sally.

  60. Teresa says:

    No wonder they are going out of business. I hope Target is a change for the better.

  61. Phil says:

    They cancelled the coupon and I hadn’t had a chance to print one yet:( Can someone please send me a PDF of it to [email protected] or let me know where I can find one.

  62. J. M. Walters says:

    I am in the states right now and I am talking to people at Target.
    It will be looked at..
    Any names of managers or personnel to post there name here with the store they work in.
    They will be asked come changeover to Target.
    Target is serious about entering Canada on good terms and do not want these people on the payroll.
    Thank the person for starting this and I hope they get some satisfaction.
    Remember Names, Store Location and if possible times. You do not have to identify youself

  63. Sheila says:

    Go to their facebook page and watch the videos under “Welcome” and “Festive Finale”….oh, the irony!

  64. NT says:

    Sally, you couldn’t have said it better. I had a similar experience today, with the cashier treating me badly after I wasted time going there and then shopping around for items. She kept saying its posted on the front doors, I went back after to check, and yes, it was posted, with font that was about a 10 or 12 pt size, and there was only 1 8X11 sheet of paper. Why do you waste my time??? And Sheila, you are right, its not the poor cashier’s fault, but she still could have been nicer. If it was me, I would be saying “I’m really sorry, but there’s been a correction”, not “this is on sale and you can’t use the coupon on sale items, its posted on the front doors”. Absolutely ridiculous. Then I was so flustered, I left my husband’s hat and gloves in a cart. So in the end, I actually lost money on my outing this morning.

  65. Sally says:

    Im giggling so hard at the Global report.

    1st of all.

    How many time did the Facebook rep for Zellers “check” with head office and post that it was definitely valid on sale items”

    ? Im guessing 50.

    “All efforts were made to contact 3rd parties” I got no email. No inquiry form filled out from them at all via the Smart Canucks site. No attempt at communication and we were one of the largest posts of this offer.

    What a bunch of pooey Zellers. Keep lying, dig that hole deeper.

  66. Kris says:

    Please see this link and comment here as well. It is the Global TV News Facebook page, with a picture of screenshots of Zellers stating to use the coupon on flyer sale items and price match with it: http://www.facebook.com/GlobalBC?ref=ts#!/photo.php?fbid=10150429029206540&set=o.8475622807&type=3&theater

  67. Angel45 says:

    I knew that Zellers revoked the usage of the coupon on sale items this morning so I go and purchase light bulbs at regular price. It scans incorrectly at $16.99 at the till. I tell the cashier that they should be $16.49 – he rolls his eyes and said no they’re $16.99. I asked him to check – well now he’s really mad. I go back there with another cashier & confirm that the price label was indeed $16.49. I refused to go through his till again but he proceeds to yell to the cashier that’s serving me that I can’t use the coupon because it’s on sale… unbelievable!! I should have received an apology instead of being berated by this cashier. I went to Customer Service to complain but they just shrugged their shoulders..

  68. Lorie Brijeski says:

    I loved Zellers and getting club z points but every time something was on sale 9 times out of 10 they charged full price for something I had bought.I will be sad when they close,but this is just incredible,they can’t get away with it,we as consumers have to stick together and fight for our legal rights.They are pulling a false advertising trick.im going to raise heck if they wont let me use my coupon.Who wants to start a facebook petition [email protected] Lorie Brijeski.Lets get em girls We are Canadians and this is how our Canadian store treats us.I did not shop at Walmart to stay true to Canadian Zellers.I put up with no staff around,no sale signs up or they were pulled down before the sale was over and you always had to get things checked for the right price.This makes me mad and sad and we should not let them get away with it.I dont know how to start a facebook page but if someone else can I will moderate the site and contact head office with a petition 924989093 I knew it off by heart lol.

  69. Anon says:

    Well, it kind of makes sense for them to pull the coupon. I got a KitchenAid Mixer on the 26th and decided to get one for my parents the day after. People were hoarding like crazy and I even saw some people use it on electronics. Guess it was too hard for them to enforce the limit 1 policy.

  70. Leah says:

    I had a very similar experience, same goes for a couple friend. No notice seen entering through the mall entrance but apparently the notice was on the door at the street entrance. I feel bad for the cashiers having to explain over and over that the company they work for are run by a bunch of morons but for the managers in these stores to be downright rude to us “customers” over us “customers” simply trying to use a coupon that they created in the manner it was created to be used. Zellers designed and advertised that coupon, not us consumers, so why are they treating us like we are in the wrong???? Zellers = FAIL!!!

  71. Jolene says:

    This doesn’t surprise me one bit. Zellers was a decent store a very long time ago, but for many years it has just continued to get worse and worse. And not in just one way either, in many ways. Their customer service used to be pretty good, now it’s one of the worst places. I get better customer service at Walmart, that’s pretty bad if your service is so bad that Walmart is better, because while their prices keep me coming back Walmart has absolutely disgraceful customer service. Zellers stores have also become a dump. Forget about getting much of whats in the flyer, I quit shopping there after about my last half a dozen trips into the store to buy something from the flyer which just started that morning resulted in being told “it sold already, you should have come sooner”….to which my response of “why should I come sooner, how about you actually have something in stock that’s on sale instead of being ‘sold out’ of it 4 hours after the store opened and the flyer started?”. They don’t care, staff doesn’t care, management doesn’t care. This attitude existed long before they were ever bought by Target.

    For me Target can’t come soon enough, I look forward to the day Zellers is gone and Target is in its place. I used to live in the US and never had a bad experience at Target, it was always a fantastic shopping experience.

  72. Jeaan says:

    Just 1 more reason I’m glad that Target is buying up the Zellers locations! Too bad Canadian stores can’t compete with the US in most pricing.

  73. Talimomali says:

    I went in to Zellers today to buy a mattress protector… but the nicer ones didn’t come in a king size, and they were all one sale anyway. They kept repeating on the PA system that the coupon was only valid on regular price items, not flyers prices like the coupon said… in the end I grabbed some necessities (socks and chocolate) and couldn’t even use the coupon there because they were 50% off anyway. Ridiculous!

  74. stylishghal says:

    And it says on coupon: “Offer CAN be combined with our great flyer DEALS!”

  75. Ceecee says:

    So sorry you had to go through this but I can’t say I am surprised. Zellers sucks I refuse to shop there period!!! Actually any hbc company! Their customer service is terrible and has been for years. It’s amazing to me that they are still in business.

    Can’t wait until the target takeover. I truly hope they fire the existing staff (all of them inc senior mgnt) and hire ppl who actually want to work and care about their customers.

    Would love to buy from canadian companies but 90% of them just piss me off, I lived in the states too long to put up with sub par customer service. Sadly we could learn something with our southern friends. The customer is always right!

    Sorry again 🙁

  76. annie says:

    I stopped shopping at Zellers a long time ago. Can’t wait for Target!

  77. Michal says:

    Only one of the many reasons in why I have not shopped at Zellers in the past 8 years. I like Target in the states. Hope it is the same up here.

  78. Angie says:

    Had the same experience today and I will never step foot in that store again. I can’t wait for target to replace them.

  79. Stephanie says:

    Well I had the EXACT same experience today. The manager treated me like crap because of I had the coupon…..and didn’t honour it for the same reason. Most of the people that treat you like crap cause you are trying to save money should be using coupons also!! I can’t imagine you make so much money at Zellers that you don’t need to save also. Shame on Zellers and so long!! I love the way SAVE-ON FOODS treats me when I bring in coupons….and I am willing to pay a little more just because of this!

  80. Angie says:

    Does anyone know if there are any other stores that will price match this coupon? I know Walmart won’t, maybe Super Store?

  81. Jonathan says:

    Target, Target, Target! I can’t wait.

    Zellers….I’d send you a condolences card, but you wouldn’t accept a coupon for it.

  82. Nat says:

    Sally, which London Zellers was this?
    A bff and I went shopping for at least 2hours in the Westmount Zellers, got to the register and after telling the cashier we had price compares AND coupons for the same items along w SPC, the cashier ringing in ~1/4 of a cart full of items tell us that they don’t do price matches and coupons on the same items! They basically insinuated we were lying as well when my friend who was just in the week before was allowed to do both (Zellers claimed they’d changed the policy weeks prior)! My friend was rung in 3 times due to errors on their part and this issue BEFORE they got to my items.

    We were also treated very rudely at the Pond Mills Zellers and watched a young male associate be shouted at and basically called a liar for a coupon error that somehow went through as $109 instead of $1..My bff was standing up for the cashier, when the manager continued to insist he MUST have entered the coupon at that amount yadda yadda. My friend also had to be rung through twice here and my associate requires help with coupons anytime I go there.

    The associates are also not dressed very well..Often in yoga pants, some other worn out black pants, and at the pondmills Zellers in particular, my mother and I hardly could forgot the older associate probably with 40G chest down to her waist due to a lack of decent bra!

    Zellers has lost much of my business because they are so blatantly rude much of the time!..No thank you! (I’ve worked in retail for over 7 years now, I understand what it’s like; put a smile on and do your best..)

    Zellers has lost much of my bus

  83. Shirl says:

    I am sorry that this happened to you, especially after you made that long trip to the store.

    I recall similarly when Office Depot was closing all their stores, that the employees at my local O.D. felt the same way, and for the same reasons. It is very demoralizing when it is not your work ethics/assessment have you released; it is simply corporate decision (in this case they are selling out).

    I don’t agree with the way the employees deal with customers yet I fully understand and empathisize with them. Everyone needs an income. They are in a grey area. They can’t go elsewhere looking for work yet because they are still obligated to Zellers to bring in their income. On top of that, in Zeller’s case, if they already have a bad reputation, I’m sure many frustrated customers take it out on the employees. I agree, please don’t take it out on the employees. They are caught in the middle, and they too are frustrated, possibly afraid for some as to where will their next paycheque come from especially if they are sole breadwinners, and if Target isn’t rehiring them.

    This is what some of the employees expressed to me in the last few months when they were told that O.D. was closing shop in Manitoba.

    And as much as probably even employees don’t agree with a lot of Zellers’ restrictions, they still have to follow those rules, or else they’ll get their walking papers even before Zellers doors are closed. I feel for them, and in a domino effect, us as customers. It’s a lose/lose situation.

  84. L says:

    This is bad for the company but… on the other hand, I know most (NOT all, so don’t try and accuse me of generalizing everyone) people who say they won’t ever shop at Zellers again are the ones who were never really loyal to the company anyway, meaning they never gave Zellers alot of sales…because they shopped at other places, no need to even say the names of the stores but you get my idea. I don’t think they will really hurt from those people, most people don’t even know about this whole drama anyways, I was there today and no one I saw even had a coupon…JUST my own words, I have a right to state them 🙂

  85. Natalie says:

    I have added my comment and I recommend others here to add your concerns to the thousands who have posted on Zeller’s facebook page.
    Boy are people upset and quite a few are writing to the head office to this person;
    [email protected]

    http://www.facebook.com/ZellersCanada?sk=wall

  86. idubyan says:

    I am sorry about your experience with Zellers. I have had numerous issues with their Club/HBC Catalogue items years ago – some of which were resolved after I persistently followed up. I don’t shop there a lot because their prices are way too high compared to superstore and walmart.

    2. I have also had a similar bad experience with Safeway when they refused to honor a ‘Free’ coupon for breakfast cereal just a few months ago. Their assistant manager was quite rude, made us wait for a long time, and never got back to us why that particular store was refusing to accept this coupon.

  87. megan says:

    Use to work at zellers. This does not surprise be. Bad to there customers and employes.

  88. Paula says:

    When I got to the cash the cashier put my coupon aside and rang in the item at regular price. When I asked why he did not use the coupon he slapped it on the counter and said “I don’t understand why people try to use coupons without reading them”. I asked what he meant (because I had read everything and had even asked a salesperson if I could use the coupon on the slushie maker I picked up before I went to the cash – just to be sure). He pointed to the coupon and said “Read”. ??? “You did not follow the rules – you did not say what you were supposed to say so I wont honor the coupon”. I did not feel like saying the stupid code word “cucumber” so I kindly pointed to the part that said that “if you didn’t feel like saying the word, a smile would do”. He said “I didn’t see a smile either”. So I told him “You are not going to see a smile at this point so just ring in the coupon or else I am just going to hold up the line”. He did. I then came home and told my husband and kids about my experience and how rude this salesperson was. I am now reading everyone’s comments and can not believe how a company can do what they did or continue to employ people who are not customer friendly. I will echo everyone else and say I CAN’T WAIT FOR TARGET!!

  89. saucyblondie says:

    I am so sorry to hear this…no one deserves to be treated so badly. I hope you get a good result from customer service.

    I stopped shopping at Zellers over a year ago because of bad customer service. When I saw this coupon for 50% off, I didn’t even bite because I knew if it was from Zellers it wouldn’t be worth the trouble.

  90. Tracy says:

    Holy cow people get a grip on yourselves. It’s a coupon. What’s your real life like? Do you really think Zellers cares about all this stupidity? Remember people THEY ARE CLOSING. Target will have their issues too. Same garbage different name. Really you drove an hour to Zellers for earrings?! This is so much deeper.

  91. Mr Willabie says:

    “As it stands right now they need to make this right with me or I will never support or step foot in their chain again.” ?????

    OMG, Sally! You were one of the last.

    The rest of us stopped stepping foot there years and years ago.

  92. SHAWNA says:

    I have had a horrible experience at Zellers myself many many years ago and have boycotted it since. I just go to my stores that I love and that treat me well and get them to price match the “SMELLERS” flyers

  93. not shocked says:

    This is Zellers,

    When I saw the coupon, I knew it wasn’t going to be honoured I didn’t even bother wasting the paper. Just like when they have an actual sale and you go to the store first thing in the morning, so early you are there before the employees and they are sold out.. GIVE ME A BREAK! That was when I stopped going to ZELLERS COMPLETE BOYCOTT and I DO NOT LET FRIENDS and FAMILY shop at ZELLERS either.

    I will Give Target ONE CHANCE when they change over, but Target already runs Zellers in its current state, so I dont expect much change (but I do know they are hiring new managers in many areas).

    REMEMBER: FRIENDS DONT LET FRIENDS SHOP AT ZELLERS

  94. bonnie says:

    I had a good experience with the Zellers in Vancouver in B.C. Yesterday
    my daughter and I each used a 50% off coupon. I believe my item was already 50% off and my coupon gave me another 50% off. I bought a duvet which was on sale. My daughter bought a duvet cover which was also on sale. She received 50% off her item. The only problem is we had to get the cashier to price check all 4 duvet covers cause we didn’t know what the prices were. This forced us to make a quick decision since we felt bad about making the people in line wait. I am glad that we saved money but if the coupon was not valid, I would have been a little disappointed because if something appears to be too good to be true, it often is. I knew that if the coupon was not going to be honored, I would have just refused to buy the item. I guess we were lucky. The cashier accepted the coupon willingly and we were satisfied customers.

  95. Shannon says:

    I’m sorry to read this! I was able to use my coupon on the 26th at Zellers in BC to buy Brita filters. Small item but was able to save $12.

    Looking forward to Target now!

  96. Mumu says:

    They have the worst customer service ever, and it’s ran by ignorant management..Can’t wait till they are gone

  97. Aly887 says:

    I had the same problem today at the brentwood mall location. The Mangager came out yelling at me and told me to take it up with HO. She told me it’s not at their store level to do anything and then asked how I got my coupon when the coupon was pulled off the website already…HUH?? I said “forget it, I printed it out last night. I’m not a criminal here…I did print this off on Zellers Facebook. You really don’t need to be rude or to yell at me about it. I don’t want the item anymore and I will not use your coupon anymore. I will return the item I was planning to buy. I then proceeded to return the blanket I was planning to purchase and she followed me like I was a theif. Then when I was paying for my dog food and cheese I needed to pick up she stood behind the cashier to make sure I didn’t use the coupon. HUH?? I DID NOT use the coupon and the dog food or cheese wasn’t even on sale. But I did make sure on my way out I asked for the managers name to make sure when I call HO tomorrow that I have it. She was reluctant to give it to me so she made a big scene about it…”banging books around all mad trying to look for paper… I simply just whipped out my coupon and told her to sign the back of it and left. I was sort of embarassed with such bad customer service.

  98. Aly887 says:

    I had the same problem today at the brentwood mall location. They did not have any signs around the store only a small one in front of the entrance and then all along the cashiers so you wouldn’t even notice the correction until you are right at the front of the line ready to pay. Anyways, the Mangager came out yelling at me and told me to take it up with HO. She told me it’s not at their store level to do anything and then asked how I got my coupon when the coupon was pulled off the website already…HUH?? I said “forget it, I printed it out last night. I’m not a criminal here…I did print this off on Zellers Facebook. You really don’t need to be rude or to yell at me about it. I don’t want the item anymore and I will not use your coupon anymore. I will return the item I was planning to buy. I then proceeded to return the blanket I was planning to purchase and she followed me like I was a theif. Then when I was paying for my dog food and cheese I needed to pick up she stood behind the cashier to make sure I didn’t use the coupon. HUH?? I DID NOT use the coupon and the dog food or cheese wasn’t even on sale. But I did make sure on my way out I asked for the managers name to make sure when I call HO tomorrow that I have it. She was reluctant to give it to me so she made a big scene about it…”banging books around all mad trying to look for paper… I simply just whipped out my coupon and told her to sign the back of it and left. I was sort of embarassed with such bad customer service.

  99. jeff says:

    What a joke, this was no misprint, you’ve lost my business Zellers bye bye. Your stores are always empty anyways, this was a good deal to create traffic and more sales. They should honor the coupon til the end.

  100. Yeah… there were flyers posted all over the doors at a Zellers here about that coupon. It was on our news as well.
    http://www.globaltvbc.com/zellers+customers+outraged/6442550290/story.html

  101. that being said, doesn’t give them the right to treat you the way they did 🙁

  102. STY says:

    Zellers turned a positive into a negative faster than Netflix. Big waste of time because my Zellers only posted “correction” at the checkout, so all the time picking out items was wasted. In future (if they have one) they need to think promos all the way through, and live with the consequences. I do feel sorry for the employees, caught in the middle, but it’s the company that put them there.

  103. sherry says:

    crap store, crap staff, crap service…..bring on the Target. Don’t even bother reading the Zellers flyer.

  104. Sandra says:

    I used this coupon numerous times. I lucked upon it on FACEBOOK the very first day it was posted. Hardly anyone knew about it then. The cashiers did not even know about it. They were completely lost. I, the customer – had to tell the cashier to use the “price over ride, code 6” buttons, even though the instructions for the cashier is printed on the coupons. Why did they not put their cashiers in the “loop”? After word of the coupon started to spread, they put the kibosh on the coupon to exclude “on sale” items. I need a few other things, but those things are NOT on sale, so the coupon will still be valid (maybe).

    I say everyone boycotts The Bay, since they ARE affiliated. If the “corporate big wigs” do not want to honor their “ADVERTIZED” coupons at Zellers – if they think lying to their very few customers they have left – about a “misprint” on a coupon is a better “marketing” tactic – maybe the loss of sales at ALL their affiliations will shake them up at bit? We cannot boycott Zellers. Nobody cares about that chain of stores anymore (if they ever did) – as they are toast anyway.

    We can start an “Occupy every entrance to The Bay” protest!!!!

  105. Mark says:

    I feel the store had a good strategy of attracting customers.I was able to get things I really needed in the first two days and yesterday.I was able to save couple of hundred dollars if I would have purchased the things from Walmart.
    The sale price of most of the items are still lower than other stores and there quality(apart from shoes) is better than Walmart.There are still options available to use 50% off coupons with lot of items.Bicycles,Dehumidifiers,….. are still available at 50% off with coupon.

  106. coupon girl says:

    well i only used one cpn -for sure it was misuse of this cpon that started this ball rolling -greed -come on its a coupon -i had a woman in front of me with 6 cpns -i am an extreme couponer you know-well i told her it was only one per person and she said i dont care!!why do you think dollarama stopped using cpns cutomer misuse and greed i was told by a manager

  107. chuck says:

    happened to me too….damn them!

  108. Theresa says:

    Everything on sale, it was ridiculous, used mine on Milk…..

  109. Jayme says:

    I had a horrible experience as well yesterday and am still angry about it. I gave the cashier my coupon and she told me I need the original copy. I said this is the original I just printed it from my computer. She digs beside her till and pulls out a printed copy, I kindly explain to her the one she has is printed on a color printer where mine is printed on a black and white printer, they are both originals. Then I am there with my Mother and daughter and we each have a coupon and she says sorry you can only use one coupon per customer. I not so nicely explain that there are three costumers standing in front of her. She picks up her phone and calls somebody and says sorry you are only allowed to use one coupon. I kindly tell me Mom to go to another line with my daughter and said are you happy, now there is only one customer standing in front of you and that other person you weren’t calling a customer is in another line. I just felt like they were ready for a fight with every customer that came in the store.

  110. Carrie says:

    Here’s an idea: Maybe Zellers should have changed the coupon itself, and honor the coupon as printed… They seem to have one serious blunder after another.

    I too had a similar experience, except the store is only 10 minutes from my house. I was going to buy a duvet marked down on clearance for $109… when I got to the checkout, I was informed and refused, so I went back to see if I could find a regular priced one that would end up being cheaper. Well, after a little digging, I found a gorgeous King sized duvet marked down to $17 on clearance! Yes! Seventeen dollars!! Regular price was $99. So I spent my coupon on diapers, and scampered out of there knowing that they lost money by refusing my original purchase.

    There are reasons they are going out of business…

  111. kendra says:

    i used mine on formula last night

  112. Celtic Girl says:

    Zellers is in the last throws of a long and drawn out death! Bring on Target…..surely they can do better!

  113. Bionicguru says:

    I had no problem using the coupon. Actually I used the coupon twice.
    The first time Tues Dec 27 I bought some underwear, reg 17.97 I got it for 8.99.
    The second time Thurs Dec 29 I bought a Timex Ironman watch reg 59.97 on sale for 41.98 I got it for 20.98.

  114. LAR says:

    https://www2.hbc.com/contactus/contact-us.asp?langid=en&src=zellers

    Hi Everyone So lets all have some fun and load up ZELLERS complaint dept. Pass this on to your friends. Lets see if we can get up to 10000 emails LOL HAPPY NEW YEARS ZELLERS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  115. Liz says:

    I don’t why you would have this problem. I went into Zellers , here in Cranbrook , BC and used mine. No problem.

  116. Sonia says:

    To think i was thinking of using my coupon at zellers tonight. Ah well i rarely shop there anyway and rather go to wallmart.

  117. carol says:

    Well, I went to check out what I could buy with my coupon, thinking it was a great deal and time to stock up on an item that I couldn’t afford, everything in the store that I would want was already 50% off, so that was disappointing but as you say it is the same stuff over and over again, seems they are just pushing out stock to clear the store, they have be notorious in the past for not having stock available when it was even posted in the weekly flyer, I used to love Zellers because of their points system but honestly this is the last straw, I think I will go into my local Zellers and cut my HBC cards up in front of the manager.

  118. paula says:

    After reading these comments I was relieved that I was able to get the end tables I wanted without hassle. I bought one and my husband went the next day and got the other one. Luckily for us they were not on sale and although I was asked if I had printed my coupon off my computer there were no snags. Sounds like I was definately a minority!

  119. Sarah says:

    I used my coupons a couple days before the change. I wanted to buy a breadmaker. The one they had was $99.99 with my 50% off coupon I would of still paid about $50. I decided that I would look elsewhere because I remembered Walmart always putting the same machine on sale. Sure enough walmart has the same breadmachine on sale this week for $38.

    Zellers is WAAYYY overpriced and thats why they are going under. Its no surprise. I only go there to price match so I can get my points but even still I’m treated like a theif and a cheater and given attitude when I try to price match.

  120. Coupon saver says:

    What a terrible way to treat a customer when it was clearly Zellers error. I say boycott Zellers altogether and shop Walmart instead. Post on Facebook a boycott of Zellers and see what they have to say then.

  121. alrozac says:

    I make sure never to shop at Zellers. I hate how they would show sale prices and then put in small print that you had to use so many points. I even cancelled my club card. The last time I went to zellers, I tried to buy a pair of shoes, at the midland store, the price was written with the proper bar code for $19.99, when I got to the cash, the shoes came up at $39.99. I said the price tag with proper bar code read $19.99 and I should also be entitled to geting $10 off due to the cash register not reading the proper price. The manager came over and said the tag on the display was wrong and if I wanted the shoes it would be the $39.99 and that was it. I felt bad for making a bunch of people behind me wait for this whole thing to go over but I just said to the manager that they would never again see me in any zellers store. I now go out of my way NOT to shop at zellers.

  122. DQ14 says:

    I went Wednesday, when the coupon was still good. I bought a new Christmas tree. Original price $249, on sale for $99, paid $56 with taxes. I agree with everyone who says this is crap to change the deal. Zellers I will not miss you.

  123. Jen says:

    I just wanted to say that hubby and I went to our local (Brampton) store on the 28th and bought a new Fantom vacuum and successfully used the 50% coupon. We ALSO used multiple $ 2.50 dog food coupon for multiple .49 sample bags (which are being donated to the Humane Society) and the cashier didn’t flinch, just adjusted the coupon amount to match the price of the dog food. All in all, a pleasant experience. What happened to the 50% coupon between then and now? No clue. My advice would be to go to customer service BEFORE entering the store and plead your case. That’s what we’ll be doing today with hubby’s coupon. I’ll let you know how it goes.

  124. marina says:

    When I read your article I wasn’t shocked it’s typical of zellers to treat their once valuable customers like crap. I will not miss you Zellers.

  125. Tina says:

    This is ridiculous. There is such a thing as false advertising and I believe that applies here. This was not some typographical error or honest mistake. I encourage the entire Smart Canucks community to write to Zellers head office and complain. Mine will be c.c.’ed to the appropriate government body that oversees fairness in advertising.

  126. maliha44 says:

    Sorry to hear about your experience. Lucky I didn’t go, I knew there would be a catch. Zellers is sinking, and no one will miss it.

  127. Sunny says:

    That’s horrible. And sadly not surprising. As stated many times by others the quality of their customer service has been decreasing over the years. I find the prices not as competitive as other stores. Hopefully once Target gets here they will get rid of those crappy policies and awful bait and switch deals.

  128. Casey says:

    I’m a cashier at Zellers and I had to work last night, and all I can say is please don’t take out your frustrations out on us lowly employees. Trust me, we feel helpless and we know that it’s unfair but it is not the cashier’s fault. Complain to head office or complain to someone higher up, but us cashier’s can’t do anything about this change in the offer! I’m dreading working tonight!

  129. mel says:

    I shop at Target in Plattsburgh.I love the store and have never had any problems.Too be honest I never ever shop at Zellers.The coupon was the only way I would go there.I got a Tassimo and a Hoover Vacuum.

  130. Lisa says:

    My sister is worried that this whole zellers fiasco will affect her job at home outfitters. With many people saying they will never step foot in another zellers or affiliated store again she has a right to be concerned. I feel bad for all the zellers employees on the store front. It’s not their fault it was head office, but they are the ones on the front lines with all the upset customers. 🙁 There are some employees and managers that are not handling customers very well like in this case, but the majority are just trying to make the best of a bad situation.

  131. Disco says:

    Me too, I have already boycotted the Zellers. Every time I tried to use a coupon there was some sort of issue, even at different locations.
    Ontario, BC, Nova Scotia are all the same. Crappy service, Policies, Cleanliness, Employees and all around atmosphere. No wonder they are closing down.

  132. Ilove2shop says:

    BRING ON TARGET!!! CAN’T WAIT

  133. Finola says:

    I also had a very bad experience with Zellers on Thursday. Went to Zellers with my coupon (which I printed off) to buy a blanket. Well I was told that I could not use the coupon (Zeller coupon which I printed off the website) as the blanket was already on sale.
    “false advertisement” Zellers…..this coupon was to be used whether the item was the regular price or a sale price according to the Zeller original advertisement.

  134. Laura Williams says:

    “Can you believe there is a store lower class than Wal-Mart?”

    @ Astrogurl

    That is insulting, lots of us shop at Walmart so that we can price match, get overage and use our coupons without being made to feel like criminals. Wal-mart is not lower class, yes, “lower class” people may shop at Wal-mart, but I certainly wouldn’t call Wal-mart lower class.

    FYI: If ALL Walmart employees worldwide formed an Army, they’d be the largest Army in the world. That is how powerful Wal-mart is.

  135. Theresa says:

    Really, I would not expect much in the way of help. They don’t care anymore. Why would they bother to worry about customer service when they know they are losing their jobs??

    The quality of service has been in decline for at least the last 10 years.

  136. Theresa says:

    Gotta agree with joe2, if being denied a coupon is the worst thing treatment you have ever received, you have led a charmed life.

  137. Moi says:

    So sad….it kills me that they offer coupons, yet it seems they don’t tell the Store Managers about it.
    I hope that Head Office gets back to you on this…
    Do staff at Zellers gets off getting mad at customers
    I feel for you….:(

  138. Deb says:

    Booooo Zellers!!

  139. amatul says:

    I with agree with u completely!!!!

  140. Moi says:

    Also “change in offer”……that is so BS…….
    If the coupon states available on ALL items…..it is!
    The end….
    Also I do feel for the cashiers that have to learn the NEW changing rules everyday…..and then have customers yelling at them.
    YES…..go to Customer Service, write a letter…..and just dont go to the store anymore!

  141. Nelle says:

    Roflol @ Friends don’t let friends shop at Zellers.

    It’s a shame that one of the few remaining Canadian chains is letting itself go down the tubes and practically begging for the big American chains to take us over.

    I have, as well, had some challenging experiences with Zellers over their price match policies. You would think that I conterfetted the competitor’s flyers!

    I don’t shop there much at all. I find that they never seem to have what I went in for.

    I like their Market Restaurant, tho.

  142. MamaH says:

    I am so, so glad that I didn’t bundle up my toddler to run out to the store as planned, as it probably would have ruined my day. Oh yeah, kind of like how HBC RUINED CHRISTMAS this year. I scrimped and saved to buy my husband an expensive gift for Christmas–something that I knew he’d love. We decided that we would only buy each other one good thing this year and cut down on general spending. I went to The Bay to buy it because it was the only place that had it. I had an associate get it for me. She rung me in, put the sizable box in a bag, I paid and left. Well, I wrapped that box, put it under the tree for Christmas. Come Christmas morning my husband unwrapped the product and the box was stuffed full of empty packaging. No product. Merry Christmas, Hubby, here’s a big ol’ empty box that I paid 160$ for! We were 5 hours north where there isn’t any Bay store, so we had to wait until yesterday to do anything about it. Boy was I furious. After an hour on the phone with the manager at the store, we went in to have it replaced, and they didn’t even have it in stock. They had us drive in and drag our toddler with us and didn’t even check if they had the darn thing in stock! It’s still unresolved and I’m still fuming. Never ever again will I shop at ANY HBC store.

  143. Jan says:

    What kind of reputable business changes the rules halfway through the game so they win….Zeller’s did it good this time. The coupon clearly states it CAN be used with flyer deals and then they reneg. Proud to be Canadian was their motto…well we are embarassed to say you represent us as a Canadian business Zellers….onward to Walmart I guess.

  144. Quetzelle says:

    I had to go to 2 different Zellers locations on 2 different days because the cashier at the first location would not allow me to use the coupon for an over-the-counter medication saying that you can’t use it on anything from the pharmacy. The coupon says that you can’t use it on pharmacy prescriptions, and an over-the-counter medication is not the same as a prescription. I didn’t even bother arguing with them. So instead I went to another Zellers location the next day, and got the same over-the-counter medication, and the cashier there let me use it saying that as long as the item isn’t on sale then the coupon is valid. Zellers isn’t a place where I normally would shop.

  145. CaseysCoupons says:

    Preach it, sister! You are not alone. Zellers hasn’t had my business for years. And although I was tempted when they had their 50% coupon, I thought, “I wonder if I would drive there just to find out it’s no good?” Glad I stayed home. Boo Zellers. Move over for Target.

  146. Carrie Hamm says:

    Bad form for Zellers. It would have been better not to have issued this coupon it has caused so much problems – first they issued one that let you use it with on sale items and then they retract it 2 days later. Then they treat customers like criminals for having the coupons that are out there.

  147. Sally says:

    Zellers is removing comments and likers on their facebook page to try and cover this up.

    Another bad move Zellers.

  148. Claudia says:

    This does not at all surprise me. Zellers has been pulling similar stunts for longer than I can remember. They are known for having numerous items the night before a sale, and mysteriously have sold out after hours so they don’t have to honour the sales price.

    I am so thankful that this particularly Zellers store will be a Target in the not-to-distant future.

  149. nicosland says:

    All Zellers has ever done is infuriate me. They advertise sales that their staff know nothing about or deny that they exist even when there are signs in the aisles advertising said sale.

    Good riddance to them I say, hopefully Target will be more competent.

  150. kayleena says:

    I don’t shop at Zellers anymore for reasons just like this. I don’t care that they have good savings at times, with/without coupons. Going in to their dirty stores and putting up with their rude, ignorant sales associates isn’t worth saving a buck or two to me.

  151. STY says:

    I agree with the boycott idea, it’s the way they hurt Netflix. Just give other stores your cash for a few weeks and see what happens.

  152. janssel says:

    same here. Went to Barrie store yesterday with coupon. Wanted to buy a scale that was on sale. Explained that I would just use coupon against regular price, but the salesperson told me that there was no way to override the sale price, therefore no way to use the coupon. Ridiculous.

  153. tina t says:

    it’s a shame that a canadian retailer is seen in such a bad light, but they brought it on themselves. as for boycotting the hbc chain, i think i pretty much have, without much effort. i find the bay is way overpriced and too far from my home anyway. home outfitters is right around the corner from me but i rarely go in. it’s a few doors down from bed, bath and beyond and they normally get my business. i cashed out my points and never looked back. i think it’s time to cut up the cards.

  154. ikoo says:

    how to punish them ,

    boycott Zellers till they get their act together and treat their customers with respect

  155. Louise says:

    What a load of crap !!! I gave up on that store a year ago. It’s always a mess ,the staff is rude and they are always trying to rip u off. They post a sale price and don’t enter it in the till

  156. Buttercup says:

    Zellers this was the last straw! You’ve lost my family, friends and collegues as customers.
    I hardly shopped your store before – absolutely RUDE sales associates when you can find one, product pricing not clearly marked – had to always WASTE time to walk to the price scanner when I found one that works, you sell inferior quality crap in your stores.
    I intend on returning everything I bought at regular price using this coupon – just for the principle!
    Walmart will always have my business (always cheaper products and dont charge me for bags). Zellers in Square One is probably the only store that charges for bags. I absolutely refuse to buy bags that burst the minute I walk out the store.

    I WILL NEVER recommend ZELLERS to anyone! Good riddance!
    Hope Target doesn’t hire your staff.
    Your marketing department needs to be fired over this stunt – you really ticked your customers off big time.

  157. April says:

    That stinks! I feel for you! I saw that coupon only this morning on another site that my friend posted on f/b and a second coupon changing the first one, now it’s totally gone. I’ve never really liked Zellers and haven’t ever been able to say that I’ve got a great deal from there.

    I was talking with some store employees from Zellers in the summertime and they had indicated that our Zellers was bought by Target and that the employees (particularily the upper management employees) would all be losing their jobs and may have to re-apply if they want to try to keep their jobs. So really, I think that this is the last straw for me, I won’t be shopping there anymore!

  158. Carol D says:

    I took the “Zellers – never again!” vow a loooooong time ago. Thanks for the reminder of why I made that decision — and stuck with it!! Good luck with your quest for justice on this one. And good riddance, Zellers!

  159. Haji DeReburtis says:

    I burned my HBC rewards card after I read this!

  160. Pam says:

    Recent Facebook update ….. Hi everyone – We have received many comments about the correction notice posted yesterday. We again apologize for the inconvenience and frustration this correction has caused our Facebook fans and customers. It was unfortunate that we did not discover our error until Wednesday. This won’t happen again.

    To clarify, the coupon is still valid until December 31st and is offering 50% off on any one r…egularly priced item. You can also take advantage of our sale prices on other items which deliver excellent value.

    Although we would like to respond to each of you individually, we hope this final post acknowledging the error and our sincere apology will help to clarify and resolve the matter.

    Thank you for being a part of this Facebook community and being part of our Festive Finale.

  161. Dale says:

    WOW! What a way to get publicity. Do they think this is Hollywood? To be fair, you should not belittle employees for following what they have been told or for their personal appearance. This problem started with an ill-conceived marketing plan and executives not minding the hen house. Heads should roll and it shouldn’t be employees’. I cut up my HBC card after I was poorly treated by their new credit company. All I wanted to do was return an item that was defective and a few days after the 90 time time limit or whatever. I was treated liked a common criminal and they lost a 40 yr credit card account. Do they care? I don’t really think so. Good riddance.

  162. Stephania says:

    Sally, I knew that you had it in you! WAY TO GO. Smart Canucks is the PERFECT forum to voice our occasional frustrations on some of these retails outlets who deserve it.

    Consumers need to know which places to stop giving our business to!

  163. lori says:

    No, its the way the managers acted in a lot of cases. Not the associates. I understand it was stressful for them as well, but we didnt desrve to be treated like a criminal thief.

  164. jeff says:

    Joke!! Bye Zellers.

  165. sweetcanuck says:

    So sorry to hear that let’s hope they make this right I don’t know how they would after all that has happened with them boo to them!

  166. thatgengirl says:

    I’m not really affected by this one way or another. I couldn’t even think of anything to buy with my coupon *before* the whole fiasco.

    I agree it’s shitty to do an about-face on the terms of the coupon, but since most places don’t allow special promos to be combined with other offers, it didn’t surprise me.

    In the end, 50% off a regular price item is still a pretty good deal.

    That being said, I try to avoid Zellers like the plague. Their stores are dirty, chaotic and mismanaged.

  167. Funkymunky says:

    what a terrible experience!

    can I just point out that those 2 posters leaving smartass-y comments about this being the worst thing to happen to you should have kept that to themselves – really shows when some peeps have nothing better to do than to gloat at stuff like that, shame on you!

  168. shopdog says:

    You guys sure do expect a lot from a retail chain that doesn’t plan to be around much longer.

    Obviously at this stage of the game their executives and shareholders have but one mandate: squeeze as much cash out of this cow as possible, for as long as the doors remain open, and to hell with consumer satisfaction. It’s not like they have a brand or image to maintain . . . at least, not really. (And all this fooferaw about keeping some Zellers locations open after Target comes in is absolute rubbish . . . I’ll take any bets from all comers that Zeller’s will go into receivership in jake-time as soon as they’ve vacated all the locations being taken over by Target.)

    The brass at HBC have no desire to hold onto the Zellers turkey and they really don’t care if they burn it to a char-black crisp over the next 12 months . . . they got their big sack of cash from Target and that’s all they care about.

  169. Sally says:

    I removed the one comment as it was a regular troll that said that. It really was the top of my list for bad experiences. I knew that I wasn’t going to be the only one treated like this either.

    I hate that they continue to lie. Just say holy crap this was a popular coupon and were revoking the offer cause we can’t afford it.

    Not “it was an error”

    Not when even newspapers are printing out Zellers own words over and over again on the Facebook page that it was valid on sale items. Let me check again with head office “yep its valid”

    After posting things like that you cannot say it was an error without looking like foolish liars.

  170. Anita says:

    As a former Zellers employee, I’m not surprised. Head office seems about as organized as the stores themselves are…which is not at all. I do find it funny that staff hardly know about advertised sales yet they were made darn sure to know that the coupon no longer applied to sale items. My husband bought a clearance toy on Wednesday & there were several signs in the toy clearance section that stated all clearance toys had an additional 25% off the last yellow sticker price. When it rung it at the yellow sticker price at the register & my husband asked the cashier about it, she was rude & said that there was no such sale & refused to call the toy department. My husband let it slide because he didn’t want to deal with the hassle, but me…I would have asked for a supervisor or taken the toy right to customer service to have them do an adjustment. This kind of thing is a common occurrence at a store that has never really seemed to give a damn. Before Wal-Mart moved into smaller communities Zellers knew they had the market cornered, so customers had to put up with dirty cluttered stores & bad service. Once Wal-Mart came they didn’t up their game…& we all know the end of the story. Zellers has always been a pi$$-poor company, we’re just much much less tolerant now that we have other places to shop.

  171. robbi says:

    It is only Zellers by name now. It is now the policies and procedures of Target Corporation that are driving all this confusion and anger.
    To everyone who can’t wait to see it change to Target stores, your already looking at it!

  172. robbi says:

    Been shopping at the same Zellers store in Winnipeg for years. Many of the cashiers have been there for years. I have never had a major problem with the store. But since Target has purchased Zellers, I have had some really annoying problems. Can’t redeem Club Z points at the cashier, can’t price match and use a coupon at the same time. For all those who can’t wait until it becomes Target, these are the policies and procedures of Target Stores. Target is already here!

  173. GNOSE says:

    Hopefully TARGET will not hire all the ZELLERS employees they often are the reason for the messy run down stores I used their washroom and felt like I needed a shower afterwards

  174. Deb says:

    Zellers is unorganized, constantly has incorrect prices or cash registers that don’t scan the sale prices, Sears has beome a problem with poor services and Walmart is the evil american corporation.

    Where CAN we shop??

  175. Michi says:

    I dont think Zellers really cares anymore considering they are closing. An employee told my bf that he could buy one of the Wind phones and return it within 14 days. Never stated that it had to be unopened, because usually phones are returnable even if they are opened (incase of defects or problems). When we went to go return it because it was defective (he sounded like a robot on the phone), we were told by the customer service workers that we couldn’t return it. When trying to explain the situation I was treated without respect as well, all THREE of the workers were fidgeting looking down at their papers while I was trying to explain to them the story. Thank god the manager was called, or we would have been there for hours trying to get our money back.

  176. Tiff says:

    Nobody ever deserves to be treated poorly. Some stores have terrible staff. There are certain Canadian Tire and Zellers locations I avoid in my area for that reason. With that said it’s still not a bad deal. They could of not bothered with the coupon entirely. At least it’s something, even if it can’t be used on sales items. I hardly consider it something to get upset about. People are only human and make mistakes. I’m not perfect and I can’t exactly expect others to be perfect 100% of the time. It’s easy to look back and think of how something could of been better handled. We have all made errors from time to time. I try to make an effort to have a more positive outlook on things. The way I see it is that 50% on regular prices vs. sales prices is better than nothing at all. If they do not honor the coupon you have the right to refuse to purchase the item. I’m not exactly a fan of Zellers by any stretch, but I don’t see the error as a horrible issue.

  177. ikoo says:

    FALSE ADVERTISMENT. I believe there is a law about this

  178. Skippy says:

    Is there still a valid link? My local Zeller’s is still accepting the coupon with reduced priced items.
    Thanks in advance.

  179. Sandra B says:

    It probably feels awful to them for not being able to honour a coupon, that was on the facebook site yesterday, (I made a note yesterday to download it when I brought change for the printer at my library). Good customer service means you should never make a customer feel bad. Could you have taken them to there electronics department and use their computer to show them where their coupon was displayed yesterday to show them how wrong they were? Perhpas they should have given you a merchandise coupon or a free something or a rain check. .

  180. Ashlynn says:

    I think errors happen and this is being blown out of proportion. Yes, I understand people like deals but I have made mistakes in the past and understand that stores do too. They just need to ensure that it is clearly communicated when people enter the store that a mistake was made. If this was to happen again I would feel differently but I think that all the negative buzz will ensure more proofreading occurs before uploading a coupon. Plus, I wonder if people consider how prices can be kept so low – who suffers? The employees who work in stores that are paid minimum wage and the people making the goods that we consume are the really people who get shortchanged. There are a whole bunch of things much more important that we should be outraged about than a sale gone wrong.

  181. Scrapper says:

    Not surprised to read any of this. I work a three minute walk from our Zellers but haven’t been there in over three years. They always give you a hard time about anything and treat you like a criminal for using a coupon but they want you to get their points card so you can spend $1,400 and redeem for a free toothpaste tube! Unfortunately we were told ours isn’t changing to a target so I guess they just keep dying a slow death

  182. Sandra B says:

    Hi again:

    I wouldn’t let one bad experience at Zellers keep me from shopping at a Zellers again. The coupons was written with an error, however it is still 50% off on regular priced merchandise. Its awful you had to endure a manager at alow point, but everyone has an off day,( hopefully it was one in a million). I am sorry to say. I hope you have better experiences now.

  183. Ginger says:

    Isn’t HBC pretty much American anyways?

    The company is owned by Hudson’s Bay Trading Company, the portfolio company of the United States private equity firm NRDC Equity Partners, which also owns Lord & Taylor, a high-end department store chain in the U.S.

  184. Me says:

    I wont shop there as they have a habit of not accepting coupons, even ones that they hand out. I bought some seeds there in the summer, & I had a $10 off coupon that they gave me the week before when I made an in-store purchase. They told me it was only for seasonal stuff (excuse me, what are seeds & gardening supplies if they’re not seasonal)
    Then they told me it was only for live plants (the coupon said ‘seasonal goods’ not ‘live plants’)
    THEN they refused to get a manager. Finally a manager came over & told me I could use the coupon if I went to the checkout in the garden center. So then I had to take the merchandise outside just to pay for it…

  185. Troy says:

    If people didn’t print hundreds of coupons and spent two days going in and out of the store, perhaps they would still allow the coupon. The more I read about the fights and abuse from customers the staff has to deal with (the staff does not have a say about this coupon, yet they are those that have to deal with the abuse) the more disgusted I am with all off you.

  186. SaverCoquitlam says:

    I used the coupon today to buy tide which was on sale and they accepted the coupon! I guess it matters on the cashier.

  187. Regs says:

    Have stores really been taking a dollar off regular priced items? Some people have posted that on the FB page. Therefore it is now “on sale”? Can anybody here verify that for sure?

  188. Mary Walsh says:

    I went to Zellers to buy a Tassimo coffee machine with the 50% off coupon but there wasn’t one left in either of the stores in town. No restocking? I did buy Milk Bone dog treats with the coupon without any problem at all. I think it depends on where you live for what customer service is like. Mine have always been friendly. I feel badly for anyone who doesn’t have a good shopping experience.

  189. Cryssstalll says:

    Keep us informed with what customer service says to you. I too, depending on your outcome, will never go there again either.

  190. FallenPixels says:

    My local store is not accepting the coupon at all either

  191. Harmony says:

    False Advertising….

    I would hold them to their coupon. False Advertising is illegal…

    CAN’T WAIT For TARGET!!!!

  192. Funkymunky says:

    @ Troy – looks like you don’t have a clue about what you’re talking about..

  193. Leslie says:

    Seriously, Troy, a true deal-shopping couponer DOES go through the cash register line-up time and time again to get the deals. THAT’S THE POINT, duh. When you have a small budget and a family to feed, you will do what is necessary to make your money go as far as possible. Glad you’re rich.

  194. Sara says:

    Zellers is garbage. I live a few minutes away from one and it is always dead. I have gone in there about three times over the past two years and the second I entered I regretted the decision. The store is always a mess, items are never priced properly, if even priced at all. The one time I attempted to buy something, the price rang up completely wrong and I had no desire to argue, just left empty handed. I never see anyone else in the store when I go there – customers or employees. I really don’t know how they are still making the money to stick around…

  195. Lisa says:

    Yes, I agree!! That you should’ve went to WALMART and bought a shovel, and smacked some sense into the manager!!!

  196. Zook says:

    I was so upset with my Zellers store years ago that I phoned the manager and politely let him know why I would never shop there again. I feel like they should know why they lost a customer so they would have a chance to improve. Looks like it was futile.

  197. Kim says:

    “shopping couponer DOES go through the cash register line-up time and time again to get the deals. THAT’S THE POINT, duh”

    If the coupon says one per person, using it over and over again is illegal, duh. And if your budget is tight, how do you feed your family with 25 Tassimo coffee makers? Please explain.

    And whoever said to go to Walmart and buy a shovel to smack it on the Zellers manager…. I have nothing to say.

  198. honeydoo says:

    “The coupons was written with an error…”

    ahh no it wasn’t. They are just lying and saying it was an error, when in actuality, they are backpeddling and revoking what was a pretty bad idea (50% off [nearly] anything?? during boxing week prices?!).

    IMO they would have been better off not canceling the deal and just sucking it up til Dec 31st..they will probably lose even more money with loss of customers vs. coupon use/overuse.

  199. Jean says:

    New change to 50% promo. I could not use mine on a regular price item since my coupon was on my smartphone, even though it states on the coupon to show before purchase with your smartphone. Printed coupon ONLY!!! I did not buy anything.

  200. PWest says:

    I work in retail and I have to say that one person on here that found a competing store to ACCEPT this coupon as well as price match has found THE SMARTEST retailer EVER.

    It’s too bad I don’t own my store, because being accross the street from a Zellers (which I haven’t been in in over 10 years, save when they had a steal of a deal on Gain detergent two summers ago, only once you got in the store it was a ‘typo’! That was a ‘you should have known better, stupid!’ moment) and we could do a KILLING if we did that. Too bad it’s all about how much the dealer paid for the item that decides just how much he can compete. He doesn’t get reimbursed by the corp. if he goes rogue on a sale. It’s such a smart idea though!

    I am honestly SHOCKED that ANYONE got 50% off of any sale items in the first place! You experienced a Zellers miracle folks, you should have turned around and bought a lottery ticket too!

    I printed it off, but then said to myself, are you going to drive 30 mins to a town so busy during the holiday season that you want to just pull over and cry (I hate how people drive when they think that their getting there faster is worth more than my safety or anybody else’s, and this town is an ‘everybody turn only on the yellow light because I’m more important than you!’ kind of town) for something that probaby won’t be honoured anyway. Turns out any assumptions (bad) you can have about Zellers are true.

    I have been in many a Target, and never left unhappy. When they decide to put stuff on clearance it is off the hook. Got probably 10 years worth of underwear, $3 for a pack of 8… I mean come on! I couldn’t pass that up even if for some unexplained reason my a$$ exploded in size and never went back.

    Since many people have stated that Target doesn’t plan on keeping on Zellers staff (sorry those few good ones out there) and that they are very keen to know how we feel on this situation since it’s their hyde getting a little singed here by association, I am fairly certain they will open up with a huge ‘We’re Different! We’re Better! Here’s a Huge Sale!’ to appease us all.

    To those who are afraid for their jobs at other HBC stores; don’t worry, there will always be ladies out there who think that shopping at the Bay and Home Outfitters are huge status symbols and they should keep you in business. I personally go to Homesense and Winners, shopping mainly the clearance sections, because it’s the same junk for a lot less. If I wanted someone to rape my wallet for a lamp I’d just go to the Brick or Leon’s and let them make me feel like at least they earned it. Junk is junk these days, it all breaks, why pay more for it? Again, I work in retail, I know.

    Guys don’t paint Target with the same stinky brush as Zeller’s, they inherited the problem and only saw one way of fixing it; CLOSE ‘EM DOWN! I think they made the only available decision.

    It is ABSOLTELY NOT Target’s policies that have caused all of this ROBBI, this has been going on for YEARS. Perhaps they are giving you grief now simply because they are losing their jobs and are being told that they have to START actually following the RULES. I gave up on the points and shopping there long ago though, it’s all a big joke. But Target has their own system, the setting up of which may be interfereing with your points system.

    Wouldn’t go into a Zellers if they paid me. Good Riddance!

    BTW, SANDRA B and others, we’re aware that you work there, please save your breath/typing. It’s not a mistake if you revoke the merits of the coupon and change the details and it’s also not a mistake if marketing doesn’t send out a correction notice at the start of the coupon, since they sit on these things for up to 8 months and the store is notified about the upcoming promotion at least 2 months in advance. It was an overuse/abuse/too popular issue, and YOUR company didn’t have the balls to admit that they didn’t expect it to be SO popular and don’t want to honour it anymore.

    Again, I work in retail, you RUN OUT of coupons or free gifts with purchase, THAT is a corporate mistake/miscalculation, but coupons printed or designed 8 months in advance should be honored like they were intended to be, more or less like any coupon or voucher should be, like gospel; regardless of anyone’s miscalculations on usage or abuse.

    How would you feel if Canadian Tire put out a 15 Times the CDN TR Money and then said sorry, we decided that it’s a mistake because we’d loose too much money. Same thing. It got sent out, so it HAS to be honored. As far as I am concerned if you had one that you printed on the 26th and you brought it in, they should honor it, because it isn’t up anymore so you HAD to have printed it when it WAS up, regardless of what day. THAT would be good customer service, but they don’t know what that is. THAT would also be common sense but lets just say you have to be pretty uncommon to have that anymore in the first place.

    And to those who say “Get Over It’, listen, people are already sick of nearly everything they buy being a piece of crap, and to add to that the prices of said crap keep going up and the quality down, so when people get a chance to pay what it is actually worth (50% or more off) but then get told ‘sorry, we changed our mind, only it’s your fault not ours, you must be stupid or something’ we’re going to get upset. It doesn’t upset you? Well good for you, you go enjoy that ‘beautiful’ blissfully rich and/or ignorant life of yours and leave us to it, and since you’re so much better than us and so not chuffed with anything, and your so forgiving of people who blatantly lie to you to your face, let me be the first to tell you that you belong here on this site, and that everybody most certainly is listening to what you have to say.

  201. Joel says:

    We had 2 coupons. I used one on a fileing cabinet and my girlfriend used the other on a large cold-fx. No problem at all

  202. trombonebabe says:

    Talk about a PR nightmare. I sent them a tweet today, but no response. With all of the chatter going on about this, they really need to do something to make these unhappy people return to their store!

  203. a0n0n0e says:

    Terrible. My experience of Zellers employees has been awful. Especially in the last few months. They are either extremely rude or have no idea how to do their job. Extremely frustrating.

  204. minimusiclover says:

    I am also disappointed with zellers and agree with lots of the things everyone has been commenting about here. But, I suppose we’ll be seeing some better deals later on when they start closing down.

    Anyone tried price matching and then using the coupon?

  205. Amber Langereis says:

    I was lucky enough to use my coupon before the changes! I got a cutlery set reg. 129.00 with 50% off on sale. After my coupon, I paid $31.50. Cant beat that! My hubby got a picture reg. $44.97 for around $16.00. Though I am in compete agreeance with all of you … they are so unorganized and unproffesional at this store!

  206. hibaxox says:

    To piss em off for bad treatment i printed off 20 coupons for friends n family…. i used 6 coupons for myself today and got an abrocket for $60, 2 boxes of diapers (112 size 5 huggies) for $18 (darn…i should have used my diaper coupons too…!), pledge swiffer type thing for $8, bounce 120 dryer sheets for $5.50. These are all of the prices with 50% off, was at the erin mills branch….i went to different tills in the store. Now i will go tommorow for rice, oil and other essentials…i say screw em.

  207. mandy says:

    “It is only Zellers by name now. It is now the policies and procedures of Target Corporation that are driving all this confusion and anger.”

    You have no idea what you are talking about, quit posting that nonsense. target has NOTHING to do with zellers, never has, never will. they bought the leases tehy will take over in 2013, nothing more

  208. Richard Y. says:

    The chain and all of its stores hold the right not to accept an in-store coupon. Its you’re own fault for not being an informed shopper to make the 5 minute phone call before your hour long drive.

    And go right ahead, one less shopper will make no difference to a chain which has already been sold, and shot in the foot by its mother company. Zellers was Canada’s largest retailer and because Canadians have become cheap and fickle, American monster stores like Walmart and Target come in and kill even more Canadian made businesses.

  209. hibaxox says:

    oh and sally, this blog is way more powerful than u think…so dont post their ‘special offers’ here as it will only bring them more customers….i only heard of the deal thru smartcanucks, and wanted to honestly use the coupon, but then they had to go back on their word, and mistreated so many of us so badly…i was like ENOUGH! I will mis-use it now….

  210. Orual says:

    Absolutly right, Target didn’t buy Zellers, it just bought out some of the leases (the rent on that location)… Just like Walmart didn’t buy Zellers, just leases (our local Zellers will be a walmart when this is all over). Many Zellers stores have some pretty prime locations, and big square footage and have been where they are forever. It is my belief that the chain has only survived so long because it is the only discount department store that is super easy to acess by bus and foot. Some of those locations are hard to get your store into. A great move to save some money before those leases are up. If you read up about Targets shopping philosophy, they really want to be in these types of locations in Canada, not out in the burbs. They want to be acessable to those who have less mobility, give jobs to those who can’t drive to the skirts for work, ect. That is why they are moving into old Zellers locations.

    I have never been a big Zellers fan, but will buy baby clothing there when it’s a really good price…. They are always messy, dirty, understaffed, disorganized and understocked. This coupon didn’t even appeal to me.

  211. Jenn says:

    No surprise there. Never did like Zellers. Had a bad experience with them once, the manager was horrible. Complained to head office, no response whatsoever. As time passed, someone we know got a job as a manager there, he said that customer service is not a proirity with them, not even in their vocabulary (his words, not mine).

    Haven’t attempt to use the coupon yet. Went to two locations today just to see what we can use it for. One location did have the notice re the coupon only valid with regular priced items posted near the cash registers. The other locations almost seems to have almost everything on sale, maybe a tactic??? Whatever the case, the store can and have the right to make a “correction” to their sale; however, they cannot/should not say the sale is no longer valid.

    Good luck with your complain because i don’t think it will get you anywhere. I don’t think they even care or think they even need to care since they will be closing their doors soon. Wonder why, eh.

  212. Sandra5 says:

    Isn’t this the same situation as bait and switch? OK, it’s not the same exact legal definition, but I’m sick and tired of stores that lure me to shop on their premises with no intention of honoring the coupons they have explicitly sent me.
    Has anyone tried contacting the Competition Bureau and filing a complaint about this?
    The gist of bait and switch is that “retailers can unfairly lure consumers into their stores, thereby taking business away from honest retailers.” Bait and switch is anti-competition and therefore illegal.
    “If you believe that someone has in some way contravened any of the legislation enforced and administered by the Competition Bureau and you want to complain, you can telephone, fax, e-mail or write the Bureau at the numbers listed at the end of this publication.”
    The Competition Bureau can be found at:
    http://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/eng/00258.html

  213. angelak says:

    i was at the zellers at conestoga mall in waterloo and i asked them if i could use that facebook coupon, they said ‘ofcourse we accept it!why wouldn’t we?!’
    strange how zellers vary from store to store

  214. Stacey says:

    I kind of have to agree with Troy on this one. I think that people who are going through the check out 20 (or 3, 4, 5+) times are abusing the system, especially those people who are using it to buy multiple big ticket items. I think it was that abuse that forced them to change the offer. The coupon says one per customer (not one per customer, per visit/per check out, etc. Just because there is no way for them to police that and you can easily get away with it doesn’t mean that it’s not abusing the offer. And you can say you’re just being a good bargain shopper all you want…you might be getting a bargain, but you ARE abusing the offer. If there were a plate of free cookies at the entrance and it said one per customer and you noticed someone coming back every 5 minutes to get another cookie or going to different entrances to get cookies, you wouldn’t say they were a smart, you’d say they were greedy.

    Now, was it wise for Zellers to release this coupon on a week when almost everything in their store is on sale, and without any type of barcode or anything to police it? Not at all. Is it cool that they changed the wording half way through the offer? Not really (I’m as disappointed as the next guy who can’t get half off ONE already half off item). I do feel bad for those who printed the coupon before they changed it, drive out of their way planning to buy something that was on sale, and then get there to find out the offer has been changed. However, I can’t really blame them. Maybe someone (foolishly) thought people would be more ethical given that it’s holiday time.

    I went to Zellers today knowing full well that I couldn’t use the coupon with sale priced items, saw the signs all over confirming that fact, and bought a couple items that were on sale, as well as a regular priced item on which I used the coupon. I had no problem with the cashier. She even gave me a bag when I decided that I did indeed need one (I forgot it was raining and was just going to carry my stuff out)…without charging me the silly nickle. I’ve never had any problems with Zellers, although it’s not a store I visit on a regular basis.

  215. Moi says:

    Zellers/Target head office should just SWALLOW IT.
    Admit an error and let the original coupon REIGN
    I read that link someone put up……..
    The reported asked a simple question and the lady from head office took over and hour ‘to get back to her’….LAME idiotic Head Office Corps..!!!

    And to those that say we are all whinnnnnnnning
    P-off…..a lot of us love deals and COUPONS especially because we can’t afford FULL price. And I for one, appreciate SMART CANUCKS:)

  216. Cynthia says:

    I’m another who will no longer shop at Zellers. I went shopping, coupon in hand, only to run into the notice on the door saying they had “revoked” the 50%-off-sale-items part of their coupon — funny, I thought to myself, I remember the marketing guys on their facebook page commenting that we could use these coupons for sale items. Bait and switch???… sure seems so, especially when everything on the store is now on sale so the coupon was rendered almost useless. I looked around the store to see if I could find anything I needed that wasn’t on sale, and finally found a box of Splenda packets that were still marked at the regular price on the shelf. But, after I lined up and the cashier scanned the box, it was now strangely 50 cents off — “sorry”, she said, “we can’t honour your coupon as this is a sale item” What a joke. Shame on you, Zellers.

  217. samantha says:

    and why do people keep calling zellers a canadian company…HBC was sold years go to an american businessman…

    wikipedia:

    Since 2006, the HBC has been led by an American and is now American owned.

  218. Jo says:

    I was lucky. I used the coupon before the change and got a Kitchenaid mixer for 107.00 taxed up. It was reg 299.00 boxing day sale 189.00 then I used the 50 %. Huge score.

    Then I looked on Kijiji and noticed a lot of the same one “new in the box” for 250.00 etc. Reading forums told me most Zellers were sold out of them. People hoarded them to sell.

    Only takes a few to make it bad for everyone.

    However I think Zellers is in the wrong here, I also don’t think they care at this point.
    Zellers in my town is a nightmare, never the right price at the cashier, messy and rude.

    But I got a Kitchaide mixer. So who am I to complain 😉

  219. Steve says:

    I had no problem using the coupon. Almost everything I found was on sale. I was after an expensive toy, but found none of the variety on the shelves, very curiously – almost as if they removed the item so you couldn’t get the huge discount. Nonetheless, I found a good quality shovel I wanted and needed that was not on sale and saved 50% at the cash, a savings of $16.50. I’m going to use another print of the coupon to purchase something on Saturday, hopefully an even better savings.

  220. Marc says:

    Please don’t take it out on their employees, they are hardworking employees not making a bundle but are stuck in this terrible position. I feel real bad for them and you can see it in their eyes. Some are rude but that is a small percentage. Imagine if you had to work there and put up with endless people fed up with this fiasco. Happy New Year everyone, and remember tomorrow and everyday to treat everyone like you would like to be treated. I have been at zellers everyday this week, even tonight (friday) to get a super deal on a BBQ and the very young guy working and the ethnic older women in that department were very helpfull.

  221. GMUET says:

    My two cents is, companies can change the rules of their coupons anytime after they were published providing there is a retraction or announcement of the change. However, it sounds like their own staff is not very clear of the rules and just plain refuse to accept the coupon even for regular price items; that is wrong.

    Companies exist to make money and sales are there to encourage increase on sales; companies are not going to give discount if the discount is going to put them in the reds. In other words, they are probably still making money after the discount. So as a customer, why should we paid full price for anything?

  222. Cheapnik says:

    I made a vow to myself last year that I would not spend one more cent in Zellers (even if it meant getting an item for free with coupon) due to crappy customer service, dirty stores and similar experiences to yours. There is a reason they are going out of business. I am sorry for your experience but there are a bunch better stores out there with good customer service.

  223. Cndguy says:

    Had the coupon, debated about using it. After reading numerous posts online added to past experiences at our local Zellers, decided to throw my printed coupon out!

    There is a reason I avoid Zellers.

  224. Kelly says:

    The fact that people are getting so worked up about this is unbelievable! Is this real life !? Come on! This just says so much about our materialistic, greedy, ungrateful, “it’s all about me and the customer is always right and I can be as rude as I want” society !!
    North America needs a HUGE wake up call…try deeling with real world problems !!! NOT coupon problem. This is sad and funny at the same time but I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry :/

  225. dizzyb says:

    Stacey, I agree completely.

  226. DianneS says:

    Zellers are amateurs when it comes to marketing. Because I live close to the U.S. border, I have a Macy’s credit card. They constantly have fantastic promos. However, they pay for the postage to mail bar-coded coupons to their customers! It eliminates abuse and it rewards their account holders for their patronage/loyalty. As one London Drugs manager said to me, companies just create problems for themselves when they try cheap out and slap coupons up on the internet.

  227. Jen says:

    Ok, I went to Zellers again yesterday. Here’s the scoop: it ends today but they are TOTALLY honouring the coupons, it’s just that it’s only for regularly priced merchandise. Which suited me just fine. So no worries, go ahead and use your coupons. They’ll take them.

  228. Jen says:

    @Kelly – ITA.

    And honestly? I’m GRATEFUL for the coupon. It made buying a few things that I needed quite a bit easier at this time of year when I’m usually strapped for cash. So I say, thank you, Zellers.

  229. jojo says:

    they should have thought this cpn through before they released it and not backtracked later. it was a chance for them to redeem themselves for their poor customer service. while waiting in line yesterday there was a price check on an item ahead of me. after a 10 minute wait no one responded. the customer decided not to get that item. so a sale lost. next customer, same situation. this customer opted not to get the item too after a lengthy wait. i noticed the other line was held up by a price check too. this is pretty common at zellers.

  230. Kim says:

    It’s a shame Zellers is gaining such a bad reputation. I’ve never much liked Zellers personally. The store here is dirty, the prices aren’t that great, and I’ve never been impressed with their customer service. Walmart, Target and Canadian Tire are where I prefer to shop.

  231. Mandy says:

    I stopped shopping at Zellers years ago and I’m not surprised that target is taking them over. This thread has made me not want to shop at any hbc store.

  232. pink_panda says:

    Zellers is such a horrible place to shop. everytime i go there 9/10 items will be charged at full price when it’s suppose to be on sale. PLUS THEY NEVER CHANGE THE PRICE TAG WHEN THE ITEM IS ON SALE.

    if the item is not priced correctly, then customer will assume it’s not on sale and won’t buy it.

    and Zellers wonder why they’re not making money…geez…

  233. Dim Dim Shiu says:

    I went to zellers 2 days ago to use those coupon. I got the same reaction from the cashier, she told me these coupons ( i have printed out 6 of them) couldnt be used on the discounted item…..So i had to end up getting regular price items. it was really disappointing…The cashier also told me it was 1 coupon per person only(She didnt want to do different transactions).So I had to line up couple times in order to get the 50% off. This is so stupid….

  234. Ashlynn says:

    I’ll still shop at Zellers if they keep on having good deals. I do think this is a PR screw-up but few of us will resist good prices in the future even if you don’t like the retailer. Plus, many people are saying that they’ll never shop at Zellers again. I think that some stores recognize that are some customers that are just to expensive to maintain and losing their business isn’t such a bad thing (I’ve worked in customer service and seen the gall some customers have as well as the fancy maneuvers employed to “get a deal”). Some customers jump on an opportunity for a mistake or a customer service interaction that doesn’t go there way as leverage to get something out of it. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had some serious issues with Zellers in the past (they once delivered the bed belonging to someone else instead of the one we ordered, the other person’s bed was far more expensive, you’d think that we’d be thanked for trying to let them know but it became a hassle for us). But stores make mistakes and I don’t think that loud people who are professional complainers should get any special treatment and I hope Zellers does not cow-tow and change its policy again to accommodate these people. This was a mistake, let it go, no one has died.

  235. Shanna says:

    I use to always shop at Zellers as it was in the mall beside the food court (last stop on the way out) this changed in the last few years as I had my second child and got sick of the maze of pallets that seemed to appear one night and never get put away(seriously I bet the floor is a different colour under there)So I went last week when I was home for the holidays figured with it winding down it should be cleaner and maybe some good deals(and I was looking for a monster high doll for my daughter that I can’t find anywhere) well the pallets are still there what a dive! I also already dont shop at the Bay because the one in Medicine Hat has movement lights in some of their departments and the lights turned down everywhere else CREAPY!!!

  236. Re: Kelly says:

    @Kelly Sorry you have the money, but this is the time when other people are low on money. You should cry for being so critical on people who want to save money because we’re all screwed over by the economy right now!

    Customers gave zellers a chance and they decided they to f* it up. IF Target ever (highly doubt it) releases a 50% off coupon, I’m certain they won’t mess up like zellers.

  237. arghh says:

    If people are printing out numerous copies of the coupon and using them of course Zellers will have to revoke their offer on the sale priced items. They could have revoked the entire offer but they didn’t, just changed it….After reading this blog maybe people should print out a copy of the facebook page where it says the coupon is still valid and take it with you to the store? And no this isn’t a bait&wswitch fraud situation.

    It drives me nuts that people are on here complaining that the cashier wouldn’t let them use 6 printed copies….You’re comming fraud with the coupon – you’re meant to use one!

  238. Clarence says:

    Good riddance, Zellers. Sad that American companies have to come in to Canada to provide a proper shopping experience.

  239. John says:

    Was just at the Chinook Zellers in Calgary. They fail so hard it’s not even funny. Coupon stated one per customer, but because we were standing in line together they only let us use one coupon. Commented that I could let my wife go to another till and she said “no”.

    Also, they said the coupon can’t be used with sale items at this location as well. I didn’t even want to waste time to have the cashier read the “can be used with flyer deals” on the coupon, clearly written in large print.

    Zellers has always been a $hitty place to shop. Whenever I set foot in their stores I always felt like a tornado had blown through the place. Not to mention a ton of sleds fell off the top shelf right in front of me. What if it hit a kid? Lawsuit!

  240. jon says:

    This morning I used the 50% off coupon on a regular priced item and used a manufacturer’s coupon along with it. The clerk even phoned customer service to confirm that it could be done. Thank you Zeller’s great deal.

    HOWEVER – Half an hour later, i picked up my Mom and drove her to the same Zeller’s store to do the same with her 50% off coupon, a regular priced item and a manufacturer’s coupon. We went directly to customer service to complete the transaction and was told NO.

    I don’t mind the policies that stores have to set, it’s the inconsistency in implementing them that alters a companies reputation.

  241. hibaxox says:

    but Jon, y didnt u show them ure receipt? they would have HAD to honour the same price… ughh! zellers!!!

  242. L says:

    I have experience with customer service. I like Zellers but my advice to them Is: the customer is always right for the mere fact that the customer is your Bread and Butter. Without the customer you have no profit and without profit you have no business. It can take only 1 person to ruin the reputation of a company . A once big time company can easily be NO LONGER because of this.

    A company should always be on the side of the customer wanting them to be happy even if they don’t feel that they are right… they should always look to rectify the situation in some way to make the customer happy and to help the customer understand.

    Unhappy customers make for bad business. A company should be transparent and admit their mistakes be honest and NEVER BLAME their customers. There will always be people in everything that will take advantage of a situation and that will probably always happen but this should not be used to punish all of your customers, shame them or make them feel bad. It is up to the company to ensure that you keep in mind the pitfalls of some types of promotions.

    IN THE CASE OF THE COUPON (ZELLERs) YOU GAVE OUT: it seems you were aware of what you were doing but decided that when you discovered you were not making your profit margins you pulled the plug…This is ok if you are very careful what you are saying to your customer and find a way to make it up to all of the disappointed customers by giving them a bonus or incentive in some way with the kinds of rules and regulations that will safe guard both you and your customer and at the same time make your customers symatpthize with you and make them happy.

    A Company should at all cost NEVER go back on their WORD as it builds trust and if they have to..they need to find a way to help their customers understand and come up with a creative solution that will make the customer and the company happy.

    For customers that do not use their discretion when redeeming the same coupons printing them over and over and over again…well that may give you short term benefits but there are no benefits for the long term.

    Offering Coupons and discounts to customers is a great form of advertising, gaining new customers and making a profit on selling large volumes….the customers should not be made to feel bad for redeeming your offer nor should they take the blame or responsibility for a company’s mistakes, lack of profit or for a few bad apples that may take advantage of an offer or discount.

  243. janice says:

    Got 50 % off a kids picnic table ..thank you for posting

  244. Livi says:

    This is just ridiculous showing a little print out note telling people that they can’t use the coupon on sale items anymore is just bullshit. And this is basically false advertising, I hope that all of you will consider emailing them about their false advertising and their staff being rude

  245. Jenn says:

    Went back to Zellers today, wasn’t expecting much. However, we found a Star Wars Attack Shuttle for my son who’s a big fan, bought it for $42, reg $84. My husband bought another item reg. at $34 for $17. No hassle or questions from the cashiers. All went well.

  246. lisa says:

    Hey Clarence,Zellers IS and American company, has been for many years.

  247. Zellers Cashier says:

    I’m a cashier at Zellers and I completely understand both sides here.
    For one, 50% almost anything is an amazing deal and I’ve seen people buy big ticket items for dirt cheap. Great coupon. Great offer. Lo and behold, as my shifts carried on throughout the days I’ve noticed many customers come back multiple times visiting multiple tills all in the same day. It is clear that the coupon was not revoked due to “misprint” but rather abuse of usage.
    If everybody used the coupon as stated, “one per customer”, there would be no problems and the coupon probably would’ve remained as stated. And I completely agree with the error in the systems with sale prices not showing up but again please DO NOT take it out on the cashiers. We are not responsible for the prices that show up in the system, the most we can do is override them and we must validate and confirm that the item(s) is/are in fact on sale. We are not suggesting that you are lying or being fraudulent. I can understand customers frustration because wording is always confusing but we must ensure that the sales are indeed for the correct items and for the correct prices because it is often misread or misunderstood.

    Here are some personal and unofficial tips to help you as the customer and help us as cashiers:

    1. Do not bring something up that does not have a tag (we have to call the department and ask for the SKU number – that’s your time, my time and other customers time). If the tag is missing bring up another item (same make and model) that does have a tag. If that’s the last of that item, bring the same make and model in a different colour. If there is none, talk to the department associate and they will find one of similar make or similar price to bring up to the register. THEN PROCEED TO THE REGISTER.

    2. Sale priced items. Please ensure that you are reading the EXPIRATION DATE of the sale sign and ensure that it is the exact same item listed on the sale sign. A lot of the problems of sales not coming up are because of expired sale signs not being taken down (If it is expired, we WILL honour the sale price. Just bring us the sign so we know!) and incorrect items being brought up because of misread/misplaced sale signs. Before you go to the registers you can always use our various scanners in the store to check that they are ringing in correctly (this may seem tedious and much of a hassle but it WILL save you time as opposed to having it incorrectly rung up at the register). If it is incorrect, go back to the sale sign and make sure that it is correctly read, not expired, and if unsure take a picture of the sign with your cellphone. I would not advise bringing up the sign itself because other customers need to see those as well but if all else fails, do that as a last resort. THEN PROCEED TO THE REGISTER.

    3. Please stop taking out your frustrations onto the cashiers. We take a lot of heat from customers for things far beyond our control. We are not out to make your day a horrible day or con you into paying regular price for sale items. We’re earning minimum wage and we also get frustrated with the systems as well. We’re human just like you. I’m a couponer as well as a cashier, like some of my co-workers are, and we never treat our fellow couponers like thieves because we’ve been on both sides of the fence. I apologize for the customer service given at other stores but please understand that they’re probably rude because of how they are treated.

    With that being said I wish you all a Happy New Year.

  248. michelle says:

    I am soooo happy all those rude zellers staff wil soon lose their jobs

  249. kerry says:

    Like many coupons I print,for whatever reason they are never used,this one included.I do feel relieved I didn’t make the trip for nothing.

  250. ib says:

    I braved it yesterday with my 3 days old daughter, only to be told that it was not on sale items. I was so mad.

    I just wished the cashiers were all doing the same thing.
    The line I was in had a b*tchy cashier that would not let anything go through. She held up the line for 2 minutes because a customer would not say the word “cucumber”. On the other line, the cashier was letting anyone use as many coupons as they want all at once. One lady had 10 coupons at once.

    Guess which line I ended up on? No more Zellers. They really pissed a lot of people off. What a bitter note for a store to leave on.

  251. pro says:

    You guys are being to mean, zellers probably noticed people using more than one coupon, the same people probably printing out 100 coupons and going back and cheating them, so they go tired of the crap, how can you expect them to make any profit?, Why dont they JUST give it to you fOR FREE ….How do you expect them to stay in buisness like that?
    ITs people like some of you guys , the reason that our canadian buisnesses are going bankrupt,and handing us over to the americans
    Zellers has pretty good SALES and prices to begin with, you shouldn’t complain.

  252. pro says:

    I am soooo happy all those rude zellers staff wil soon lose their jobs

    – SOmeone said this–

    yes there are a few bad ones, But this statement is pretty nasty!

  253. pro says:

    Oh , and the people that even admitted to using more than 1 coupon, YOU ARE DOING SOMETHING ILLEGAL SO how DARE you Get angry or yell at them for not honouring your coupon!!

  254. MOJOO says:

    Zellers is a horribly run operation. It looks like this little fiasco has backfired on them big time. I too created a big stink in my local store. Good ridense, soon they will be gone. Show HBC what you think with your feet – boycott all HBC stores.

  255. Hen says:

    ib – it has been established for days its now regular priced items only, so why are you upset that YOU went into the store and they confirmed that for you…

    and i agree pro someone else said they would hit a manger over the head with a shovel… i guess this is a joke (?) but not very funny at all.

  256. Penny2673 says:

    To all those lovely people who are happy all the Zellers staff will lose their jobs. You should be ashamed of yourselves. We are just regular people trying to make a living and provide for our families. I’ve worked for Zellers for 20 years and, I’ve worked with some amazing people over the years. We try to do the best job we can with what we’re given. I think Target would be lucky if they hire some of the people I work with. They are some of the hardest working people I know.

    I can’t believe all this hate over a coupon???? Its one thing to attack a company’s policy, but its another to attack the people unlucky enough to have to enforce it. I don’t agree with Sears’ return policy but, I’m not going to attack the sales person who has to enforce that policy.

    I’m very hurt by this nasty thread.

  257. mandeebn says:

    I am shocked at some of these comments as well in this thread and quite honestly saddened for all involved as I can understand the frustrations of both sides but to quite literally take it out on the Zellers staff who are only trying to make a living for their families and a roof over their head is very disrespectful–it is not their fault that they work for a company who cannot honour their offers–please guys, show the world smart canuck’ers are not rude jerks but rather people who just want to share some deals!

    Please chin up, get past this and enjoy the new year!
    Zellers will soon be gone and I feel for the people who may find themselves unemployed—think about that before you take it out on them! Lord love a duck, lots of cashiers drive me crazy too but they are being scolded by upper management about these issues and only want to preserve their paychecks!
    Remember Linen n’ Things a while ago—that’s all I am going to say!

    Everyone enjoy your first day of 2012 and do something fun with your family!

  258. flamingteeth says:

    I went to the Zellers in Montreal, no problem at all to use the coupon. I think it really depends on the locations and cashiers, especially, in QC, I think most of the francophone cashiers, they are really “whatever”

  259. elza says:

    I went at Zellers yesterday here in Mississauga and bought big box of diapers and I was able to use this coupon.

  260. JoJos says:

    I think this will end my Zellers shopping…I printed my coupon the day it appeared on Facebook but wasn’t able to get to Zellers until Thursday…and of course I was so upset to find out I couldn’t use the coupon on an item I wanted to purchase. Yeesh I think almost everything was on SALE so what could the coupon be used for? It is obvious that people were abusing the coupon, i.e. using more than one per customer. If Zellers marketing honchos were thinking clearly, they would have required perhaps each customer to enter their email address and/or HBC Rewards # or something to make it not so easy for people to abuse. Of course there are people who have 4, 5, 6 or more email addresses but I think the majority of people are honest would just entered their one email address to get the coupon. Additionally, the coupons could have still been used on sale items, but put some exclusions on it, like not valid on luggage, major appliances, electronics, etc. Anyway I’m tired of being so disappointed with Zellers.

  261. Deb says:

    I was hoping to get a Tassiomo but that’s 50% off of $149. price so not a great deal. No deal on sale items or electronics with coupon but anything else was a go. I ended up getting half off a spring blouse at $24.99 reg. So that’s a savings I appreciated and I did get other clothing deals for 30, 40 & 50% off.Okay deals Zellers, thanks!

  262. Deb says:

    Shame on the ones glad that Zellers employees will lose their jobs. My daughter is losing her job ay Zellers and she is a hard worker. I know this because I worked with her on her job before Zellers. She also lost that job because the owner sold all the stores. Tough luck!

    P.S.

    When I used my 50% coupon the cashier was awesome and wanted me to get the best deal for my coupon.

  263. m. says:

    Are people forgetting when Chapters put out a $5 coupon a couple of years ago, with no minimum purchase, and pulled it after a couple of days, and you couldn’t use it at all? Stores reserve the right to cancel or change an offer. They have notices posted on their entrances. Sucks, but that’s how it works.

  264. sarah says:

    I experienced the same feeling as you described during your most recent visit to Zellers. I read the retraction was because of the overwhelming response. What did Zellers think the response was going to be?

  265. Sally says:

    m. ….

    chapters has put this $5 coupon out online every month for the past 6 months. I do not know what you are speaking of?

  266. Jenn says:

    It’s sad how some of you wishes bad on others. It’s never alright. It’s not the employees fault. It’s a sad thing to lose your job or have the potential hanging over your head. My husband, myself and many friends have went thru that, it’s not a good thing, not anything you would like to wish on anyone.

    All the best to all of you, incl. Zellers employees.

  267. Mary Lumsden says:

    I agree-my son got a sale item but we could not-had to go the first morn-their mistake-they will probebly be bought out soon-I do not shop there much any more-no deals

  268. Z.kay says:

    I used my coupon the second day that it was out and was able to get my deal and was so happy with it that I shared the coupon with friends. I hope they were able to use it as well!

  269. Lynda says:

    i’m sure the ones who which the employee’s loose their job are the one who profit of the error and the inexperinemt of some employee’s. Leave them alone and stop profiting of the store you shop in.

  270. Lynda says:

    I’m sorry but that’t what I think.

  271. nick says:

    Give up on Zellers. The only good thing is target will absorb some and wipe out the rest of that chain. Marketplace had a show on the worst stores in Canada for customer service. Zellers lost–they are the worst, Canadian tire was second worst. Both of these companies would not talk at all to marketplace and only CTC even bothered to offer compensation for the shopper involved. Zellers in a letter would not compensate the customer involved(staffer from Marketplace and when she opened the coffee brewer she bought found it was dirty, broken and well used instead of new. Zeller swould give her a gift card but would not return the money even thogh they knew Marketplace was involved.

  272. Disgrunt says:

    I worked in two different Zellers stores from 1991 to 1997 and have always had fairly strong opinions on why the chain would fail. In the early days of my employment I was working in a very recently converted former Towers store. Immediately I was thrust into an environment full of grumpy employees who were taken over as well, who had their wages frozen indefinitely as the pay scales of Zellers were less generous of those at Towers. It is quite possible that some of these folks were just plain overpaid to begin with, and maybe that’s what killed the Towers chain amongst many other things. Anyways, Zellers did not seem to bring any sense of excitement to anyone. Many felt they were a small fish being gobbled up by a whale. I once overheard a former Towers assistant store manager say that the takeover was handled badly, with no regard for the employees. Surprise surprise. The way Zellers upper management took care of business became more and more apparent as I continued in my employment there.
    At first I was hired as a cashier. Before long a full-time position opened up in the Housewares department of the store. I got the position and found myself inheriting a complete disaster. Boxes had been opened, were torn and tattered, merchandise was strewn across the floors, display models were incomplete, missing, or existed for items no longer sold, and items were not where they should have been on the shelves. At first I was shocked, but as time wore on, I realized that I was only expected to have things picked up off the floor and thrown back on the shelf each night, just so that the cleaners could mop the floors. This was a far cry from my previous job in a grocery store where we could not leave the store until everything looked good. This included “facing” items on the shelves- retail lingo for bringing things to the front so that merchandise was accessible and made the shelf look full even if it wasn’t. At Zellers the only time this practice was followed was in the days prior to what we used to call “Royal Visits” when managers above the district manager level would visit. I found this somewhat puzzling. Why didn’t these people leave the visits unannounced and show up dressed like regular joes, and see what the front lines, the stores, actually looked like on a normal basis? These guys, and yes, they were ALL men at the time, mostly grey haired tall men in impeccable suits, wanted everyone employed at the store to make a huge fuss over them.

    The sad part about these visits was the way the store manager and department managers were treated. They were essentially given no salary budget, yet were expected to have things looking spic and span at all times. Sometimes the upper management guys would pull a power trip and force a store manager to clean up a department himself while his shocked employees looked on. It was a real power trip for these bullies as they threw their weight around.

    Oddly enough, I was encouraged to apply for the store management program, and being a high-school educated kid with nothing to lose, I took them up on the offer. In late 1993 I started my first assignment in another store, and for some time was pleased to be amongst employees that seemed more positive. I was told almost immediately that the store I was now working in had not seen the salary cuts of the previous store, but that they were coming, and come they did. Almost overnight the location went from being a decent place, to the same shithole as the first store. Somehow they thought that less employees would save them enough money to make the store more profitable. In the ensuing year I learned many things about how the company operated, and here is a list of “beefs”:
    – Aisles cluttered with junky unnappealing items that were old, tattered or had been returned. We were told NOT to reduce these items to clear. The end result is that they never sold and wasted space. The stationery department was one of the worst examples.
    – Sale items were seemingly never in stock. In fact, the store was in stock, but the merchandise was on a pallett deep in the stockroom where no one could get it. The stockroom was tiny, so tiny, in fact, that in stuffing it with more palletts, the aisles between the rows of palletts were eliminated. Essentially we had a block of palletts about 8 across and 10 deep, the only way anyone would find the sale merchandise would be if they hauled each pallett out and stuck it in the aisles of the store. This, of course, was forbidden.
    – Outdated computerized inventory system. I’m not sure if it was replaced, but up to 1997 the PIMS system was in place. This system, developed in the 70’s, was supposed to automatically re-order items as they got low. Someone had the great idea of building a little caveat into the system. If the number of items went into a negative, the item would not be re-ordered and a problem would be flagged. Somehow this would keep happening on stuff like sewing items, and since the store didn’t have anyone investigating the problem items, entire aisles were full of empty shelves and pegs. Customers would come back time and time again asking when we would get the items. We essentially looked like idiots when we told them we didn’t know.
    – Poor quality merchandise. The worst by far was the shit ass Permatech/Eurotech line of small appliances. Sure they were cheaply priced, but even for $10 I would expect a toaster to work when I plugged it in. We saw the same garbage get returned over and over for years, but they kept selling the junk.
    – Credit. These fuckers were making 30% of their profit on credit. You know, the kind of profit that requires people to be slow on their payments so they can reap huge interest charges. Cashiers were hounded to push this on everyone, to the point that they were giving long speils to customers like a Jehovas Witness does at your front door if you don’t slam it on them first. Even worse, Zellers willfully declined to use debit machines in their stores for fear that people would stop using thier credit cards. The finally made the switch sometime after 1997, likely due to customers leaving merchandise at the register and leaving in a huff, vowing to never shop at Zellers again.
    – Lack of staff. Did you know that in the 1960’s, American railroad companies tried to save money by deferring maintenance projects? The result was bad track with slow trains, and a mess that ended up costing a fortune to fix, unless of course, they went bankrupt first as customers turned to trucks. Well, Zellers somehow though they could run stores without those pesky employees gobbling up their profits. A prime example of this was how they would let one employee be in charge of helping customers in a 30,000 square foot area on a Sunday afternoon. Why did this happen? Most times there was no one to cover lunches. Other staff had to abandon ship at a seconds notice to open another cash register to reduce exorbitantly long lineups. Cashiers were getting lunch breaks at 2 and 3 in the afternoon “because it was just too busy”. They were made to feel that they were part of some sort of important struggle to help their comrades survive or something. Customers in the meanwhile were looking for help in the aisles, and nobody was there to give it. Once I was working cash in such a situation. An item didn’t scan or had a problem (as was often the case) and the customer asked “why don’t you call the Hardware department?”. My response: “That’s because I AM the hardware department, and for that matter, toys, housewares and linens”.
    – Cheesy gimmicks. Zellers was a firm beleiver in this weird sort of 1950’s corny style of advertising and promotions. Instead of trying to sell cool stuff, they resorted to silly balloon drops, flashy flyers, Zeddy, and good old “Zellers Radio”. What was Zellers Radio, you ask? A stupid tape message that would play every 10 minutes that usually began with “Shhhhhaaaappers!!”. The elevator music they played was no better. The grocery store I worked at previously played some classic pop music from the 70’s and 80’s. Still a bit lame, but not as bad as muzak. It seemed they did not want to deviate from the practice of appealing to the senior citizen crowd. The TV ads weren’t any better. For the longest time they were a televised version of the weekly flyer. Later on they got some Hillary Duff clothes in their stores and managed to get some decent ads going. This did not last, and an ad campaign was launched with purported Zellers employees saying “we’re getting better and better”. Wow. Talk about admitting you suck. It’s like they were begging people to give them a second chance, and forgive them for the shit service they gave them before.
    – Ridiculous policies for shoppers. Come on, if someone isn’t satisfied, give them their money back. Sure there is always some fucker trying to rip you off, but why treat everyone like criminals? People usually got store credits after getting the runaround and waiting in long lineups. Supervisors would tell their employees to enforce these policies until someon really lost it. What then? Give the customer what they wanted and make the employee look like a complete asshole in front of them. Seems these little Hitlers didn’t have the balls to enforce these policies themselves.
    – Clueless upper management. It seems that they only way these morons knew how to react was to fire people. It seemed like management shuffles were happening constantly as someone got the boot for underperforming. And do you know who didn’t get fired? Guys like the Regional Director of Stores who showed up on the front lines during a “Royal Visit” and yelled at people. Such a nice human being.
    – Panic at the sight of Walmart, but reacting like a deer in the headlights. Instead of trying to figure out what makes Walmart a generally better place to shop, Zellers instead tried to undercut them on many items, and lost an arm and a leg in doing so. Walmart isn’t just about price. It was also about the “shopping experience” that Zellers never seemed to be able to figure out. It seems the cheaper “solution” to the Walmart question was usually taken. Why make fundamental changes to your stores when you can authorize a 10% cut in prices on ass-wipe?
    – Morning meetings. The dreaded daily “pep talk” was nothing more than an attempt into performing better OR ELSE. What was discussed? The weeks sales, which didn’t really register in most people’s minds, and a couple of minutes of badgering employees to get more credit card customers, and just generally work harder if sales were supposed to get better. One time our store manager decided to go off on a rant about employee morale and how the employees had only themselves to blame for it. In his mind the skeleton crew often appointed to run the place, should all work twice as hard to acheive the results of double the people. He couldn’t seem to understand why people were not motivated to shed blood, sweat and tears at minimum wage.
    I left the company fifteen years ago. I had always wondered if things had improved after I left, and after reading other people’s blogs posted since the announcement that Target was acquiring Zellers leases, it was obvious they had barely changed at all. It was eerie to read what employees were saying about the company as it was so familiar.
    Shame on you Zellers, and good riddance. It’s sad that the employees of the companies are the ones to suffer, while the upper management folks will all leave with a huge chunk of change. Pathetic.

  273. Kate says:

    Not to mention, everything Zellers carries is old. Like I went to the makeup section and all the makeup they still have has been discontinued two years ago.. And also it’s not even on sale, they are a complete rip off and the customer service is terrible. Not shopping there every again and I am glad Target will be taking over soon.


















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