Retail store hours...when is closed really closed?

[PollyannaMom]

There's a restaurant in our town..nothing fancy, pretty much a dive with good sandwiches and burgers. Their "closing" is so fluid that you never know when they are going to be there. They have 9pm posted on their web site, but we've called for a take out order at 7 and been told "we're already cleaning the grill, sorry". Moral of the story, they did that to so many potential customers that people stopped going there at any hour...a year later they were out of business. If you want to survive you better be open to provide the service you are selling. Oh, and then they complained how they just "couldn't make enough money to stay open"...Duh!

We have an "inconsistent hours" place like this too, but they're very upfront about it - to the point that's almost a gimmick. They put funny signs out on the sidewalk sign when they're open or closed, and people just sort of embrace the spontaneity. They make great BBQ!

To the OP, though, I would have been a little annoyed at the jewelry store, and really annoyed at the FedEx place. If they want to compete with the Post Office, I think they should have the same standards with their hours!

 

[lsyorke]

We have an "inconsistent hours" place like this too, but they're very upfront about it - to the point that's almost a gimmick. They put funny signs out on the sidewalk sign when they're open or closed, and people just sort of embrace the spontaneity. They make great BBQ!

Nope, these guys weren't upfront at all, and truly had nothing special that would make people put up with the inconsistent hours.

 

[CF'er]

I was a bad customer... one Sunday night one of my children started working on a school project that was due the next day. As said child was printing the printer ran out of ink. Being the enabling mother that I am I raced to the local Office Max. The employee was standing at the locked door letting the last of the customers out. As I am standing there I can see exactly what I need. I begged the person to let me in, that I would be out in 2 minutes etc. They let me in and I was able to grab the ink, inconvenience the employees and further enable my still last minute child.

 

[Julylady]

When I was in college I worked two nights a week at a local Laundromat. It closed at 10pm. I always figured that if someone started their laundry at 9:55, I just had to stay until they were finished. I would just clean around them and walk out with them. I always liked leaving with someone else so that I wasn't walking to my lone car in a dark parking lot.

One night, one of the regular customers said she liked coming on the nights I worked because the other worker wouldn't let her start her laundry after 8:30pm and insisted that she had to be finished by 10pm. I was surprised and asked our boss about it. She said I was correct and that she wondered how the other person was always able to leave right at 10pm on the dot (we had a timeclock). Next thing I knew the other person was let go. I ran into her a few weeks later and found out she blamed me for getting fired. She said that her boyfriend picked her up after her shifts each night and that he had to have a set time....she had to leave at 10pm. I told her that was something she should have cleared with the owner.

My point is that the procedure for this needs to be established by the owners. I don't think there is a right or wrong, I just hope they are consistent.

 

[tvguy]

I was a bad customer... one Sunday night one of my children started working on a school project that was due the next day. As said child was printing the printer ran out of ink. Being the enabling mother that I am I raced to the local Office Max. The employee was standing at the locked door letting the last of the customers out. As I am standing there I can see exactly what I need. I begged the person to let me in, that I would be out in 2 minutes etc. They let me in and I was able to grab the ink, inconvenience the employees and further enable my still last minute child.

Years ago Albertson's Grocery stores decided to keep some of their stores open 24 hours, and I happened to go to one at the old closing time on the first night they were open 24 hours. There was a clerk standing by the automatic door making sure nobody came in when customers were leaving. Word had apparently not trickled down to this guy. He told me they were closed for the night, and I asked how can a store that is open 24 hours can close....pointing to the huge "NOW OPEN 24 HOURS" sign in the window. He yelled at his boss "this guy thinks we are open 24 hours" to which the boss replied "we are".
I found out later that the move didn't impact any of the clerks, so there really wasn't a reason for them to be told. They had trained some of the stockers who were in the store overnight anyway to check. They did that for years, didn't cost them anything more and they generated more sales.

 

[jen0610]

I use to work at a large corporation that did not frown upon over time, as long as it was justified.

We worked 8 to 4:30. I can't tell you the number of people that I worked with, that come 4 o'clock, they stopped placing calls or answering calls. They always gave me a bunch of crap for still answering my phone at 4:28 or sending an e-mail at 4:25. I worked until 4:30 or beyond, then I would shut things down and call it a night. Yes, there were times when I actually left after 5, but I always made my goals plus extra and got my bonuses.

My portfolio percentages where the best, not only in my division, but over both areas of the credit and collection division. That is why I got the raises I got and had the accounts that I did. I got the extra benefits, cause I put in the extra work.

 

[Rhombus]

A few weeks ago, I went to a supermarket about 9pm. Closing hour is 10pm. While at the deli about 915pm, another customer wanted some specific meat sliced, but the clerk said she had already put that one away for the night. Customer says, "I don't care, go back, get it, and slice me a half pound of it." Clerk again says that it has already been put away. Customer points to the sign right on the counter indicating deli is open until 10pm. Clerk sighs and rolls her eyes. With that, the customer must have stormed off to the service counter to complain, because a few minutes later customer comes back with a manager who orders deli clerk to comply with the customer's request. "We serve ALL items at ALL open hours."

I'm on this customer's side. If the sign says the deli is open until 10pm, then I would expect everything to be available until then. OK, the clerks can start cleaning, wrapping, putting things away before closing, but if a customer requests it, you comply.

I was hoping one of MY requested deli items was already "wrapped up for the night," but, alas, everything I wanted was still available.

(Shop Rite, Route 70, Medford, NJ)

 

[3 MEN AND A BOAT]

A couple of these stories remind me of a guy I had working for me one time. I was away and the girl that I would place in charge calls me up to tell me she asked him to shovel ice for her as she was busy and needed help. He said "it's not my job". She called me on my cell and I told her to put me on speaker. I explained it to him but it's the attitude now with some people that want to barely do enough to get by.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

When I worked at Dorney Park, I wasn't allowed to close my line until closing time. So I still ran my ride by closing, if there were people waiting. It was a pain in the butt.

 

[MIGrandma]

I wish restaurants could close on time like most retail stores do. I can remember many times customers would walk into the restaurant 5 minutes before closing, or even later than that, and ask "are we too late?" We so wanted to say, yes, you're too late but of course we couldn't. We had to smile and serve them. Those that ate and paid and got out weren't so bad, but those that just wanted to sit and chat and dawdle over their 3rd or 10th cup of coffee were the ones we hated. We could do a few clean-up chores while they were still in the restaurant, but most had to wait until they were gone. Many times we'd be standing at the counter waiting for them to finally go. The cooks were long gone, but the dishwasher had to wait with us too. I remember one woman, an hour after closing time, wanted another cup of coffee and as I poured it she looked at me and pouted and said "oh, I bet you want to go hooooommmmmeeeee, don't you? And she dragged out the word "home" just like I typed it. I wanted to give her the cup of coffee in a to-go cup. As a retired waitress, now a customer, I won't go into a sit-down restaurant unless it's at least an hour before closing. I want to be out of there before the actual closing time because I know how it feels to have worked a long 8-12 hour shift and be forced to stay long past closing time.

 

[mamasuf]

Walked into a jewelry store today exactly 30 minutes before closing. They had put up all the jewelry for the day. A couple of weeks ago I went into the FedEx store 40 minutes before closing to get documents notorized. Lady said comeback tomorrow, it would take too long to do "this close to closing". It was 10 minutes work max.

So, am I being unreasonable to expect a business to be ready to do business 30 minutes BEFORE closing? I haven't worked in that type of business in 36 years. In those days our work hours extended 30 minutes after closing to the public. That allowed time to count cash, setup for the next day, dump the trash and clean up. Now it seems workers are out the door right at closing.

We were just talking about this tonight at dinner. We just moved to new Jersey and had to change the registration in our cars and get new licenses. The DMV is open late on Tuesday (7:30) I am assuming for people like us who work. My husband and I went over around 6:30 and the women told us it was too late to do it? Wasn't that the point of staying open later?

 

[Lovin' Disney]

I am the manager of a small box store and we are required to open 5 minutes earlier than the posted opening time AND stay open 5 minutes past the posted closing time. We have a customer who comes every Saturday night after he closes his own store and buys about 5-6 carts of stuff and isn't done checking out until about 15-20 minutes past closing time. Rather than crab at him to start checking out sooner, I adjusted the scheduling for that night so that the employees are done about 15 minutes later than any other night of the week. Without the cUStomers, there is no US!

 

[Colleen27]

So, am I being unreasonable to expect a business to be ready to do business 30 minutes BEFORE closing? I haven't worked in that type of business in 36 years. In those days our work hours extended 30 minutes after closing to the public. That allowed time to count cash, setup for the next day, dump the trash and clean up. Now it seems workers are out the door right at closing.

That's how businesses want it these days, though. They don't want to pay for "extra" hours to do the things that used to be done after closing; they don't want employees on the clock when the business isn't open and making money. Unfortunately that means all those after-hours duties get pushed back into operating hours at the expense of customer service.

 

[tvguy]

That's how businesses want it these days, though. They don't want to pay for "extra" hours to do the things that used to be done after closing; they don't want employees on the clock when the business isn't open and making money. Unfortunately that means all those after-hours duties get pushed back into operating hours at the expense of customer service.

The previous owner of my past employer actually had a policy that you were NOT to be at work more than 10 minutes before your scheduled start time, or more than 10 minutes after your scheduled off time.....and we were SALARIED so it wasn't an overtime question.

 

[Rhombus]

When I worked at Dorney Park, I wasn't allowed to close my line until closing time. So I still ran my ride by closing, if there were people waiting. It was a pain in the butt.

Isn't that the norm for most amusement parks? People allowed to enter the line up until closing time?

I've heard of and seen some places close the lines early if it's very crowded so that the rides can shut down soon after park closing time.

Once at Hersheypark, when I was a kid, they let people enter and stand in line for the Comet roller coaster. Then at the stroke of 10pm, BOOM, they said they were closed for the night and shooed away all the people still waiting . My father was really PO'd, (so were my sisters and I) and complained at Guest Services. We waited about 45 minutes before being turned away, and there were still dozens of people ahead of us. They should have closed the line at 9pm if they wanted the ride to shut down by 10. My father raised such a stink they gave us passes to return another day.

I really should return to Dorney Park. I haven't been there in over 10 years. The Hercules coaster was still there at the time.