Marc's, to Cleveland, is like cellulite to Oprah. Everywhere. Formerly known as Bernie Shulman's (I think I spelled that right), Marc's is the discount mecca of Northeast Ohio. In many instances, they are even cheaper than WalMart. So naturally, a tightwad like myself visits there fairly often to shop for what I can, before moving on to Giant Eagle or some such.
Anyone that frequents Marc's can tell you the famous, many, and universal flaws. The aisles tend to be narrow, they are not necessarily the cleanest places around, and most of the employees are teenagers. This of course means that sobriety is optional. And heaven forbid you hit a Marc's store on Social Security day. You will be there forever.
With all this in mind, I decided to peruse the Marc's store by my job today, to see if they had any of the items we need for our new home. The closeout section is always an interesting place to peruse, and today, of course, was no different. While I didn't find anything useful for the home, I did learn that Marc's decided to stop carrying many home needs they used to. Namely, bathtub mats.
After picking up some items, a Lunchables, a small wooden cow (don't ask), and something else that escapes me at the moment, I headed to the notoriously long checkout lines. It was here that I have to say I witnessed the most interesting debacle of insubordination and rude service I have seen in my life.
While waiting to be rung up, I was standing at the line with my items. I had just moved to the head of the line when a lady in a blue vest and the manager had a heated discussion, rather loudly, about someone having been sent home early and there not being enough cashiers. The manager then advised this lady she needs to hop on the registers, because the lines were long and they needed the help.
The lady then back talked and said something I didn't quite catch. The manager walked to the Customer Service desk, and the lady, obviously still irate, turned around and said "He doesn't know who HE is talking to, he won't talk to me that way", and stomped toward the register next to me.
My cashier is laughing, and telling her that she can't believe she said that so loudly that other people heard her. The rude lady, meanwhile, is opening a register, and yells "I can help you on 5, because my manager is an idiot".
The idiot part was slightly quieter than the I can help you bit, but not by much. It was quite obvious that more than one person heard her. My cashier was laughing hysterically at this point, and all but applauding the wench for being insubordinate.
Now, maybe I am old-fashioned, but if I heard an employee speaking like that, they would be fired on the spot. No If's, And's, or But's. Not only was she rude to her boss, she also created a scene and severly detracted from the customer service of the store. The manager didn't seem to notice. Either he was too spineless to act, or didn't hear. Although, given how obvious the woman was, I can't understand the latter.
My point of this? If you happen to visit the Marc's in this plaza, be prepared for horrible service. If you see an angry older lady (older meaning 30s to 40s, not that is an OLD age, but she is older than most of the other staff) in a blue vest, be prepared for a scene.
You may save money, but you will lose a bit of your sanity in the process.
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