What Really Matters In The Sears Liquidation Rip-Off?

I recently read a piece by CBC News which has bugged me ever since. So I’m taking to my little blogosphere to rant.

Sears Canada, after decades of providing Canadians with good in at the time, revolutionary ways, is now shutting down, and liquidating all inventory and assets.  It’s a sad and emotional time.

Employees are not being treated well, pensions have been stopped, working conditions aren’t great, and those who do still have jobs, won’t for much longer.

And yet, amongst all the turmoil and hardship, customers seem to feel they have the right to be bitchy entitled assholes.

Apparently Sears is being accused of increasing prices before starting their 20% off liquidation sale.  There’s photos all over social media with “proof”.
I’m not here to argue whether this practice is right or wrong.  Because… ultimately… who cares?

Here’s the deal.  Companies have absolutely no obligation to look out for you the customer.  Their job is to make money.  Even in liqudation their job is to make money.  Make as much as they can so they can pay as many creditors as much as possible.  Beyond the expectations of business, that’s actually the law.  To pay back as much as you possibly can.  Bankruptcy is not a get out of jail free card.

As a consumer it is YOUR job to make sure you aren’t getting swindled.  Don’t try to blame someone else for YOUR fuckup.  You’ll find no sympathy here.

But as soon as you start talking about going back and demanding money back, you’re going to get my wrath.

Venece Biggin had a similar experience last week at a Winnipeg Sears store’s liquidation sale. She bought two T-shirts priced at $9.97, and with the advertised 20 per cent discount she paid $7.97 each.

It wasn’t until she got home and her daughter peeled back the sticker price that she discovered the T-shirts were originally priced at $7.97 each.

“Duped, ripped off,” was how Biggin described how she felt at that moment. “This is ridiculous. They shouldn’t be allowed to do that.”

They are fully allowed to do that.  The feeling of being duped, fully support that feeling.  You were.  Suck it up.  You fucked up.

Let’s look at the big picture here.  It’s $4 we’re talking about.  Since this was in Ontario, $4.52 after taxes.  Is it really worth being this upset over?  Letting it affect the rest of your day? Getting angry? How is that really going to benefit you?  More to the point… how is spreading that toxicity going to be good for anyone else you come in contact with that day?

This cycle of toxicity needs to stop. Right now. Before it spreads like a cancer.  You made a mistake.  Learn from it and move on.

But here’s what made me mad and motivated this blog rant…

Then, she talks about going back for a refund.  This is no longer about just her.  Now she wants to go actively inflict her toxicity on others.

Fully within her rights, sure.  But it makes no sense.  There’s no way she can be hard up enough that going back to get $4.52 back is that important to her financial well-being.

The gas and wear and tear on her vehicle alone will most likely cost more than $4.52.  Not to mention the time it would take, surely better used elsewhere.  So it must be about the principal of it all.

Well… news flash.  That’s bullshit.  Now you’re the asshole… not Sears.

You want Sears as a company to make a change from you exerting your principals on them?  They won’t.  Know why? They’re a big multi-national corporation.  They don’t give a shit about you or your opinions.  So you go to the media and make a viral story about it.  That often gets company’s attention… but it’s ultimately irrelevant in this case… they’re going out of business anyway.  So it won’t make a lick of difference on them.  They don’t care.

Plus, they will never know at the corporate level anyway, you’ll be making your impassioned principal rant to a low level front line worker, who likely already agrees with you… because… like you… they work hard to make a living in a low paying job.

So now you’re going to be a bitch to someone who has no control over corporate policy, and is already having a shit life as they struggle to figure out what their own next move is going to be when that pink slip eventually comes… that pink slip that will most likely not be accompanied by a severance cheque.

Who’s really getting screwed here? You and your $4, or the poor sales clerk you’re about to bitch out?

And you want to kick them while you know for a fact they’re already down.

Asshole.

Make a bad day even worse.  Good on you.

And how is that going to play out as the ripples spread? Their interactions with their coworkers? Their family when they get home?

Your actions have consequences. You can’t control what others do to you.  But you can control what you do.

Break outside of your selfish little shell and look at the bigger picture.  Check your principals.  You seem to have the wrong ones.

Share the story and save others from getting duped in the same way.  Then you can help other people protect themselves by either choosing to not shop there, or to be vigilant when they do.

But don’t go bitch out an employee.  That’s just being an asshole.

We need to stand up for ourselves and for our principals. But we need to look at the bigger picture first.  Determine which ones are really worth the fight, and at what cost.  Analyse our response to make sure it’s not going to have an inadvertent negative impact resulting in a reversal of intentions.