Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Cabelas Apathy

How bad is service getting? Read on. On Sat. I attended a Cabelas event on waterfowling. Heard Sean Mann speak & saw Willie Robertson doing what they were paid for: engaging w/ customers, answering questions, etc. Went the following day for three talks: BIG MISTAKE. Wait 20 min. for the 1:00 presentation & when I ask an employee: "Oh, the Browning rep was at the gun counter (can't be seen from where they put the chairs and posted the schedule), sorry. The 1:30 and 2:00 presentations (Steel shot for waterfowl & Ground Blind hunting)just never happen. Just some 'employees' hanging around & blowing calls for their own amusement. No organization or supervision. Look, I give presentations at meetings, and I know what they should look like. Don't real companies have a corporate office that supervises these things? The locals don't. Even for Sean Mann's talk, no microphone or way of drawing customers. He talked over the back ground duck calls and the f'ed up fiddle music that plays nonstop. All of which he did w/ some serious head congestion and feeling like crap.

I am all done with Cabelas. Has anyone else experienced this level of disrespect for customer's time and shear incompetence?

was that at the one in Gonzales? I dropped a few Bens in there last week.

one might point out that other sporting goods stores don't even offer such extra-curricular stuff, but I'm sure it was still irritating if you made the trip to see it.

I experienced poor service at the Gonzales store, two weeks ago. Salesmen shooting the breeze while 6 customers were not waited on. Five walked off. I had to go to the register and ask a lady for some help.

Send a letter to the corporate office in Sidney, NE it will get results.

I do drop in their Dundee store a good bit,only place I have to shop for my stuff local,cept the Cigar shops in Ohio. I go during the week,it's not as crowed,it's quiet for the most part,except them damn Pop guns!!
I do Retail Floor planning for a living,so I'm in and out of a LOT of retail stores,5 to 6 days a week and 10 TO 12 hour days. My biggest grip is the fact of so many employees standing around jacking with each other.If people don't need help,at least be polite and ask how their doing?
More and more retail is going to self-service and it's going to get worse,because workers don't give a rat's asset where they put stuff,people can't find,they don't buy it...
For the most part,Cabelas,Dundee has done good by me,the used gun guys kill my CC,they see me coming... I think they have a spot in the back room for me or something...

Steve:

Mentioned that in my letter to Cabelas. At least the other guys (Bass Pro)don't engage in false advertising, saying they are hosting a talk that they fail to produce. I think corporate should educate their employees as to proper behavior, since their parents haven't, and explain the consequences of failing to abide by compnay policy. Then, firing one employee for poor behavior should get everyone else's attention.

it would be a good first step for all retail establishments to forbid the possession of cell phones by employees during the work day.

I agree %100 with that; too many people text away while customers are waiting at the counter.

I just about reached through the window of a parking garage booth last week while the sistah blathered on to her friend and completely ignored the growing line of cars waiting to pay.

she was talking so much she had her phone plugged into the wall so it wouldn't run down.

Steve: If its any consolation, I heard of a case where someone died as a result of talking on their cell phone while it was recharging in their home. Just saying, it could happen.

Weekly,I have assignments come it from Mfrs wanting to know how the new product looks,where it placed on the shelve,exposure...tons of retail questions... when I get to the store and take photos,you should see some of the employees in the background,goofing,standing, lost and now the "texting thing".When my Boss gets the reports back stamped "Incomplete",because of no product on the shelve,he starts making phone calls....That cost companies a lot of money!!
DO PEOPLE NOT REALISE THERE ARE OTHERS WHO NEED JOBS AND WANT THEM???

I often wonder how people who do so little during their day have so much to talk about.

I heard the other day..
A preacher stopped his sermon and asked a young lady sitting up front to refrain from "texting" the devil until she was back outside....

You guys expect way too much out of $10 hr employees..

I can tell LOTS of reasons why they are $10 an hour employees....

Dunno - presentations of outside experts shouldn't be left up to the 10 buck and hour guys. That's a store manager or leadership deal in my book.

I don't talk to monkeys, I talk to the organ grinder...

well, I'm not that mad at her

Calvin: $10 an hour employees don't remain $10 employees when they do their jobs. They get promoted. And, its preferable to being a $0 an hour ex-employee.

Back to the Cabela's subject. It's amazing that the cameras at those Cabela's stores see everything that you do, but the bad service and employees are invisible.

Well said and true...It's got to start at the top..
And it's not just Cabelas,it's happening all over the country.


At least their Dundee store appears to run from the top.I've been in a few others in my travels,maybe not so good. The worst I ever saw was Circuit City and Office MAX,but they're gone now..wonder why!!