I am usually a fan of the Running Room however I had a bad experience and in talking with others I now hear it is not unusual. The term arrogant came out frequently. On Dec 26th I saw an advertisement in the Toronto Star page G6 which stated "15% off the entire store" as well as other offers for the period Dec 23rd to 31st. The Whitby store was not too busy and after 10 minutes we received assistance from an associate who was most patient and helpful. At the check out I asked if the 15% discount had been applied. I was told that I had to bring an electronic coupon for that sale. I figured I had not read the ad carefully and forgot about it. Back home I happened to notice the ad again and could not find any mention that any coupon was required. not even any of those little sissors indicating to cut out. Having my receipt handy I called the store and was given the same story about an e coupon but that the assistant manager would call me back in the next half hour when she returned. I was in the rest of the day and when 3 hours later and as the time closed in on closing time and I had not received a call I called the store and spoke with the Assistant manager who informed me that they would only honour e coupons. I referred to the Toronto Star and felt this was misleading advertising, I suggested she look at a copy of the Toronto Star and I was told I should contact her head office. Additionally I was a little perturbed that having left a message the Assistant Manager had not even returned my call. I was told she had not been given my message. I feel this is not the way a good store is run and that Running Room has not lived up to their advertised special to me and many other clients and that no attempt was made to correct the situation. I must say this really disappointed and annoyed me.
In fairness we were away for about a week and on our return we did have a voice mail stating if I were to bring in my receipt and the advertisement from the paper they would honour my 15% discount. That further annoyed me as the ad is clear it does not require a coupon and the bigger issue is how the general public did not get the advertised specials.
I spent a lot of money on the 26th including negotiating for a new car so a $20 or so discount is hardly worth the effort of writing. My real annoyance was the manner I was treated and the fact the store did not seem to be concerned about correcting the issue for all other clients.
Perhaps there is a logical explanation for this but I was not provided with that explanation.
A subsequent email and telephone conversation with their HO provided no more clarity. It only demonstrated they had not read my email as they requesting information which was in my original correspondence.
I am not aware of any printed retraction to the advertisement, but did not see a Toronto Star in the ensuing days.
ShopAware Investigates
ShopAware.com contacted Running Room's head office to discuss this review. A representative of Running Room has told us that an error in the discount advertisement had appeared in a few publications and that they notified their store locations of the situation. They have also contacted the particular store location involved in this review and have addressed the issues in hopes of avoiding any future problems. They have told us that they are dedicated to customer service and apologize for the inconvenience of this customer. |
