Customer Service...What Bugs?

[Snaggletiger]

I'm usually pretty patient in stores, restaurants etc. as long as I feel like they're at least making the effort to do what they're there to do.  One thing around here that just gripes my grippies is what's happened with our grocery stores.  There are quite a few smaller chains here but for years, Winn Dixie pretty much had the majority of the bidnezz.  Well, Publix decided to make it's mark on Dothan and they just completed their 3rd store. 

Problem is....when Pooblix broke ground, WD reeeeeallly amped up the service.  "Hey, how are you...can I help you?  Whatever you need"  Freakin' bag boys were jumping and the stores all began remodeling. 

My question, where the hell was all this when you were the only game in town?  I mean, it's night and day difference.  The things they're doing now are what they should have been doing all along.  Oh..but they didn't do the one thing they should have done....drop their prices.  Local TV station did a comparison with the same items from 3 stores...WD, Pubelicks and Wal Marks.  Wal Marks was just over $35.00.  Pubelicks was right at $40.00 and WD was just over $45.00.

Hey Winn Dixie...you should have been offering good customer service all along and now that I see your prices are way higher.....you lost a customer for good.

[AUsweetheart]

But they are the beef people......

[Godfather]

I'm usually pretty patient in stores, restaurants etc. as long as I feel like they're at least making the effort to do what they're there to do.  One thing around here that just gripes my grippies is what's happened with our grocery stores.  There are quite a few smaller chains here but for years, Winn Dixie pretty much had the majority of the bidnezz.  Well, Publix decided to make it's mark on Dothan and they just completed their 3rd store. 

Problem is....when Pooblix broke ground, WD reeeeeallly amped up the service.  "Hey, how are you...can I help you?  Whatever you need"  Freakin' bag boys were jumping and the stores all began remodeling. 

My question, where the hell was all this when you were the only game in town?  I mean, it's night and day difference.  The things they're doing now are what they should have been doing all along.  Oh..but they didn't do the one thing they should have done....drop their prices.  Local TV station did a comparison with the same items from 3 stores...WD, Pubelicks and Wal Marks.  Wal Marks was just over $35.00.  Pubelicks was right at $40.00 and WD was just over $45.00.

Hey Winn Dixie...you should have been offering good customer service all along and now that I see your prices are way higher.....you lost a customer for good.

Publix is where its at beeyotch!

[CCTAU]

Great value is not even close the quality of "Crackin Good"!

[RWS]

I'm usually pretty patient in stores, restaurants etc. as long as I feel like they're at least making the effort to do what they're there to do.  One thing around here that just gripes my grippies is what's happened with our grocery stores.  There are quite a few smaller chains here but for years, Winn Dixie pretty much had the majority of the bidnezz.  Well, Publix decided to make it's mark on Dothan and they just completed their 3rd store. 

Problem is....when Pooblix broke ground, WD reeeeeallly amped up the service.  "Hey, how are you...can I help you?  Whatever you need"  Freakin' bag boys were jumping and the stores all began remodeling. 

My question, where the hell was all this when you were the only game in town?  I mean, it's night and day difference.  The things they're doing now are what they should have been doing all along.  Oh..but they didn't do the one thing they should have done....drop their prices.  Local TV station did a comparison with the same items from 3 stores...WD, Pubelicks and Wal Marks.  Wal Marks was just over $35.00.  Pubelicks was right at $40.00 and WD was just over $45.00.

Hey Winn Dixie...you should have been offering good customer service all along and now that I see your prices are way higher.....you lost a customer for good.

Upper management in the corporation has been a problem for a long time at Winn Dixie. The company is so shitty now that alot of your folks that have been in the district and store management positions/grocery industry for 25+ years are bailing. What you're left with is a bunch of younger folks who have been transplanted into WD corpoprate positions from failed grocery chains. For some reason, corporate expects a different outcome.

One of the theories years back was kill them with kindness, and that's all they need. WD knows it can't compete with Wal Mart on prices, so they decided customer service was where they would get the market share. Wal Mart caught on, and they changed it up to offer better customer service, etc. In the southeast, they beat WD back down. Then, enter Publix. Their prices are higher than Wal Mart, but their stores are VERY nice, customer service is excellent (you can't buy a loaf of bread without somebody offering to carry it out for you), and they have quality products. Their pricing is actually close to Winn Dixie's; if not a hair better.

Anyway, Winn Dixie has always just sort of done what they had to do to keep up. The company doesn't have the pockets to really threaten Wal Mart or Publix, and everybody knows it. WD's core customer base is an older generation, and they have fallen behind pandering to that. Whenever WD feels threatened by another chain, then they feel that is the time to ramp things up because they just can't sustain over the long run. If they are around in 10 years still, I will be shocked.

[AWK]

Upper management in the corporation has been a problem for a long time at Winn Dixie. The company is so shitty now that alot of your folks that have been in the district and store management positions/grocery industry for 25+ years are bailing. What you're left with is a bunch of younger folks who have been transplanted into WD corpoprate positions from failed grocery chains. For some reason, corporate expects a different outcome.

One of the theories years back was kill them with kindness, and that's all they need. WD knows it can't compete with Wal Mart on prices, so they decided customer service was where they would get the market share. Wal Mart caught on, and they changed it up to offer better customer service, etc. In the southeast, they beat WD back down. Then, enter Publix. Their prices are higher than Wal Mart, but their stores are VERY nice, customer service is excellent (you can't buy a loaf of bread without somebody offering to carry it out for you), and they have quality products. Their pricing is actually close to Winn Dixie's; if not a hair better.

Anyway, Winn Dixie has always just sort of done what they had to do to keep up. The company doesn't have the pockets to really threaten Wal Mart or Publix, and everybody knows it. WD's core customer base is an older generation, and they have fallen behind pandering to that. Whenever WD feels threatened by another chain, then they feel that is the time to ramp things up because they just can't sustain over the long run. If they are around in 10 years still, I will be shocked.

Was your major Grocery Stores and the Modern Economy?

[RWS]

Was your major Grocery Stores and the Modern Economy?

No, I worked at Winn Dixie for 9 years and was 3rd in line in management at our store when I left 3½ years ago; so I'm a little familiar.

[Buzz Killington]

You need an ALDI to come to town to get them all to drop their prices...

[AWK]

No, I worked at Winn Dixie for 9 years and was 3rd in line in management at our store when I left 3½ years ago; so I'm a little familiar.

Oh...I thought we had something in common 

[JR4AU]

I'm usually pretty patient in stores, restaurants etc. as long as I feel like they're at least making the effort to do what they're there to do.  One thing around here that just gripes my grippies is what's happened with our grocery stores.  There are quite a few smaller chains here but for years, Winn Dixie pretty much had the majority of the bidnezz.  Well, Publix decided to make it's mark on Dothan and they just completed their 3rd store. 

Problem is....when Pooblix broke ground, WD reeeeeallly amped up the service.  "Hey, how are you...can I help you?  Whatever you need"  Freakin' bag boys were jumping and the stores all began remodeling. 

My question, where the hell was all this when you were the only game in town?  I mean, it's night and day difference.  The things they're doing now are what they should have been doing all along.  Oh..but they didn't do the one thing they should have done....drop their prices.  Local TV station did a comparison with the same items from 3 stores...WD, Pubelicks and Wal Marks.  Wal Marks was just over $35.00.  Pubelicks was right at $40.00 and WD was just over $45.00.

Hey Winn Dixie...you should have been offering good customer service all along and now that I see your prices are way higher.....you lost a customer for good.

Winn Dixie didn't survive the Publix invasion on B'ham.  I never noticed them trying to ramp up service.  Their stores looked ancient, and remained so.  Publix owns Bham.  I only darken the door of a Wal Marks out of extreme necessity.   The folks at my local Publix know me by name, and know my vehicle.   The other day I walked out and had a brain fart on where I parked, and the girl taking my groceries out (a service I rarely use, but they're often going that way anyway to collect buggies) and the girl said "I see your black Tahoe right over there."  When I walk in the girl at the little "sample kitchen" cooking the recipe for the day usually says "Hey Mr. Jim".  The deli guy ordered me and stocked a particular blue cheese that I like on my request.  They know what I frequently buy and tell me of specials on those items if I don't have them in my buggy.  And the thing I love most, is that all the checkers know that I fucking despise a lot of plastic bags, and they will put as many items in one as they can.  If only I could remember to take my reusable Publix bag.  Publix is the titz.  The only better supermarket chain ever was the real Bruno's prior to the plane crash.

You can kiss Winn Dixie goodbye in Dothan.  Publix will make an effort to open a unit close to every one. 

[RWS]

Winn Dixie didn't survive the Publix invasion on B'ham.  I never noticed them trying to ramp up service.  Their stores looked ancient, and remained so.  Publix owns Bham.  I only darken the door of a Wal Marks out of extreme necessity.   The folks at my local Publix know me by name, and know my vehicle.   The other day I walked out and had a brain fart on where I parked, and the girl taking my groceries out (a service I rarely use, but they're often going that way anyway to collect buggies) and the girl said "I see your black Tahoe right over there."  When I walk in the girl at the little "sample kitchen" cooking the recipe for the day usually says "Hey Mr. Jim".  The deli guy ordered me and stocked a particular blue cheese that I like on my request.  They know what I frequently buy and tell me of specials on those items if I don't have them in my buggy.  And the thing I love most, is that all the checkers know that I fucking despise a lot of plastic bags, and they will put as many items in one as they can.  If only I could remember to take my reusable Publix bag.  Publix is the titz.  The only better supermarket chain ever was the real Bruno's prior to the plane crash.

They didn't survive in Montgomery either; right at WD's doorstep. Publix pretty much kicked the door in and told WD they're gonna take it and like it. I got out right before the "Publix Panic" hit WD, because I could see the writing on the wall. Alot of people could see it. For that matter, Wal Mart alone was doing a pretty good job at working WD over. We all knew what would happen once Publix started moving in. It only took visiting a Publix store once to know they were going to kick our ass. Add to that the fact that Wal Mart had started developing the Wal Mart Neighborhood Market division of their stores.

Winn Dixie is not a forward thinking progressive company. They are content in thinking that the same things that made them top notch 20 years ago still work today. As you noted, Publix has great associates, and they invest alot into them and their training. They pay their folks well, and that generally attracts better associates. They simply have a better business model.

[Kaos]

the girl taking my groceries out

 

Unless she was hot.