"I could a tale unfold...."

If you can't vent your spleen on a blog, what's a blog for? I sent the following via snail mail today:

Mr. Sam K. Duncan, CEO - Office Max
213 Shuman Blvd.
Naperville, IL 60563

Dear Mr. Duncan:

Today I went to the local Office Max to buy some office supplies and to redeem $30 for ten empty ink cartridges I had returned in December. I had gone on line and had a printout of my account. What followed would make a great comedy sketch if it weren't for the negative impression it made on me regarding the whole MaxPerks system.

I showed the clerk at the check out counter my printout. She had no idea what to do with it so she asked another clerk to help me. That clerk took me back to her computer, where she went through what I had already done on my computer and got the same result: I had $30 coming to me. Try as she would, she could not print out what I apparently needed in order to get the refund. She called for assistance from another clerk, and the two of them tried to find the answer for the next twenty minutes. They then called for help from yet another clerk.

While waiting for that clerk to arrive, I commented that, as a customer, I liked the former system a lot better. I could bring in my empty ink cartridges and get instant credit on my purchases. The clerks were in full agreement and expressed their and many other customers' frustrations with what should be a simple transaction.

The third clerk, after several more minutes of pointing and clicking with the mouse, finally came up with the answer: I couldn't get my refund for another month. O.K., I'll be back in February and try again for my $30 refund. I am retired; I can afford to invest another hour in the process.

Please don't misunderstand me; I'm not mad at anyone. I had a delightful time with all the personnel, each of whom was doing his/her best to help me. But I suspect this experience is being repeated over and over in every Office Max store in the nation. I don't know how much Office Max clerks get paid by the hour, but I have a feeling the company is losing money if there are hundreds, or perhaps thousands of customers having the same experience I did.

Sincerely,

Richard G. Hiatt
11085 S. Grape Arbor Pl. #104
Sandy, UT 84070
Member ID# 790771079

On another matter: I scanned a MaxPerks brochure to accompany this blog only to run into problems uploading. I tried uploading with three other pictures and got the same message. Anyone have any ideas what I can do to fix this? After all, what's a blog without pictures, even if the picture is of a callow youth with a fake moustache?

Stay tuned.