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Later that day you were able to order online again with delivery scheduled 1-2 weeks later. All of those orders have been cancelled a few days later, some people have not even been noticed. It took 2 weeks til I had my money back, other people were waiting even longer.
A few e-mails back and forth and nothing but a "sorry, technical problem".
I rarely go to TRU with the intention of shopping, but one thing I do like about TRU is their LEGO display cases. The closest LEGO store to me is 2 hours away, so for me the best place to see new sets built and displayed is TRU.
Even with all the pictures available online and even holding the box and looking at the pictures does not equal to seeing a set for real. The experience more then once pushed me either into buying a set I wasn't sure about before, or deciding against a set I thought I liked.
So for this experience I'm grateful to TRU. And I always end up buying a little something while I'm there....(c:
Can't say I blame you but here's a few things I noticed on your issues with TRU:
Your "FIRST" point: TRU doesn't consider LEGO sets to be "Toys" but instead they are "Building Sets" or "Construction Sets". Even within LEGO they break down further and exclude LEGO Games from many LEGO sales they offer.
"SECOND": TRU BOGO50%Off sales (25%off of the listed price in other words) are normally slightly marked up higher than their already marked up prices, BUT it doesn't mean there are no deals to be found. I suspect the two TRUs both know me as the fat lego guy who price scans almost everything they sell with LEGO written on it, then does it again a week or two later. When the first week of Bricktober had BOGO40%Off and get the free Vintage Minifig Set with a buy over $60 I was able to get about $100 of RRP LEGO for just over $60 two times that week, and each time got the VMF set. By continuing to make sure I was aware of any sales and coupons I did almost as well every week to follow. The hardest thing to do is get them to stack sale prices with coupons and other promos, but i've had some success there too, not always but sometimes. It never hurts to ask.
"THIRD": TRU calling LEGO at or above RRP "on sale" is nothing new, the one by me even jacks up their prices on older items above their previous prices as they become scarce. They're hardly the only store to do so. The thing is if you want the option to go to a physical store and choose from a large selection of LEGO there's few places that can compete with TRU in most areas (WM & Target, with great variation in the amount of LEGO they actually have). The downside of that is TRU feels the need to keep their prices high to have shelves stocked like that. Wait for sales and shop smartly and this isn't an issue. I have knowingly bought several things at higher than RRP prices this year at TRU because they wouldn't be available elsewhere for quite some time. Getting them when I saw them was worth not waiting til I could find them somewhere else. I put my money down and had the sets I wanted the first chance I got. Even then I didn't always get hosed, I often would find something at a great discount to offset the upcharge I was paying. I know other people who get stuff at TRU when it comes out but will get another at a LEGO store later on and return it to TRU effectively getting their cake and eating it too by having the item as soon as it shows up on shelves and not paying the "TRU Tax" in the long run.
"FOURTH": I'd say it would be safe to guess you were trying to get "The Mine". It's been common knowledge on here that TRU was aware of the mistake WM made on Sunday and issued notice to their stores not to match the price on that item. Their policies clearly allow them not to do this. The person at the CS counter might not have been aware of this. (A tip, go straight to CS to checkout whenever you can, it's usually someone with a little authority to make deals, and you skip the lines at the check out counters) Had you tried to make the buy with the CS girl who told you yes you might have gotten away with it. If the manager refused you should have asked them if they could make another offer. I believe their policy mandates that the item in question be in-stock physically at a local branch of the other store, and they apparently will call and ask. WM chose to continue honoring the price on The Mine this week as a show of good faith to their customers, and many of us appreciate that. I know I do. However, I live in NYC, where there is not a single WallyWorld to be found within the City limits, so I don't have that option regularly.
I know a lot of us hate TRU as well but I doubt you'll get many takers on this board as most of us will take a decent deal anywhere we can get it (if we can get it) and consider the occasional "no" from TRU on a deal just part of the cost of trying to get a better deal. Sometimes though you come out way ahead, I've gotten several promo polys (mostly bricktober magnets from last year) for a penny each by checking TRU carefully for LEGO deals when I have a chance. I'm fortunate that I live in a small "Bermuda Triangle for AFOLs" with TRU, Target AND a LEGO Store all a few blocks away. I greatly prefer shopping at the LEGO Store, and they know me quite well, but TRU gets a fair amount of my business and Target almost none. In NYC many retailers have "urban pricing" and this Target is one... They constantly have things on "sale" and "clearance" above RRP, including things that the day before were at or below RRP. They have nationwide store and online sales that are several dollars more here, negating the savings or making it negligible. But they have a decent beer selection and are next to the subway so I go there regularly anyway, and once in a blue moon get lego.... Heck I just got a polybag there on Friday!
Good luck with your riot, I hope it doesn't cause you to miss out on another good LEGO deal. If you feel the problem is that your local TRU consistently refuses to honor their sales then you should make a written complaint to TRU in addition to calling, you might get a worthwhile response or a change in their practices.
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I have a love/hate relationship with TRU. Hate them because they do mark up prices, so you have to be careful and always check how much, if any, they have marked up LEGOS. Love them because when they have a BOGO I have gotten LEGOS at really good prices. Hate them because of their return policy. Love them because they offer a slight discount if you have a TRU CC and/or TRU Rewards card. Hate them because the Rewards coupons will come at the same time but have different expiration dates, and often for only 2-3 weeks. (The TRU CC coupons are not like that.) Love them because they have the largest LEGO selection in town. Hate them because their ads will said 'All', then have an exclusion when you get to the store. I have learned that I just have to be a smart consumer when dealing with TRU, and if I am I can get some really good deals. Recently they had a BOGO Half Off sale and my store had 2 Unimogs. They were marked up to $210 (a small mark up), but I had a $10 Reward coupon, so I got them one for $205, one for $105. I was pleased. Also, they will have a on line sale and limit quantities or run out of some sets, but if you get there first you can maybe get a Fire Brigade and a Grand Emporium and get one half off. Course, they won't let you get two of either of them at the same time, but if you mix and match for an equivalent item you can get a good deal.
It is difficult for me blast them too much, because Amazon and Target will mark up LEGO prices above retail at times. I figure it simply has to do with supply and demand. Just like it is on eBay.
A call for a boycott seems a bit harsh just because their prices are high. If they were involved in some sort of child-labor / toxic waste dumping scandal, that would be different. At the end of the day, aren't they just a reseller of goods?
RRP is what Lego sets as the price for resellers to sell it at, so the augment about Rent etc. does not hold (Obviously it is only Recommended, so they can charge what they want).
The other thing is the way they do sales, it is terrible and some would call it misleading. I love how they have "20% of all toys" then an exclusion list nearly as long as their inventory list. Most other retailers may have 1 or 2 exclusions but I see nothing comparable to what TRU has.
Lastly if they do indeed jack the standard price of an item up on the same day a sale starts, then revert the standard price back the day the sale ends I think this is very dodgy and they should get flack for doing it.
Toys-R-Us has the model of jack up the price and then offer coupons and discounts every week or other week, so you feel like you are getting a good bargain, while you probably are getting only a small discount.
It generally requires one to be a smart consumer. I have purchased several good deals over the years from Toys-R-Us, had no issues, and saved money.
In the examples you give...
The 4th is a known entity. They explicitly say that to price match the other store has to have stock.
The 3rd is definitely a known entity. That is the business model I describe above. you really have to watch your prices, and then only purchase items that are at standard retail to get a good bargain. Kohls is another store I often see with a similar model.
The 2nd....I personally have not encountered this in any of my purchases at any Toys-R-Us or any other store. I have seen other stores, occasionally use a practice where they have a temporary price cut on an item, as opposed to a sale, and then the item goes back to normal prices during a sale. I wonder if that was what you encountered.
The 1rst... To me that is the one issue out of the four you mentioned. I did experience something similar, where they announced a sale...the sale was working fine. Then they out out another code, and suddenly their sale for the first item stopped working, despite it supposedly being on sale still. It was not something I wanted, but if it was, I would have needed to call them on it. Anyway, I have seen several flaky things this year along this line. This tends to be my bigger issue. I think they're was a case in the last few months, where they had a Lego sale, but the big sets were not showing up as part of that. Nothing anywhere said there was no discount. I think several people called in their order for that and got a price adjust.
Honestly, as others have said, I usually avoid Toys-R-Us, unless I can guarantee I can get a good discount. I almost always purchase online and not in store. For Playmobil, as long as I watch my prices, I have found very good discounts, and they are my goto store for Playmobil. For Lego, I almost never buy from them. I can usually find better deals elsewhere, but I still have found a few good deals over the years.
I personally quit buying anything other than Lego minifigs from TRU quite a few years ago. I am lucky however to live in Southern Ca, where I have a Wal-Mart, Target and even a Lego brand store within a reasonable distance of my home where I can buy Lego's. Even without those stores there is always Amazon.
Anyone know if they will accept multiple rewards in store?
Sorry, no idea if they'll let you use more than one. If the policy states only one can be used at a time, I probably wouldn't count on TRU employees breaking that policy.
And do not forget you cannot use them all at once, only on the dates designated on the coupons themselves...
Also... Star Wars Advent Calendar "on sale" for $49.99?! Are you kidding me?
Unbelievable. I had a 20% off coupon in my hand and couldn't find a single thing that would cost standard MSRP AFTER I used it!
Awful, awful store. I left the coupon in the LEGO aisle in hopes of relieving some poor soul who didn't know any better.
Historically this has been very difficult to prove, but the internet is changing that.
As for me, I will continue to shop at TRU any time a suitable deal can be had.
However, I do have to say that for other toys, they are just fine.
I have found many people I know buy LEGO at TRU, for various reasons. When I tell them it is priced over retail most of them are shocked, the thought never occoured to them, they thought that is just what it cost.
I of course have directed them to the LEGO store, most of whom didn't even know it existed, even though the mall it is in is across the street from TRU.
Sometimes you can find out of production items. For example i picked up the creator off-road power. I used gift cards from prior purchases so it did not cost me a dime for the set(at least this time around).
Here are my problems with this:
1) In what universe besides TRU does using a coupon result in the item's price changing? If I go to the grocery store and use a coupon, even a store coupon, the item's price doesn't change from a sale price back to MSRP.
2) Why in the heck didn't the cashier say something? You can't just change the prices on the fly without telling the customer. It's one thing to say, "I'm sorry, the coupon can't be combined with this sale, but since the coupon is a better deal I can use it instead of the sale." But no, that didn't happen, the price just magically changed without the cashier uttering a peep.
I hate TRU, and will happily take my business to the LEGO store. I don't even care if I pay more, at this point it is the principle of the matter. TRU's business practices are among the worst of any major retailer, and I'm just sick of them. I'm tempted to spend my free time sitting in their LEGO aisle directing customers to better prices at other retailers.
After sending a lengthy email (I was not going to explain the whole situation a 3rd time) I got the customer service direct number, to which they said they fix it (they forgot to check a box.. that is right FORGOT to CHECK a BOX), I got a order number and I though all was well.. I got the item and found it was only 1 not 2.. To which I had to call and explain everything AGAIN, to which they found out the did not change the quantities to two this was AFTER I explained on the first call I was missing TWO sets. So finally I am now receiving the last set I was missing today. So I finally had my order completed about 2 months after placing it. What a joke.
I admit despite this issue (and others I believe had similar issues initially with receiving the wrong things during that B2G1F) I will not completely 'boycott' TRU, THey keep the mods at RRP (for now at least) and if there are BOGO50 or B2G1F sales and the sets i want are at retail, or very near on the expensive sets, I probably will still buy ass they are usually pretty good deals, otherwise Ill watch Amazon.com
I've had that same sort of problem, reread the abuse you just typed, why on earth would you want to put up with that?
As much as we need competition, I'd be perfectly happy for TRU to go out of business with the way they do business.
Do not get me wrong, if there is a better sale price to be had at Amazon Im all for it, but Mods are not gauranteed to go on sale as frequently as they do at TRU (well used to anyway)
So in the future would Id buy more from Amazon? Absolutely, but if there is a TRU B2G1F deal for something like a DS I'm going to TRU.
$25 off your LEGO purchase of $100 or more
Excludes Technic and regular price sets
And that would leave....?
I think I may be near another one tomorrow and will let you know if I go in and find any.
Or today...non-lego related (I apologize) and a long story short...but I got 2 LeapPad games for free after an online promotional order mix-up.
I would ultimately find it hard to boycott a store that seems to be incompetent to the point of furnishing me with freebies :)
But I have now done 3 orders from the US TRU as they have some good deals. Just last week I ordered some Starwars Millennium Falcons for $125 each shipped and today I ordered a few Maersk Trains #10219 for $132 shipped. I had to do separate orders to get the $25 off $100 though. Unfortunately $'s talk, and if the price is right they get my business.
As was stated many times above, an educated consumer can find good deals at TRU. Like has been said, I also do not like some of their practices.
But today, using the coupon, I got the UCS B-wing for $160 before taxes as the set was list and was found in store - NYC Times Square store.
I suppose that is sufficiently vague that they can weasel out of it, but it wasn't as clear cut as being only "for a regular priced item." I've seen that same wording on TRU coupons before and had them stack just fine with sale prices and other coupons. It's completely random and arbitrary how TRU decides to program their computer system when it comes to sales and coupons.
Contrast that with Target and Shopko, where their in store coupons stack just fine with sale prices, even if it means they are taking a loss on the sale.
I stand by my assertion, show me one other store besides TRU where using a coupon changes the sales price. I doubt you can find one because it would result in State consumer protection agencies investigating said retailer. That reminds me, time for another email to said state agency. I figure if people complain often enough that eventually they'll open an investigation against TRU. All it takes is a State Attorney General up for re-election and he or she will happily go after a big company and get a nice cash settlement for the State as well as sanctions against the company. Elliot Spitzer in New York was always good for that as Attorney General. Wish my state's AG was half as zealous.
@hleonffu THAT's not bad at all... anything else good at Times Square? I'm probably going to go by tomorrow. I get good buys at TRU all the time, but most of the time I just spend a lot of time practicing price scanning and putting a few miles on my shoes scouring the aisles for misplaced Lego.
Pretty grotesque, but oh well - I just choose to support them as little as possible as a result.