pet store loyalty

[Kyle@theHeathertoft]

The problem is that people don't think about the fact they are talking to part time high school students who recieve a VERY basic outline of the animals we sell. They assume they know what they're talking about... Why? Because they're wearing the shirt? The real idiots are not the people working at the pet store, they're the people buying pets they know nothing about and taking advice from a fifteen year old kid who hasn't even taken grade 11 biology yet.

...too true. People DO need to do their own homework on a species before aquiring.

(we send sick hamsters to a vet, probably spending ten times what it costs us to buy the silly little things in the first place to get it looked at and treated)

We do too. We had one poor little finch, a cheap society finch, that caught a toe on something in it's cage and we took it to the vet...the vet declared the whole leg was somehow damaged and had to be surgically amputated...so we paid the several HUNDRED DOLLARS for an avian-experienced vet to take off the leg...at which point the little critter was "unsellable" due to the leg being off, so we offered it to employees for adoption. The little one-legged finch went to a loving home for free. Total loss of revenue there...but it is our policy to care for and treat all sickness and injuries.

Also, to comment on the "captive-bred vs. captive-hatched" discussion... At least in Canada, our store gets animals from a reputable local company which breeds and imports reptiles, so the captive bred animals are actually captive bred, not captive hatched. I've been to the place that sells us our animals.

Likewise, I double-checked today. The store I work at sells only captive-BRED animals. Again, I don't know where or by whom but I highly doubt the company is lying to me about it.

Also, (wow, what a great thread this is, so many different points and perspectives!), @Heathertoft, I'm with you on everything you said... Honesty is key, and even our store management encourages it, which I think is awesome. If you're honest with people they will come back to you over and over, rather than feeling like you're trying to cheat them and steal their money and avoid your store. It pays off! Our store is consistantly in the top 5 in Canada at everything, so obviously we're doing something right.

Roughly where are you in Canada? Big place, I know, but I'm always curious...my ex lives in Canada, as does our son (my ex has custody, I visit as often as I can) and indeed our son has dual citizenship. I live/work in Michigan and our store tends to suck at sales and things...the economy has really taken it out of this state and we aren't in a very big city (moderate size, I guess)...plus our district manager is kindof a jerk and tends to really screw us up. I dearly wish I had the power to fire people...most of our folk are good, decent, honest people but some are either dishonest, or incompetent. I don't know for sure which is worse!

EDIT: Oh whoops, forgot to look at your info there. Cool, I drive right through London every time I head into Canada, my son & ex live in Brantford. Cue the song "it's a small world after all....."

I think maybe each store, be it a mom-and-pop place or a big chain, needs to be looked at individually. I've seen stores in the same chain as the one I work in and they suck. Others are amazing. Likewise some small places rock, others not so much. Each store is a store unto itself, and each store employs different people.

Or will until they develop photocopier-style cloning, that is.