Discounts You Can Count On

During this difficult time of recession, it's always refreshing to find places of business that are heavily discounting their products. After all, we need all the help we can get to make our paychecks last longer.

When it comes to helping out the consumer during these times, some stores and restaurants get it. If they want to stay in business, they are offering consumers bargains they cannot refuse.

The other day I walked into a Rite Aid Pharmacy
to buy toothpaste. In the vicinity of the cash register I noticed several racks of candy - the big boxes - on sale for $1.00 a piece. They were advertised as "theatre candy". For example, they were stocked with Raisinettes, Dots, and just about any confection you can name.


If you were to purchase these same products at the candy counter in the theater, you'd pay anywhere from $3.00-$4.50 for the same candies. Rite Aid gets it. Mann theaters, Regency, United Artist, AMC and the rest are not. They charge the ridiculous price of $10.00-$12.00 for a movie ticket and then charge exorbitant prices at their candy counters. Why do we continue to attend these theaters that are robbing us blind?

Of course, you can always stop off at Rite Aid or any supermarket to purchase candy at a lower rate and then "sneak" your sweets past the ticket taker. Come on, we all do it. But when a family attends a matinee and spend $20.00 for candy, popcorn and drinks, who's robbing who?

When it comes to cable TV, how about the cable companies charging us a subscription rate for a select group of channels we consistently watch? I don't want to pay $100 a month so I can have 180 channels of which I only watch 10 consistently. They may even get more customers if they took the cable cafeteria approach instead of charging us for channels we don't even watch.



Gasoline prices? Have you noticed any bargains? I have. Most ARCO gasoline stations are doing their best to keep the price of a gallon of gas below $3.00. The same is true for Valero gasoline. To top that off, with Valero the customer also gets the extra bonus of purchasing gas that is "Made in America" and not piped into the U.S. from the Middle East.

One food franchise that understands the need to give people a break during the current recession is Denny's. This restaurant comprehends the financial stress on Americans with their $2 $4 $6 $8 Value Menu that is available all day and every day. In fact, from all appearances the one business that seems to be seeking to lower prices during the current recession is the food industry. Of course, I know there still exists restaurants that are raising their prices regardless of the economy. However, the eateries that are lowering the prices on their menus are experiencing standing room only responses to their discounts. And we should do everything possible to support them.

Yes, we need each other's help. You probably know of other discounts in the airline or travel industry. Housewares and appliances. Restaurants. Gasoline. Groceries. Share your findings with us and let's pool our resources during these difficult financial times.

Discounts You Can Count On

Consumer Friendly Businesses in an Unfriendly Recession

Yesterday I shared an experience I had wit the banking conglomerate Bank of America. Now I wonder, "Will it cause Bank of America to change their policies? Will I get a call from a B of A executive apologizing for the way I was treated by one of their supervisors?" I doubt it. And that's my point. Consumers are feeling more and more powerless in the face of corporate giants.

Over and over I keep dealing with customer representatives who send out the same message: We don't care about our customers. We're here to ratchet up service fees, apply late charges, increase interest rates, provide lousy service and fail to return our customer's phone calls and emails.

How can certain business like Us Airways, Enterprise, Sprint telephone, Time Warner Cable and many others expect to stay in business treating customers this way at a time when the consumer needs some compassion - not government sponsored freebies.

Furthermore, I do not want the government to FORCE companies through legislation to show care for their clients. I would like to see companies do this on their own. No more government intervention.

Here's my latest example. On a recent trip to Florida to visit my parents I was scheduled on US Airways for a one hour layover in Charlotte, N.C. It turns out the flight was cancelled due to bad weather in N.C. I had to spend an entire day in an airport waiting for the next flight to Charlotte and then make one more connecting flight to Ft. Lauderdale.

The morning of the flight I received several call from US Airways telling me the flight was delayed 105 minutes. So I had some time to make it to the airport. Yet when I arrived at the airport ninety minutes before the delayed flight was slotted to take off, I was told by a ticket agent that I missed the flight. I was late. I responded, "But the flight departure time is not for another hour and a half. How can I be late?" She told me I was supposed to be at the airport an hour before the original flight time. "But the original flight time was changed according to all the voice mails I been receiving from US Airways," I continued. "Now I am here at the airport with an hour and a half to spare. I am not late!!" She finally admitted, "And the flight has been cancelled." Was I going crazy?

Upon arriving at Charlotte eight hours after the original flight was supposed to land, I went around to the various workers at new stands, Starbucks and ticket counters at other airlines. I asked, "Was the Charlotte airport closed this morning prohibiting flights from landing. The answer I kept hearing was negative. One cashier told me there was a fog bank early that morning but it cleared by 8 a.m. - two hours before my flight was scheduled to take off. What did US Airways do? Cancel a flight for no reason? I spent an entire day at an airport because of US Airways.

To the phone . . . I tried to contact US Airways when I returned to Los Angeles. I was instructed to register all complaints using their customer service support page on their website. I was assured I would hear from a US Airways representative within 72 hours. It's been two weeks and I haven't heard a peep. Then I called their corporate headquarters in Tempe, AZ (480 693 0800). I left two or three messages asking for a return call from their Customer Relations Department. I've heard nothing. I even wonder if this department even exists.

What gives with companies today? Even in a recession where the middle class is hurting and the poor are getting all kinds of government (tax paid) benefits, you would think companies would show some attentiveness to the consumer. How about a returned phone call for starters?

Two companies that stand out from the rest are Starbucks and Southwest Airlines. Read Howard Schultz' book Pour Your Heart Into It and the book Nuts, the story of Southwest Airlines. These two companies "get it" in the way they treat their employees and the consumer. They will ride out the recession. My advice is to only fly Southwest and let the others die a slow death. So what if we're stuck with one airline. Southwest would expand, add more flights and continue to treat the customer with care and wisdom.

Will I ever hear from US Airways? Probably not. They're just hoping I will go away after making repeated calls to their corporate Customer Relations Department. Not this time. Consumers must revolt by calling companies on the carpet and force them to treat us with class and concern.

Consumer Friendly Businesses in an Unfriendly Recession