This Just In: Mamadou Edition

Alright kids, let's help our pal: If anyone has a tip on how to get this guy fired (or how we can harass the hell out of "Mamadou") email us at svh2007@gmail.com.

And I will say, for helping out our friend in need, I'm giving a very small shout out to DR on 64th and B'way. Very small. Minute.

From businesswu:

"I saw your website when I typed in 'duane reade sucks' on google.

I had this horrible experience at Duane Reade and I am dead serious about getting this manager reprimanded, ideally fired. Do you have any suggestions on how to do that?

I wrote this e-mail to Duane Reade, which I am sure will do nothing.

Thank you and God bless your soul for having such a blog."

[ed. no, bless YOU for reading it! See below for the letter]

To Whom It May Concern,

I was at the Duane Reade Store number #208 (2025 Broadway) on March 26th at 8:37 PM. I saw a store promotion for Garnier Fructis 100% Color Hair Dye (buy 1 get 1 free) and purchased two, expecting to be charged for one item. There was a problem with the scanner not recognizing my $5 dollar reward coupon so the assistant manager on duty whose first name is Mamadou rudely asked me to leave, rather than fixing the problem (and gave me back another coupon I was using, which was a mistake on his part, and I did write to your company about this a few days ago, for which I have not yet heard the resolution of).

Then, upon returning home, I learned that I got charged for the second hair dye so I got a chance to return to the store today. The same assistant manager (referred to as "manager" for the remainder of the letter) was on duty again this evening and when I told him of the situation, he left the register to check up on the promotion by going to the aisle where the product was located. 10 minutes later, he returned and told me that he did not know where the item was located, which surprised me as I expected a manager to know where items are located in his store, especially because this was a prominently displayed item with huge promotion signs all over the place.

When I took him to the shelf and showed him, he told me to bring back the item, which I did half an hour later. When he saw me again, he said I had to wait to get my $7.79 back because he had to take care of something. When he said I had to wait, I expected a reasonable wait time of at most 5 minutes. However, as soon as he disappeared, all the cashiers turned to me and warned me that it would be a while, at least 15 minutes, as if they had seen him do this many times before. It turns out that the manager had to "take care of money" and I patiently waited at first for 10 minutes by the register, then I decided to go purchase some items for another 10 minutes.

By this point, the manager still had not returned. I asked one of the cashiers that I no longer wanted the promotion and just wanted to return the item but the cashiers said that the assistant manager was the only person who could allow for a return. They were all in agreement with each other that he should have taken care of my situation before he had gone to the back room as this could have been resolved in two minutes or less.

I waited for another 10 minutes, a total of half an hour, in an attempt to receive a credit that was rightfully mine as Duane Reade has the responsibility to abide by the promotions that it chooses to endorse. I asked a cashier to page the assistant manager so that I could leave. When the assistant manager was reached over the phone, his words were according to the cashier, "don't push me any further as I am dealing with money". Upon hearing this, all the cashiers broke into laughter and started to joke around with each other about the situation which got me all the more upset. I asked the cashier to call the manager once more before I write a formal complaint, at which point the cashiers started to make inappropriate jokes to me about whether this is how I "deal with my ex-boyfriends" and how this is no use with this manager as this is his way of doing things and how he is this way with every customer in the store.

I must say, the behavior displayed by the assistant manager was one of the least professional acts by someone who is at a managerial position I have ever seen. One of the cashiers (all of whom had been trying to help me in their own way by trying to make light of the situation, as I do believe that they had no bad intentions - it is just unfortunate that they were highly unprofessional) suggested that I go to another Duane Reade store to get the refund. I did go down to another store on 64th and Broadway and within 4 minutes of entering the store, the manager issued me the credit, a stark constrast from the behavior observed in the other store. He was polite and professional. He even apologized for the trouble I had encountered at the other store.