Ridiculous exchange policy at Gap? - YouLookFab Forum

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Ridiculous exchange policy at Gap?

Beth

Veteran

So I found myself with a free day today (how lovely) and I went to the Gap to exchange sizes in a pair of jeans. These were a gift and I had no gift receipt, but it was an even exchange for the same pair of jeans, just a different size. No big deal, right?

Wrong.

The salesgirl informed me that she could not do this, but had to issue a store credit by mail. I was *so* sure she had misunderstood me that I explained no, I just need a different size. Too bad, this was the best she could do, sorry. So the process is this...
1. Drive 35 minutes to the mall
2. Have salesperson process a return
3. Wait 7-10 days for store credit to be processed by yet another person and then mailed to me at Gap's expense.
4. Drive 35 minutes back to the store to get exactly the same pair of jeans in a different size.

Really. What a waste of time and resources. The kicker is that I'm certain these jeans were bought with a coupon, but I'm getting credit for the full price.

Nuts. Then again maybe Nordstrom really has ruined me for life.

General

16 replies

Latest reply was from shana

Louise

Veteran

It does sound like rather a waste of everyone's time and money are they also going to reimburse your fuel costs for the 2nd journey or risk losing your custom? x

RoseandJoan

Veteran

Now that is infuriating and strange. Are US return policies in general becoming stricter?

Beth

Veteran

I do think they're getting stricter and return windows are getting shorter. But this is the weirdest policy I've run across:/

rae

(website)

Veteran

WOW. I had to google to make sure your SA wasn't crazy!

I have second thoughts about shopping there now, even to try on the famous leans.

Steph

Veteran

Beth, that's ridiculous! This reminds me of an issue I had with an exchange at the Gap a few months ago. I bought two sets of pajamas for my niece--they were priced at 2 for $20, or $15 each. When I got home I realized one set had long sleeves and I wanted short sleeves, so I went back with the pjs I wanted to return and my receipt. I explained to the salesperson and said I just wanted to swap out the long sleeved pjs for short sleeves. They were all the same price and all displayed together. She told me that if I did that I would have to pay another $5, because I was returning just one pair. I told her that made no sense, since I was just doing an exchange and the price was the same for all the pjs--and my receipt showed that I had purchased two pairs. She absolutely refused and told me I would have to pay the extra money. She said I could come back with the second set of pjs too--which I was going to keep--and then she would let me do an exchange at no extra cost.

Eventually I walked up to a different register, where the manager was working, and she processed my return normally.

Similarly, I had an issue at Saks where I wanted to get a price adjustment on a top I had purchased. I was within the price adjustment window, and the top was actually unworn with the tags on. They wouldn't give me the adjustment because, although the top was $100 cheaper than it had been days before, it was a "promotion" and not a sale. I told them that if that was the case I would just return and rebuy the top. They refused to let me do that, saying that they would have to put the top in a back room for three days until someone could rebuy it. If they had had the same top in my size in the store, I could have returned mine and bought the other, but they didn't.

The solution? They found the top in my size at a store in California--across the country--and had it shipped to me (since it was on my Saks card, I didn't pay for shipping). Then I returned the top I had originally purchased. So rather than just give me the price adjustment or letting me return and rebuy the top I had, they chose to ship a top to me cross-country and keep the top I returned in a back room for days.

taylor

Veteran

I think Guess is even worse I hear! Bummer

Beth

Veteran

Good grief Steph, your Saks experience wins the award of the day.

I don't return often and I'm OK with restrictive policies, but the waste of manpower and gasoline (on their part and mine) is mind-boggling to me.

Maya

Veteran

Beth and Steph, your stories are outrageous. Really, what is the need for this level of bureaucracy?

I'm sure I have posted this before so forgive me if you have already read this: Several years ago I found a pair of sunglasses I loved at Macy's. I have a very narrow face so it's hard to find sunnies that fit and these were perfect. Anyway, I happily walked over to the register and pulled out my wallet, all eager to check out and start wearing my new sunnies, only to be told that they could not process the transaction because the item was "too old" and was no longer available for purchase. I asked them why it was on the rack if it wasn't able to be purchased, and they said it was a mistake.

Umm...well, mistake or not, I found them and liked them, and I was willing to pay for them, and yet they refused to sell them to me. Isn't that the antithesis of everything retail and commerce stands for? I told her I was willing to pay anyway, even full price, but she insisted there was just no way. It was no longer in the system and so could not be priced.

So basically, they probably ended up in a landfill somewhere when I would have gladly bought them.

Oh well, their loss. I eventually found a much nicer pair of Marc Jacobs sunnies at Lord and Taylor, and still have them with me today.

The amount of unnecessary waste in our society sickens me, seriously.

Isabel

Veteran

Wow, that is a really non-sensical policy. Who thought THAT up ?

Maya you are so right about wasted time and resources. Many years ago I switched a bunch of work stock to a brokerage firm. The firm didn't accept partial shares, so I still have a very small fraction of a stock with the company. They send me a check, via mail, every 3 months for $ .08 in dividends. Yup. An envelope, a check and postage ! I've asked them to please stop and the response is that they have to balance their books so they can't stop.

Lisa

Veteran

I've had that happen before too. Where I tried to buy an item and either the store would not sell it because it was not supposed to be on the sales floor anymore. I've had times when the only size in the store was the one on the display but the store would not sell it because it was a display item.

Scarlet

Veteran

Just reading these stories makes me mad. I feel like this is what happens when companies get too big and people working for them have no permission to make sensible decisions. Nobody thinks. Everyone follows a script. That's my theory on it anyway.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Very odd

Speak to the manager?

Kari

Veteran

*Sigh* One of those situations where "following policy" takes precedence over common sense! I seriously will stop shopping (or decrease my shopping) at stores that have ridiculous return policies. Maybe that sounds petty, but I don't want to take the chance that an item doesn't work out or that I change my mind, and go through a huge hassle to return it. If they give me a hard time, I'll take my business over to Nordstrom instead.

(I've also heard about similar issues with banks... employees who have accounts with the bank that processes our payroll checks will bring in the check to get cashed, and the bank will sometimes turn away the check, which was issued by their own bank! Apparently they are so large that tellers sometimes do not recognize a separate division of their own company and have no idea who to call to sort out the problem, and the person cashing the check gets stuck in the middle.)

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

I know that these policies are frustrating, but I absolutely see why they are in place.
Any merchandise being returned is something that has possibly been shoplifted from the store (or stolen from a truck during transport, etc). By issuing you a return credit by mail they are starting a file on you- with your contact information and what/when you returned the item. If a pattern arises, it will raise a red flag for further investigation. Some stores won't even accept a return without a receipt.
Each different item (including different sizes of the same item, or different colors or prints) has a different SKU # used for inventory purposes. If you exchange one size or color for another- the computer scans it as a different item. If you were allowed to do a straight exchange for a different color/size item- the inventory in the computer system would now be off. We all love it when you can ask a store to find you a specific item in stock elsewhere and they can- but it's this type of record keeping that allows it.

Steph

Veteran

Angie, in my Saks experience I did ask to speak to the manager, and she insisted that was the store's policy and she couldn't deviate from it. In my situation, I'm not really sure what the store possibly gains by ordering me a top from across the country and having it shipped to me, rather than just letting me return and rebuy the top I had (since I did have a receipt). The only result was that it cost them money, they used a ton of extra resources, and it left a bad taste in the customer's mouth.

shana

Veteran

I am not sure if this applies to the whole Gap family but last time I was making a return at Old Navy, I was told that I could NOT exchange for a different size in the store, only return. If I needed a different size, I would need to call the online people and they would have to ship me the size I needed. I understand it from a business perspective to some degree but it seemed sort of ridiculous at the same time.