Consumers are not morons

Editor | Wednesday July 14, 2010 00:00

Often shoppers are made to queue for long to make purchases. After queuing at pay points, shoppers have to make a single file to go through a security check. The security officer manually goes through the till slip and checks it against the goods bought causing further delays.

Shoppers are never informed that due to the inability of the store to install a sophisticated security system, they will be inconvenienced through manual checks. All of us are harassed and much of our valuable time is taken away under the guise that all these is done for the protection of the consumer. But this is not the case.

The one that takes the cake is the contempt that we are forced to endure at shopping malls. Most of these malls have parking lots that are not well-maintained. The classic is without doubt the Tlokweng Engen-Choppies Mall. Its parking lot has developed potholes, which the owners seem least concerned about. Everyday, hundreds of customers come through to spend money at this mall at a great inconvenience particularly to motorists.

The Tlokweng Mall is not the only one with the parking lot problem. The parking lots at BBS Mall, Mogoditshane Kwena Mall, Old Molepolole Mall and Palapye Choppies Mall and many more around the country are crying for maintenance. One of the greatest inconveniences and put-offs for shoppers at some of the one stop malls are the trolleys that are left at the parking lots.

Drivers have to negotiate their way past trolleys left at the parking lots. Some drivers have been forced to get out of their cars to  remove the trolleys. This is an inconvenience that should be avoided. Big chain stores should devise ways of timeously collecting trolleys from parking lots so that they do not inconvenience anyone. There have been accidents and little car scratches resulting from the trolleys that are abandoned on parking bays. This is particularly irksome on weekends and month-ends when there are many shoppers.

We do not want to point a finger at anyone, but we believe the mall administrators and the big chain stores will pull up their socks to ensure that they offer convenient service to the people who bring them business. Already other players such as Pick'n Pay, particularly in Riverwalk and Game Discount Stores are making an effort to ensure that their trolleys are not left in parking lots. That is why the trolleys from these stores are always in good condition and unlike the rickety ones from other stores.

                                                               Today's thought                                             'The consumer isn't a moron. She is your wife.'

                                                                - David Ogilvy