Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft

Customer service at this location is all dried up. Don’t waist your time here as I painfully did

I will no longer be shopping at Jo-Ann’s! Last week I traveled 40 minutes to another NH location. I asked to use the restroom and was informed that I was not allowed to be in the back room unattended. The cashier asked if anyone was in the back room. The lady replied that she had just left the back room. I was then told that I was «out of luck» and that the gym next door might allow me to use theirs. Luckily the gym was happy to help me and appalled that Jo-Ann’s would send me over. Today, I traveled to the Nashua location (another 45 minute drive). There were two employees working; one cashier and one cutting fabric. After waiting in line to get fabric cut (the line was 5 – 6 people long and NOT moving). I had to get out of line and ask the cashier if my 3 year old could use the restroom. He was getting desperate. I was told, «We don’t have public restrooms. Try Party City next door or Home Goods». Talk about terrible customer service! I can’t believe that the customer service protocol is to send people to other stores. The constant rudeness and slowness of the staff is barely tolerable, but the refusal to provide a restroom is the icing on the cake.

Every time I go to a Joanne Fabrics– I get very lousy customer service-​so much so that I will not shop at Joanne Fabrics ever again– I travel all over the country and always shop at a Joanne’s– no more. The last time I went– I was waiting to get some fabric cut– it was not busy– one person was in front of me and she was having fabric cut that was taking 10 – 15 minutes– another employee came to the cutting area– didn’t even look at me– and went about doing «busy work» that could have waited until later and I stood there maybe 5 more minutes as she ignored me as she did NOTHING– so I got fed up, put the fabric back and left the store. I hate to tell these people, but customers come first– no customers– no business– no job for you! This happens at pretty much all of them.

The only store I braved on the dreaded Black Friday was this Joann Fabrics location after reading that they had red tag fabrics at 50% off. When I arrived at the store there were no signs advertising the 50% off, so I asked a sales associate. She told me that I had read the ad wrong and it was probably an online only deal. I didn’t think I had it wrong, but accepted it and purchased other items. When I went home I looked at their website again and saw that it was in fact an in-​store only, 3-​day deal, still advertised. I wrote corporate an email and received a response apologizing for my experience and saying that they would deal with it on the store level. Satisfied, I took pictures with my smartphone to prove that the website said ‘in-​store only deal’ and returned this morning to purchase my red tag fabrics at 50% off. Upon my arrival at this location I noticed that again, there were no signs advertising the sale so I asked the store manager about the discrepancy. She asked me if I was the customer who sent the email, therefore verifying that she was aware of the problem and asked if I could prove that was what the website said. I showed her the pictures of their ad and she told me that I needed a printout and that I could have taken the pictures at any time and I could be lying. I offered to go to the website on my phone and show her but she said that her district manager had told her not to honor the sale and that it was corporate’s fault, and that she was going on her break so she couldn’t help me any further. I left being called a liar, twice. I called their corporate office, who verified the advertisement and were shocked that a store manager would treat me as she had. I wasted my gasoline in my vehicle and my time attempting to get an advertised deal. I wasn’t trying to get something for nothing, but just wanted what was advertised. I know that false advertising is illegal, but that does not seem to deter this Joann Fabrics location from committing just that. I have been a loyal customer to this shop for two years and know most of the employees by name. Even though Walmart offers very similar fabrics for less than half the cost of Joann Fabrics and it is only another couple of miles down the road (my local Walmart has a very large fabric/​crafts section) I choose to support Joann Fabrics, obviously to my own detriment. I used to feel like a valued customer, now I feel like to them, I am garbage. I am married to a retail manager (with a different company) who has stayed late after clocking out to help with a customer issue, who has skipped breaks to resolve issues and has never, even when a customer was wrong, called the customer a liar. In this situation, I was correct, and was still treated like filth

PROS:
Great sales. If something isn’t on sale, they always have coupons (if you don’t have their email or mailer coupons, ask one of the associates for one — they’ve always had an extra one for me when I’ve asked).
For the most part the staff is friendly. At the very least they’re polite.
CONS:
It’s a chain store, so corporate never hires enough staff & they seem to be stretched thin often. If someone in front of you at the cutting counter has a large pile & one of the three staff members on is on break, that leaves one person to man the register at the front of the store & one person at the cutting counter so be prepared to wait.
There is one woman there (maybe a manager) is way too serious all of the time & she’s kind of a grump.
Another woman there is just weird… She talks your ear off about her cat. Or, other days, she literally will not say a single word to you, not even make eye contact. Very odd.
Since Planet Fitness went in two stores down, there’s never any good parking spots in front of the store & I have to park in front of Home Goods. I know, not Jo Ann Fabric’s fault, but I wish they’d put in «Parking for Jo Ann Fabrics only» signs in the first two rows of spots.