Don't go here. My experience started 5 months ago. I needed a new battery. Went and placed it, ensured there was a warranty and drove away happy. Cut to this week. I go out to start my car. Nothing. Completely dead. I get a jump, it starts right away. I drive to this store and I was told that they would need to test the battery to make sure it was ok. They tested it but I was not allowed to see what the test said. They denied it was the battery and told me it could be my alternator. So I bring it home, have my son (a mechanic mind you) replace my alternator, and assume I'm good. I had an appointment at my dealer for an oil change (I still get them for free) so I asked them to check it when I brought it in to ensure my battery and starter was ok. Half hour later? They tell me the battery is completely dead. So dead they can't even tell if it is the starter. They give me that, in writing, so I head back to the store to get it replaced, thinking well now two people have told me it's the battery so they have to honor their warranty, Right?!

I arrive at the store. Another gentleman parked next to me, in a brand new car, is also asking about his battery. They refuse him a new one as well. I try to enter the store, following the salesman who was testing this gentleman's car. He dropped the door on me. I stand in line and get the next person, not this man, and tell him my problem. Before the words come out of my mouth, this man broke into our conversation and told me we'd have to test it first. Several times. I called out his rudeness but he proceeded, while he was "helping" his own customer (he left angry too). He then again tests my dead battery and again says it's good, without showing me. Tells me he won't replace my warrantee part like it was coming out of his pay. He was the most disagreeable man I've ever encountered.

So now I hear I sit, out of $259 because this store won't honor their warranties. The man next to me was about as happy with this news as I was and he left angry too. I could almost tolerate this if it wasn't also for the complete lack of respect I was shown. I don't need to be treated like a princess, but raising your voice to me in a store where you are employed is just plain outrageous. If anyone is wondering, this man's name I did not obtain but he looks like if Meatloaf had a baby with Skeletor. Avoid him at all costs. He does not deserve to have a job with his complete and utter lack of customer service.

So, do not go here, especially as a woman, or you will be talked down to like you know nothing, even when you are correct and have paperwork to verify it. I will never enter this store again and I urge everyone to do the same. I will mention that the man I encountered the first time was nice, and the other man who tried to help me today was lovely. But this guy? Deserves to be fired.

I'm Eman Alshakh, a stage four cancer patient who purchased with my son a starter for my Honda Odyssey car on 07/03 early in the morning from 9501 Northern Blvd, Jackson Heights, NY ******* Autozone location. The starter cost me over $300 for the mechanic fee, yet after the job that was for $150 was done my car didn't start at all and became worst. I was told to return the item because the starter was defective, by multiple mechanics. As such I went and spoke with one of the managers to request a refund for the defective starter, I went to the nearest Autozone at the time which was located at 3050 77th Street East Elmhurst, NY *******, and spoke to the assistant manager Helen, an amiable young lady whom would help me refund the starter and purchase a functioning one and that Autozone's insurance would cover the mechanic fee for the starter's removal that was $180. However, she told me that I must go to manager Singh at the original location, as to be recompensated for the mechanic fee of the defective starter. On 07/06 I was greeted by manager Singh's appalling attitude, as he started yelling at me with a nasty tone and didn't attempt to de-escalate the situation in any way. Manager Singh was very unscrupulous and patronizing throughout the whole interaction he wouldn't provide me with a refund, even though I provided him with the receipt for the mechanic as he told me that the $150 mechanic fee wouldn't be covered because I didn't have a receipt and stated that their insurance policy would pay for it. I have been in this crisis for 3 days in the scorching sun, I was feeling very fatigued and frustrated throughout my interaction with manager Singh and wanted to call the ambulance and police yet manager Singh kept yelling at me. To this date I have not received a call from the insurance and whenever I call manager Singh's Autozone located at 9501 Northern Blvd, Jackson Heights, NY *******. They either hang up on my face or keep me on hold, I would like to state that the staff and manager Singh at this location are very unprofessional, dishonest, and condescending. I implore Autozone executives to revise their nomination of manager Singh to a district manager, as his attitude and mannerism are very unbecoming of a manager at Autozone as he has dismal communication and social skills, and if he was promoted to a district manager it would be disastrous for a reputable company such as Autozone.

On 8/17/2022 (Geraldine Zamora) a fellow AutoZone employee at store 5594 off of Marysville Boulevard in Sacramento, CA. Mr. Zamora called me a ni***r in spanish in front of multiple customers and a fellow manager (Crystil Linzsey). Mr. Zamora would continue to call me a ni***r each time he would see me even after I spoke to him explaining that to him that is not my name. The following day, I reported the situation to the store manager (Gregory Williams-Bivens). Since then, Mr. Zamora continued to work and created a hostile work environment until he chose to leave. There was not anything done, and the situation continued.

On 7/14/2022 (Crystil Linzsey) a fellow manager came to me while I was at lunch and asked me for my opinion on a personal matter. She asked me "how do you tell a guy that you don't want to be with them anymore because you found someone else"? I told her that it is not my place to give her counseling and the only thing I will say is just do not lead him on to believe in something that is not true. Three days later (Crystil Linzsey) came to work, I was in the back of the store she started speaking to me about how her ex-boyfriend (Anthony) is being crazy, and she is afraid. I explained to her at that point in time I did not want to be involved but she continued to explain to me ingrate detail of what was taking place. Over the next several months (Crystil Linzsey) showed me pictures on her phone of "ghost guns" and pictures of drugs. Gregory Williams-Bivens has also acknowledged that he has also seen those pictures from Crystil Linzsey phone. She would explain to me that this is the life of her ex-boyfriend (Anthony). I told her I do not care, and that crap needs to be left out of the workplace.

Around 8/17/2022 (Crystal Linzsey) calls me at 11PM at night to tell me that her gun was stolen by her (ex-Anthony). I never gave Crystil my phone number and I don't know how she got it, but she wanted to know what she should do so I told her she should call the cops and report it. The next several days at work she would talk about how her ex-boyfriend is that type that would shoot up the store and I told her she needs to stop. Around this time everyone in the store is on edge. We then find out that Crystil and Kevin are dating, and all this crap is because Anthony is mad, and Kevin does not want to be seen as a punk. For a while it got to the point people were coming to the store looking for Kevin with intent to fight him.

On 9/9/2022 I went to work and as I clocked in, I was on the phone with my girlfriend, at that moment Crystil and Kevin started talking to me and I told them enough is enough. I told them that if they do not stop that I was going to report it too corporate. Kevin then tells me that I am Whitewashed, and that is some white people $#*!, and that's why white people get wiped out because they put their nose in other people's business. This whole time Crystil is backing what Kevin is saying adding that if I go to corporate, they cannot guarantee my safety as well as Sarah's safety. Kevin then adds that it is easy to find people because of the internet, Facebook, Instagram, etc. At lunch time when I got home Sarah was crying in fear because of Kevins threats and she was on the phone with corporate filing a complaint and I did the same.

Every day after I filed my complaint with corporate on 9/9/2022, Crystal stands over me when I am working, she micromanages my every move and it is to the point I do not feel comfortable, and I have asked her to stop! Even told Gregory Williams- Bivens the store manager and his response is that she is not breaking any laws.

Before I filed any complaint, Gregory Williams- Bivens told me I would be looked at for a position as store manager soon. On 9/23/2022 I was told by Gregory William-Bivens that if the district manager called and asked if I were ready, he would say that I am not ready.

I have filed a complaint again because nothing was done. On 9/24/2022, The district manager over the phone asked me if HR called and I told him no. He went on to ask me yes and no question, making me feel as if this was my fault. He called me a liar telling me that I did not try to call him when I did.

I do not feel safe at the store I work at and I feal like I will be retaliated against if I move or stay. It seems like they just want to sweep this under the rug. I have already been told that If I leave, I will be demoted.

On Tuesday, September 27,2022, at 7:21AM, I James Bibb received a text message from Mr. Isaac Chavez the Human Resource Manager for AutoZone explaining to me that he would like to meet with me to further discuss the incident's that took place at store 5594 located at 3121 Marysville Boulevard, Sacramento, CA *******. Mr. Isaac further states that he would like to meet at store 5603 at 1:30 PM located at 3455 Watt Ave., Sacramento, CA ******* to discuss and to create a documented complaint about the events that took place at store 5594.

I did arrive as expected at 1:30 PM to meet with Mr. Isaac Chavez where we did discuss the events at store 5594. At the end I requested a copy of the complaint for my records and Mr. Isaac Chavez explain to me that that complaint although I signed it his property of AutoZone and that he would not be able to provide me a copy. Mr. Isaac asked if I filed any complaints with any agencies outside of AutoZone. I told him I filed a complaint with the California Equal Housing and Employment Commission about two weeks before our meeting and his demeanor changed.

At the conclusion of our meeting Mr. Isaac told me I would be transferred only temporarily until their investigation of the situation and allegations was completed. He told me I would have to speak with the district manager, Mr. Jose!

When I contacted Mr. Jose, he said they can transfer me, but I would have to take a demotion in which I told him I would not accept. Mr. Jose further told me that I can transfer to store 5587 which is in Auburn or 4824 located in Roseville to include store 5546 located in Rocklin, all the stores are at least 20 miles away in one direction.

I James Bibb informed Mr. Jose that I cannot travel that far because of a motorcycle accident that I was in less than a year to date, and that I have been out of a wheelchair for just over a month and a half. Mr. Jose informed me that he will get back to me, which I have yet to hear from him and or Mr. Isaac the Human Resurce Manager.

On October 3,2022, at 4:57PM Mr. Walter the store manager at store 5603 located off Watt Ave, and Whitney sent me a text message informing me that I have foundations class at the hub store on Wednesday at 8 AM and that all I needed was my employee ID number, he informs me that I will be going to their store until further notice. I sent a response text to Mr. Walter asking him what day I am supposed to start working at store 5603 and if I can get the address for the hub store in which I never received a response.

Over the past three months, I have sent multiple text messages but mostly made phone calls to phone number *******215, which was provided by Isaac Chavez, Human Resurce Manager for AutoZone. Although all my attempts to communicate and understand my position and my employment with AutoZone, they have chosen to shut me out and ghost me.

It is clear as of today that I am no longer employed by AutoZone because of their zero response to my messages and/or calls. Because of their actions I have been forced to assume that my employment was terminated without verbal or written notification.

On Oct 4,2022, I sent a text message to Mr. Isaac and Mr. Walter explaining to them both that when I was on the phone with Mr. Jose the District Manager, he was extremely rude and unprofessional to me, making me feel as if this situation was my fault because I filed a complaint with Corporate. I also stated that I would have to resign my position with AutoZone if this hostility continued. In the text I sent, it did not send correctly.

I then received a call from Mr. Isaac, and I remembered explaining to him that I do not feel comfortable. I remember telling him that I am not quitting and that I need my start date at store 5603. Mr. Isaac wanted me to come in at 9am to speak more but he cancelled.

On Jan 24,2023, I was talking to Mr. Walter, and he told me that I resigned, and I explained that I did not and that I spoke to Mr. Isaac and cleared it up back on Oct 4,2022, regarding the incorrect text I sent. I have not heard anything from AutoZone about my employment. I have sent text messages and made calls to Mr. Isaac over the past several months to not receive a response back. I have been ghosted.

My brakes needed to be replaced when I went to a "business" located at ******* Main Steet in Matteson, Ilinois. A man who identified himself as Derrick said he could perform the work for 400.00. He told me he would purchase the brakes and rotors under his business license and that I would get a lifetime warranty for the pads and a two-year warranty for the rotors. I asked him if AutoZone would honor the warranty if it was not in my name and he said a number on the receipt that was associated with his business would allow me to access the warranty with or without him.

After the brake job was completed, I went to AutoZone to confirm what I was told was true. Amanda, the store manager told me they did not have a business account under the name listed on the invoice. However, I heard Amanda via speakerphone talking to the Derrick when the parts were ordered. Their conversation was very personal and familiar. Therefore, I know she knew who this person was. She also told me he may have not even made the purchase at that store. I told her I knew he did because I was in the car. Before I left the store, I asked Amanda if there was anything she could do to get the warranty in my name. She told me there was absolutely nothing that could be done.

I picked up Derrick and took him back to AutoZone. When we arrived, one of the store employees was standing outside smoking a cigarette. He and Derrick did not speak but they both went inside the store and walked straight to the cash register. Derrick started explaining the situation to the employee and then asked him to confirm that I could indeed use the warranty without him being present. The employee said no, she cannot. After a lot of back and forth I asked what could be done. The employee said he could do a return and re-sale the items under my name. When he printed out the return, I found out the purchase was made under "Car King Auto" and not "Destiny Auto& Battery". Once that was done, I was given 244.18. I gave Derrick $310.00 to pay for the brakes and rotors because he said the cost was 309.00. No one could explain why I was only given 244.18 instead of 310.00.

The manager never assisted or advised on this return; which I find peculiar seeing as she was the one who told me there was nothing that could be done to get the warranty in my name. I ended up not being given an explanation as to why I was given 244.18 instead of 310.00 and also paying an additional $108.97.

After I'd paid, I was asked if I wanted a paper receipt or both email and paper receipt. The employee asked me if my name was spelled correctly and I said no. He reached around the monitor and pressed the cancel button and handed me a printed receipt. Because I was well aware that my name was spelled incorrectly, I asked if I would be getting an email receipt and he said no, I messed up your name and I don't know how to fix it. I demanded an email receipt, and it took over 45 minutes to get an email that still was not the one I should have gotten.

I am not sure what happened with this entire situation, but I believe the staff at AutoZone was in cahoots with this unscrupulous mechanic and somehow, they all profited off my ignorance. I will never trust AutoZone again. BTW, this AutoZone is in Richton Park Illinois.

When going to the store you expect to find somebody to help you they go tell you to go go look yourself 75th Indian School 59th and Indian School

Ordered a set of brake pads and rotors for my car. I ordered over the weekend and had two day shipping so the site said it would be here on that Tuesday. Tuesday came around and the order hadn't even shipped yet so I called customer service who told me that the item was coming directly from a vendor and it was delayed so it may be delivered next week but that is just an estimate. Since this is an important part of the car, I told them I wanted to cancel the order and be refunded so I could go somewhere else to purchase the items. (website specifically says that I won't be charged until the item shipped and I was charged same day so I assumed that it was processed immediately) I twas told that I couldn't cancel it because it was coming from the vendor directly. And informed me that when it comes directly from the vendor, the customer is charged immediately. They told me that all of this information was on the order page. If it was, it was in tiny print that was not readable. He then brushed me off and asked if there was anything else he could help me with, so I said I wanted to talk to his supervisor. He put me on hold and did not bring the supervisor but had conveyed that they told him they would try and get ahold of the vendor to cancel the order but that wasn't guaranteed and it may take 24-48 hours. Overall, nothing was solved, I do not have my products and I do not have my money. I will be contacting my bank for further assistance since autozone is incapable of helping the people who keep their business open.
I don't understand why they don't make it more visible that there are different rules when things are coming from a vendor. And make it more visible when an order is not coming from autozone directly. Also, if I wanted to order from a vendor, I would have ordered through them. I ordered on autozone.com, and it should be safe to assume that orders come from their wearhouse. If that is not the case, or they do not have the item in stock, it should be listed as being on backorder rather than arriving in two days. When you are dealing with a well-known and reputable company, I would think that there would be better measures to assure that orders are met in a timely manner and communication is made if there is a delay or an exception. Even when a delivery date is "estimated" that still generally means that the delivery will be made within a day or two of that date.
Definitely will be finding other autostores, as they are a dime a dozen, and will be making sure that people know not to come here. Not sure how this company is staying in business when they are putting false information on their website and their customer service is trash and less than helpful.

IF YOU GUYS CAN STAY AWAY FROM THIS PAGE DO TI. I ORDER LAST MONTH TWO THINGS AN IT IS DECEMBER 15th AND STILL HAVEN GOTTEN ANYTHING YET. HORRENDOUS.

Thanks Kim, from Auto Zone #1295. You gave Excellent service & very polite to me! #URock #StaySafe

The issue with AutoZone are the counter people at AutoZone at store ******* really understand anything about cars they just assume or Google most items none of them are mechanically inclined until I met a fellow by Richard Gonzalez I overheard him speaking to a few customers in prepared him to others there at the counter I was blown away animes on how much knowledge she knew I'd ask him a question about my 350 small block my question was if I can convert it to a 383 stroker motor and he said of course and explain the difference between the 350 and 383 cylinders then that's where he proceeded to write me a list of items that needed pretty much it was consistency of how much dollars can you on between a 350 and a 383 where I'm not really too familiar with any kind of stroke motors but yet I am building a sand drag and I was given a 350 small block therefore I came to AutoZone to get professional help mr. Gonzalez blew my mind when he said the great motor and he goes into gear mode and tells me to buy a crankshaft rod with dimensions of 10 to 521 piston set 4 bolt main main steel caps if you're running a 4 minute bolt or if I was running to main I would have to get it to crank shaft for a 2 bolt main also I needed to buy a set of L-31 vortec cylinder heads because his knowledge and skills an experience I will continue to shop at AutoZone for I will be looking for mr. Gonzalez to help me with my issues thank you for hiring such a great guy to the district manager thank you for hiring someone so knowledgeable and professional. AutoZone at that Spanish speaking at store ******* I look forward to coming into AutoZone and looking for Mister Gonzales for his expert advice I will send him my wife a few times to come in and ask questions about my 1971 Mach 1 351 Cleveland motor can people always get my wife the low-grade gaskets so as she brings home all these gaskets I'm like what do they sell you who do you speak to anyways I just want to thank AutoZone for hiring such a fine gentleman very respectful greeted me at the door greeted me at the computer where he reached out shook my hand and said how are you doing today sir that was a first for me nobody's ever done that just want to acknowledge him great customer service satisfied customer will be back to talk to meet results thanks AutoZone make my experience very great.

I used to work for Auto Zone. I was a low level manager for a time in Raleigh, North Carolina. Although sitejabber seems to be fairly happy with them, I've seen a million bad reviews on Auto Zone from different websites and I thought I could give one from the other side of the counter. I'm going to condense many of the complaints I've heard together to try to address as many as I can.

A big complaint flying around is that the employees generally don't know anything about cars, whether it be talking about them or actually putting their hands on them. Also there have been efforts to point out on other sites that there are an unusual number of Hispanics working in the company... These complaints are absolutely true.

One thing you have to understand is that Auto Zone is a business; and just like any business the point is to make money. Obviously Auto Zone wants people who can do that for them. Specifically, Hispanics are often employed simply because they speak Spanish. A Spanish speaker opens the door for customers who do not know English. I can't tell you how many bilingual people I saw gain employment despite being completely incompetent. Actually knowing how cars work? That's not important. In fact, there's an unwritten motto behind the counter... it's "We are salesmen, not mechanics."

And I totally agree with these complaints. Auto Zone is advertised as a place for reliable information. It even says on the sign outside the store: Auto Zone. Auto Parts. ADVICE and very few employees really know a lot about engines.

In all fairness though, efforts are made to educate their employees on certain car systems through computerized presentations and tests, although labor is so cut back, any test taking is often interrupted because the employee needs to help up front (more on that later) and anything learned is often forgotten. What's worse is that in a lot of these cases, an entire store's worth of education is actually done by the store manager because he can't spare the hours it takes for everyone to do their training. Bottom line: money comes first, knowledge of the craft second.

A lot of people seem to have a problem with the quality of Auto Zone's parts. First let me clarify something: Auto Zone and Duralast are the same thing. Duralast is an in-house brand. Personally I have a number of Duralast parts in my car right now, and I typically don't have a problem with them. However I know very well that no retailer can have a 100% success rate with their parts... which leads me to my next point: labor claims. Most stores are separated into two departments: DIY (Do It Yourself) which is simply the store that you walk into and buy products, and the commercial department which deals with delivering parts to local shops like Precision Tune and Firestone.

A labor claim is when a commercial client receives a defective part and is reimbursed for having to install the part twice after the part is replaced. It is actually a very complicated process and most of them get denied anyway. In reality, it's only ever actually implemented to cater to the highest paying commercial clients to keep their business. But DIY? A walk-in customer like you? It's unheard of. DIY labor claims do not exist under any circumstances. So the Duralast timing belt you bought broke and the pistons bent your valves? You're wasting your breath and time going after Auto Zone. Honestly, you're not giving them enough money for them to entertain not letting you walk out the door. Unless you're prepared to take them to court, forget it.

More than a few people have commented on the length of time it takes to get certain parts. Based on what I've read, I'm fairly certain they're referring to Vendor Direct Parts. Certain products can only come from vendors because Auto Zone doesn't stock them in stores or warehouses. The complaints usually say the part is supposed to arrive in about three or four days, but it ends up taking two weeks or more. I've seen it happen a million times, but that ETA that they quote you when you originally buy the part? Yeah, that's a FedEx estimate; Auto Zone has nothing to do with it. So if you're ordering a part in North Carolina, and the part is coming from Ohio, and an earthquake hits Oregon, it's a safe bet that your part is going to be late... it's all about how FedEx works. How many times have you sent a package via UPS or FedEx only to have it arrive late because of a holiday or weekend or inclement weather? The real problem is that the employees aren't trained to explain this to you, the customer; they are trained to always guarantee you that "we have the right part (literally)!"

Long lines have appeared a number of times also. Let me cut to the chase: the shifts are so shorthanded that if one person gets sick and calls out, the whole system comes down. Bad labor coverage was a plague the whole two years I worked for them. With very few exceptions (mostly HUB stores and truck night), most stores are only manned by two people at a given time: a manager (gray shirt) and a low level red shirt. And this is what is going on at any given time: there's a manager and a red shirt. The red shirt is outside changing a battery... He will be indisposed for at least twenty minutes... IF he knows what he's doing. There are four people waiting in line inside. The phone is ringing. The guy on aisle two is stealing. The manager is supposed to have two planograms and online training all done by the time he leaves today. Online orders are coming in. Yep, sure enough, the guy on aisle two just walked out the door and the theft sensor went off... There's no time to go after him. The labor shortage is all about cutting costs just like any other retail store in the United States of America. And speaking of the phone...

One review I've read in particular noted the excessive importance of the phone. He's right and let me tell you why: corporate management has created a strict script (yes, a script) that they want all calls to be handled by. They enforce this by having district managers call stores of neighboring districts (so nobody recognizes their voices) pretending to be customers and grading the store based on this call. Rule #1? The phone must be answered within two rings. Take too long to answer the phone and you automatically fail and get chewed out. Put that call on hold and you automatically fail too. The importance of the phone became so great when I was there, that some employees resorted to giving fake names over the phone to make it harder to reprimand them if they didn't follow the script exactly. Expect no less from a company that thinks reciting a script qualifies as good customer service. So picture this: you've been waiting in line for a half hour (because of the aforementioned labor shortage), and you finally get to the counter. You just get done telling the employee what kind of car you have while he enters it into the computer, and then the phone rings. The employee has to answer it. As he takes the call, he hits the New Customer button and wipes out all the information you just told him. Three minutes later, the call ends and you have to tell the employee what kind of car you have again... and then the phone rings again. Rinse and repeat.

Allow me to give you a few tips in helping dealing with this company. For those of you who want to submit a complaint to corporate office, you have a few options. The most obvious of which is to simply go online or call the customer service number on the receipt and issue a complaint. Less well known is the sign that is on or near the door to every Auto Zone store. The sign is read from the outside and has three phone numbers on it. The first of which is the store manager, and for the record, the phone number next to the store manager's name is the phone number to the store. In many cases this is actually the most effective. A store manager will be more sensitive to the customers in their own store. The downside is that usually these complaints go undocumented.

If you're not getting results (or if the store manager is the one you have a problem with) you may try the next number: the district manager. First off: good luck trying to get this guy to answer his phone. If you simply have a "rudeness" complaint, most likely he will just document it and assure you he will look into it and really do nothing. It will take a number of complaints about the same store before he will really do anything. The third number, the regional manager, is even worse. This guy is in charge of upwards of a hundred stores in multiple states... He doesn't entertain a million calls about low level employees being rude. If you want his attention, your complaint better not be anything short of "your employee sexually harassed me". He only listens to the most extreme of grievances.

Another common issue seems to be the honoring of warranties. The warranty database is shared company wide, so no matter what store you bought the part from, you should be able to access that warranty at any other store nationwide. The greatest tip? When you buy the part, make sure EVERYTHING is accurate. People don't get to cash in their rightful warranty because they change their phone numbers, a woman gets married and changes her last name, they move and change their zip codes, things like that. There has been more than one time when I had to get creative and dig deep to find out that the customer's name was misspelled. When you get the part: Make. Sure. Your. Information. Is. Right... and then remember when you change that information. The best thing you can do is take your receipt and scan it into a computer, preserving all information including a transaction number.

Not satisfied with them still? Wanna make them mad? I'll give you a tip: walk in the store... and buy a soda. Seriously. You see, Auto Zone is just another one of those corporate retail chains that care more about their shareholders than their customers and employees. And every year the managers at the top have to explain to them the status of the company, and of course they want to hear good things. Basically the executives have come up with a series of ridiculous numbers to track growth in the company. In reality they're manipulated numbers meant to distract the shareholders from a potentially dismal bottom line. One such number is "average ticket". It tracks how much the average customer spends by dividing the total day's sales by the number of transactions done for that day. So if the total money (you know, the whole reason a business is a business) is not up to the right projections, the executives distract the shareholders by telling/whining to them that "the average customer is spending twenty percent more than they were last year." So what do you think walking in and buying an item worth a dollar and fifty cents does to that ticket (when the goal is usually about $20 to $25 average ticket)? What do you think it does when you turn around and walk right back in and do it again? Store managers would rather have that soda grow legs and walk out the door than ring it up by itself and actually make the dollar it's worth.

Allow me to leave you with an anecdote from my experience: we had a low level manager who was caught stealing four hundred dollars (that's how much she was actually caught with at least). Was this manager fired? No, not even demoted. She was transferred. Rumors have circulated that Auto Zone didn't want to risk a potential lawsuit or having to pay her unemployment benefits so she got transferred to another store where the manager is going to be hard on her in the hopes of making her quit of her own free will... That's the kind of company I worked for.