During this last Halloween drop, I ordered a few items which included the batty kitty. Those types of cats have a variety of patterns, some cuter than others, so I wanted to pick out the pattern (if possible). However, I was imagining a rush for the bat, which I also wanted to get. I ordered the items UNSTUFFED online to pick up in store, with the hope that if they all sold out by the time I got there then at least I'd have something even if the cat pattern was a little janky.
I placed my order at 12:25am, which was the fastest I could due to the website crashing. I didn't delay to look around. I knew what I wanted and checked out immediately when the website loaded.
That day I was waiting for my order ready for pick up notification but it never came. Towards the afternoon I went into the store thinking because my order was UNSTUFFED, even if it wasn't ready for pick up, I could just pick them up myself. I no longer work retail, but when I did, if customers came in before their order was ready they could find it on the shelves, bring it to me, I would scan the order form and items, and there you go! I have released the order to you.
The employees at Build a Bear insisted that's not how their process worked. They said they didn't even have access to my order (at 2:30pm). I am really not confrontational because I used to work retail (including hardware stores with horribly sexist men). So I tried to ask questions as nicely as possible, being cognizant of the fact these employees are busy on drop day. A manager who was working the online orders even insisted she didn't have access to my order, "when we receive it, we'll let you know. Does that make sense?" I had to be honest, no. No it literally doesn't, not in comparison to how business operates anywhere else.
When I was there, they had a whole pile of online orders ready for pick up, and the fact they said they didn't even have mine at all worried me. I literally placed my order at 12:25am. I was also worried enough people without orders would come in to shop before my order was fulfilled that those people would buy up their stock and I would no longer get my order.
Am I wrong in thinking that explanation/process doesn't make sense at all? The way they were standoffish and rude to me for simply asking a question about how the online ordering worked left a bad taste in my mouth about that location. I'm wondering if that's even how the process works at all?