MALADY. MALAISE. Morphing to malignancy, worsening to malevolence, thereby inviting malediction. In mall transactions, what can start as petty irritants can end up to really serious matters.
Like in the case of a retired police-general friend.
Garambie does his grocery shopping at the Hyper Mart. For as long as he can remember, he has always been shortchanged, by no more than a few centavos lang naman. Piqued as he was, he let go of these minor infractions, charging them to charity.
One time, Garambie just could not reconcile the bulk in his green plastic bags with the amount punched in his receipt. Reviewing the entries, he found he was overcharged by some P2,000.
It took an eternity for that simple mistake to be corrected. And even longer for the mall management to make the necessary amends.
In his police days as the man they called “Dirty Harry of Angeles City,” body bags – instead of shopping bags – would have most surely been taken out of that Hyper Mart counter.
Then there is the case of Rey Navales of Sun Star Pampanga who was told to come back on the next sale after he tried to return the pack of briefs he bought at the SM department store during the current sale which turned out to be one size too small.
Paging the Department of Trade and Industry here. Ain’t the “No Return, No Exchange” practice been long banned?
Just last month, a friend bought a bottle of Bulgari perfume for some P5,000 at the SM City Clark perfume department. After a few days, the scent would be gone in a matter of two to three minutes.
So my friend brought it back to where he bought it. And promptly it was received with the promise that it will be replaced. Since then my friend has become a virtual ping-pong ball, going back and forth with the store management always finding reason not to give him the replacement.
This – plus similar experiences of acquaintances – has given my friend the reason to believe that fake colognes, eau de toilettes, and other perfumes have found their way at the SM City Clark’s department store.
Paging the mall manager, or failing there, paging Bien Mateo.
Good my friend is laid-back and non-confrontational. Else, with his stature and influence, SM would have most surely had one hell of a time dealing with him.
Then there’s Banner’s Ashley Manabat, a daily presence at Starbucks. Just over a week ago, a tire of Ashley’s Avanza was punctured right at the parking lot near Starbucks.
“Sinadya (Done on purpose).” So said the vulcanizing man who checked the tire.
Paging the mall security guards.
There’s me too. One time my old Toyota Crown had a scratch running from fender to tail, at the end of which was a grocery cart. Right there at the parking lot by SM City Clark’s main entrance.
At another time, on the same parking lot, my Avanza had dents by the driver’s door the size of peso coins.
Still and all, we were far luckier than those University of the Assumption students who lost two bags containing a laptop and a videocam right at the package deposit counter of the supermarket at SM City Pampanga.
The SM door being shut to their faces, the poor students had to go to the provincial board to seek redress, and from there to the courts.
We were more fortunate too than Board Member Ric Yabut who lost his gun, cash and valuables to the “bukas-kotse” gang also at SM City Pampanga, and the others who lost not only valuables but their very cars at the malls’ parking lots.
Ah, the price we have to pay for malling!
Like in the case of a retired police-general friend.
Garambie does his grocery shopping at the Hyper Mart. For as long as he can remember, he has always been shortchanged, by no more than a few centavos lang naman. Piqued as he was, he let go of these minor infractions, charging them to charity.
One time, Garambie just could not reconcile the bulk in his green plastic bags with the amount punched in his receipt. Reviewing the entries, he found he was overcharged by some P2,000.
It took an eternity for that simple mistake to be corrected. And even longer for the mall management to make the necessary amends.
In his police days as the man they called “Dirty Harry of Angeles City,” body bags – instead of shopping bags – would have most surely been taken out of that Hyper Mart counter.
Then there is the case of Rey Navales of Sun Star Pampanga who was told to come back on the next sale after he tried to return the pack of briefs he bought at the SM department store during the current sale which turned out to be one size too small.
Paging the Department of Trade and Industry here. Ain’t the “No Return, No Exchange” practice been long banned?
Just last month, a friend bought a bottle of Bulgari perfume for some P5,000 at the SM City Clark perfume department. After a few days, the scent would be gone in a matter of two to three minutes.
So my friend brought it back to where he bought it. And promptly it was received with the promise that it will be replaced. Since then my friend has become a virtual ping-pong ball, going back and forth with the store management always finding reason not to give him the replacement.
This – plus similar experiences of acquaintances – has given my friend the reason to believe that fake colognes, eau de toilettes, and other perfumes have found their way at the SM City Clark’s department store.
Paging the mall manager, or failing there, paging Bien Mateo.
Good my friend is laid-back and non-confrontational. Else, with his stature and influence, SM would have most surely had one hell of a time dealing with him.
Then there’s Banner’s Ashley Manabat, a daily presence at Starbucks. Just over a week ago, a tire of Ashley’s Avanza was punctured right at the parking lot near Starbucks.
“Sinadya (Done on purpose).” So said the vulcanizing man who checked the tire.
Paging the mall security guards.
There’s me too. One time my old Toyota Crown had a scratch running from fender to tail, at the end of which was a grocery cart. Right there at the parking lot by SM City Clark’s main entrance.
At another time, on the same parking lot, my Avanza had dents by the driver’s door the size of peso coins.
Still and all, we were far luckier than those University of the Assumption students who lost two bags containing a laptop and a videocam right at the package deposit counter of the supermarket at SM City Pampanga.
The SM door being shut to their faces, the poor students had to go to the provincial board to seek redress, and from there to the courts.
We were more fortunate too than Board Member Ric Yabut who lost his gun, cash and valuables to the “bukas-kotse” gang also at SM City Pampanga, and the others who lost not only valuables but their very cars at the malls’ parking lots.
Ah, the price we have to pay for malling!
