"Imagine this: after a long day of working overtime, you've finally managed to get your toddler to bed. You realize you haven't eaten anything all day, and decide that you've earned a delicious sandwich. You've never tried Jersey Mike's before, so you place a pickup order for 15 minutes later.
You leave your house a bit late, knowing it's Saturday night and that the place might be busy, so you want to give yourself some extra time. When you arrive at the store, you check the pickup shelf, but your order isn’t there. No worries, you think, as you approach the register. However, an employee brusquely asks if you’re waiting for a pickup. When you confirm, they tell you—again, rather rudely—that they’re out of bread and it’ll take another 15 to 20 minutes. Then another employee chimes in, saying it’ll actually be more like 30 minutes or longer.
You can’t help but wonder why no one took just two minutes to call and inform you of the issue before you wasted time driving there, only to find out that your order, placed just 20 minutes ago, can’t be fulfilled. The cashier then walks over to the register and issues a refund without even offering an apology; it’s all silence. As you leave, you hear another customer expressing frustration about waiting 30 minutes for an online order with no prior notice.
Unfortunately, this was my experience with Jersey Mike's tonight, and what a disappointing first impression it was. I completely understand that things can get hectic and mistakes happen, but a little kindness and consideration can make a big difference in turning frustration into customer loyalty. If I had been informed of the delay ahead of time, I would have gladly waited for my order."
