Savers — Attraction in Crystal Lake

2 out of 5 visits, I find what I'm looking for, which is great considering it's a thrift store.

My problem is with the staff/corporate policies.

1. I can tell they're used to shoplifters. I really don't appreciate giving my money to a company that doesn't trust me in their store. I can't even use the bathroom without 'asking'; although I had been asking an employee to watch my cart while I used bathroom because they often emptied my cart in the 3mins I was in the loo (impressive, I know) So this doesn't affect me much

2. Staff isn't friendly. I get it. You're working at a thrift store, but I still would like a smile rather than looming eyes. Maybe they're upset at the fact of savers corporate taking the hit of expected shoplifting over the cost of hiring employees to ring people.

3. This is a long story. Short and skinny, dont depend on the coupons you receive if you're on a budget. While shopping for items that qualified with my 20% off coupon, I get a call from my kids' school and need to go pick him up. I'd have been at the store for 2 hours at this point. Determined to get the most of my hard earned coupon, I explain to the man to register my situation. "Can I please leave my cart here? I have a 20% coupon that's good for ONE purchase, BUT I have an emergency and will be back in 1 hour. " The gentleman says, "Yes, no problem. I'll take your name and leave a note on the cart so nobody moves it. "

PERFECT, I think. I love Savers, I think to myself.

An hour and 5 minutes later, I return to my cart and wave to the man, gesturing my appreciation for his help and understanding. 2 hours later, I go to checkout, and purposely scan my coupon first...you know, to ensure I don't forget it (self checkout because they can't trust you in their public bathroom, but, yet trust you to ring yourself 🤔) . As the line behind me gets longer, I rush (again, pressure on ME from fellow shoppers and the same employee managing the line of shoppers to checkout). I completed my purchase. As I'm bagging my items with a fellow shopper already up to the register I used, doing the math in my head, I realize the coupon didn't register. I ask the employee who's managing the line to help me make sense of this, showing him the coupon and receipt. He looks at the receipt then the coupon and says "the coupon has been scanned" as he proceeds to help me bag my purchase (because there's another customer standing 1 foot beside us waiting to checkout at the register I'm still using). I look at him blankly and say, "Yes, I scanned it, but it didn't apply to my purchase." At this point, all my items are bagged, and he is walking me out the checkout isle towards the exit. He says again, "The coupon can not be used twice." My expression was sympathetic, I figured the older man didn't understand my issue, as I repeated, "Yes, I scanned the coupon and rang all my items. None of the items on my receipt are discounted. How can I get the 20% off?" His expression wasn't anger...more like, I have a job to do, I helped you now please help me and leave as he repeated "there's nothing I can do because the coupon has been scanned" I say, "Sir, I'm not trying to argue, especially over $20.00, but I need to know why I've just spent all day expecting to use a coupon that didn't register." Honestly, I was about to cry...not sure why... Maybe it was the other shoppers staring at me. Maybe it was the 5 hours I'd spent in a thrift store to use a stupid 20% coupon. I felt so stupid, duped, and exhausted. Not wanting to be THAT woman....I left without another word

I learned two months later from a cashier that was looming over my shoulder at checkout that you must scan the coupon AFTER all items are scanned, NOT before;she had been standing there staring at me, so I asked her how to use the coupon. She was VERY excited to tell me what to do 🙄🙄 and oddly enough, even more happy to learn, I didn't know how to use thrift store coupons. I'm glad I could make her feel...

Almost wish I didn’t have to pick 1 star. No stars in my book. Was in on Sunday shopping around that went fine. I had found something that looked like a mini harness and lease combo. Very small. Almost looked like it was for a toy? Either way a friend of mine had been trying to make and buy a harness for her bearded dragon, nothing was working out. I snapped her a picture saying I thought it would fit him! After I was home already which is in Richmond... a little drive from crystal lake... she had replied and was very excited about it but she works over nights and didn’t think she would have a chance to make it there anytime soon... I said I would stop by after work tomorrow and grab it. Monday night i get off work and drive over there. The parking lot and store itself was a mad house!!! Aparently they had a sale going on. I didn’t know I didn’t stop to look at anything or a sign if there was one. Just ran in to the back right where they had a bucket filled with collars leashes etc. that’s where I found it! Ran up to the register... waited in line. Finally my turn and the cashier just flips it around the counter a bunch and really snarky asks “does this not have a tag on it? scoff” and i said I didn’t know I didn’t even look! Just pulled it out of a bucket picking it up for a friend... she then said that she could not sell it... simple as that. I asked if she could get someone to put a tag on it... she said no. At this point I’m getting irritated. She is talking to me like I should be well aware of this when it’s my 3rd time ever in their store... but also I had to ask... why are there things out that you cannot sell? Why don’t you have someone going around to make sure there are price tags on everything... why was it in a tangled bucket for the tag to just fall off... I’m sure it probably was at the bottom of that bucket but I didn’t go back to look because it would not have mattered. Another woman chimed in saying It had to go back to “production” and they would get it priced and back out. So I asked how long it would take thinking I’d still get to buy the item... ha... she said it maybe back out tomorrow. I asked if I could call and check before driving here... she said I could “try” I asked if they would hold it for me for the inconvenience of driving here for nothing? For them having items out with no tags... she said they don’t do holds...then she attempted to imply that I took the tag off to get a cheaper price because today is a sale. I asked why someone would need to do that on a sale day? I offered to pay whatever for it $20 more than $20 whatever just because it was a hassle for me to get there anyway... nothing... so I was pretty much just out of luck. Horrible expiercence... I don’t believe I will even be returning... another woman upfront mentions it may be a rat leash. I think I would rather just find a store or a website that sells those and buy from there. Even if over priced I feel they deserve my business more than the savers in...

I have no reason not to give this a 5 stars. It is a very large thrift store doing what it can to survive in this economy. The other big-name donation based stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army have online stores where they sell most of their better items with an auction style just like eBay. This is the wave of the future.

Many thrift stores use eBay to value items because they want to make more money to support the business and its staff. I do not know if the people I saw working were volunteers or paid staff, but they were doing a great job. It was two younger girls that would take these red carts filled with items and move them around the store, and fill the shelves with what each cart had on it. They cleared out 4 or 5 of these carts, and by the time I got back to that area, they had another 4 or 5 carts in front of them. They were working hard and fast, and I could tell they were committed to getting items on the shelf out as quickly as possible.

I have to commend all employees who work in these stores paid or not because many customers are pretty disrespectful with moving things and just trashing the shelves. As I'm shopping, I will routinely move items around and clean up the area that I'm thrifting in and, at the very least, put things back and straighten things up. They deserve some compassion and support for what they do. If you ever had a garage sale, you know that people just move things around, open things and not put them back in the box, etc.. you're constantly cleaning and fixing up your tables. Imagine that on a much larger scale!

In regards to pricing, the days are long gone that everything on the shelves is a deal! Those days are over. Estate sales, garage sales, and thrift stores are pricing things higher and wanting to make the most money they can for what they do.

I speak from experience and sell well over 1000+ items a year on eBay and have been thrifting and doing secondhand sales for over 30 years. There are items to find in these stores. You just have to adjust your resale thinking and step out of the areas that maybe you are comfortable selling in.

I bet some days the stress level of workers is off the chart. We all just need to be more compassionate and understanding of each others lives.

A few other key things were self-checkout and a drive up donation area, which had plenty of people to take things out...