Best Buy — Attraction in Raleigh

WORST STORE& GEEK SQUAD. You want a good Geek squad go to the one in Cary/Crossroads!!!!

I had bought a whole desktop system from there, with all the insurance full membership coverage, all to have issues within 2-years of having my desktop and by no fault of my own. I went to the Glenwood Ave location to check it out only bc it was close by but when I got there I was told 2-3 days to check why my computer cut on but had no picture on the screen- It took 2-Weeks. When I came in after that time to find out what was wrong they told me it’d be another 2-Weeks to send it off for the replacement part bc they didn’t carry that GI card any longer.—— first they tried to sell me the part covered in my total insurance plan I got from Best Buy. The staff knew nothing about computers. Their testing showed it was one part but when I finally got my desktop back the BIOS and complete operating system had been wiped clean. I had only used my system for school and some business documentation. They told me before I even sent it off I’d need to pull out any enhancements I had made to my system bc it probably won’t come back. So basically Geek Squad’s headquarters scalps parts! BEWARE!!!

When I went to pick it up it didn’t even look like my desktop and I have pictures to show. A staff member who tried to sell me parts instead of helping me go through the Best Buy insurance didn’t know why my system no longer looked new, as if it had been switched out. It had a bunch of white streaks and my side panels on my desktop looked like it was missing but later found it inside my computer case. He then handed me off to someone who wasn’t even with the GeekSquad team.

The girl who came to help me identified as the store manager- but I later found out she WAS NOT THE STORE MANAGER. She didn’t consult with Geek squad members or myself truly to get an understanding of what was really happening, she knew nothing about computer technology and apparently their GeekSquad doesn’t keep reliable notes either- she just proceeded to get on the phone for almost an hour to find out about why my system went in looking new and came back looking used and with missing side panels.

After about an hour of holding on this phone call she unprofessionally started calling me “sweetie” and “baby”. Then told me that’s just how she talks when I told her my name again. Regardless to noting that it made me uncomfortable she proceeded to have an attitude as if it were a problem to call me by my name. I saw this was getting no where and asked for corporates number and her name- both she refused. She then called to the stores security and stated she may have an erratic customer so come to the geek squad desk and stating she could help me more if I just let her do what she was doing…. she wasn’t doing anything but talking at me while holding the phone. Once it got to the point I believed she was creating a hostile environment I called the police. She had already accused me of being or possibly getting erratic which was a lot to imply just because I needed help but asked her just don’t call me baby, could I get my paperwork or give me a copy that came back from the service center, and for corporates number. I just had to CALL THE POLICE (who gave me corporates number). I have seen this abuse in power before and was not interested in being in a her word against mine battle- so in order to get resolve and help I had to actually call the police to even get the documentation from the services done.

It was a lot to try to get help and then be treated like it was a problem to have questions about the service. No one knew how to find out what was going on with my computer system.

My family and I have been customers of Best Buy for a long time prior to this experience. It was nerve wrecking to think I gave them my system information.

Needless to say, ALL GEEK SQUAD AND BEST BUY’s ARE NOT CREATED EQUAL! Research the store first, read reviews, ask all the questions bc this store is not it! They don’t know what they’re doing and to have someone pose as the store...

If you value your time, don’t shop at Best Buy, because they clearly don’t.

TL;DR:

I ordered a dishwasher on April 1st. After three failed delivery/installation attempts, three trips to the store, and over an hour of phone calls, the job is still not done, and I am unable to even cancel. The dishwasher is sitting in my kitchen, unused, and Best Buy has offered no resolution.

I purchased a new dishwasher on April 1st, 2025, at my local Best Buy. I am very busy with work and didn’t want to deal with repairing the old one, so I opted for a new unit with installation and haul-away included, thinking this would save me time.

Attempt 1: April 5th The installer arrived, inspected my sink, and pointed out a minor leak under the sink faucet. I appreciated him flagging it and offered to sign a waiver to document the existing issue so he could proceed with installing the dishwasher. The dishwasher has nothing to do with the sink faucet. He refused to install the dishwasher and left.

Attempt 2: Appointment Canceled (Supposedly) While waiting on plumbing repairs, Best Buy called to reschedule. I explained the situation, and they said I could cancel if needed. The repair wasn’t done by the appointment, and I used the online system to cancel the next appointment in advance. Despite this, I received a text on the appointment day abut the incoming appointment, and when I called Best Buy, they informed me that same-day cancellations weren’t allowed and advised me to simply not open the door. I literally had to hide in my home while the delivery team knocked.

Attempt 3: Early Morning Wake-Up, But No Install Once the plumbing was fixed, I called Best Buy. After 25 minutes on hold, I scheduled delivery/installation. They gave me a massive 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. delivery window. That morning, I was woken up at 7:10 a.m. by a phone call from Best Buy, and by 7:30 a.m., the delivery team was at my door. I opened it half-asleep, only for them to drop the dishwasher in the middle of my kitchen and leave. No installation. No haul-away. They told me they are here just to drop off the unit. When I called customer service again, which took another half an hour, I was told they couldn’t schedule anything until that day’s job was “closed out,” and to call back the next day.

Attempt 4: Haul-Away Only? Frustrated, I went back to the store and spoke with the manager. He apologized and scheduled another appointment. On the day of that appointment, the team showed up just to haul away the old unit. I explained that the old unit is still installed. They said, “We’re only here to grab it.” That would be funny if it weren’t such a waste of my time.

Store Visit 3: Still No Progress I returned to Best Buy and spoke with another manager, Nick, who apologized again and said he’d escalate the issue to corporate. At this point, I was asking to cancel my order and get my money back. I asked him to add a note to my file so I wouldn’t have to retell this story yet again. The sales associate, Percell, reassured me, saying Nick was great and I’d hear back soon. I never got a call.

Store Visit 4: Starting Over I went back to the store again, provided all my paperwork, and asked the present manager to check my account. She came back and asked me to repeat the entire story again because there was no record of any of it. When I asked for her name, she refused to provide it and wasn’t wearing a visible name tag. At this point, I just got back my folder and returned back.

So here I am, weeks later, with a dishwasher sitting in the middle of my kitchen, fully paid for, and still not installed. I’ve spent hours on the phone and in person with Best Buy, and no one seems capable or willing to take ownership of the issue.

If you respect your time, avoid Best Buy. Because...

We went to Best Buy / Magnolia with a reasonably sized project for them. We wanted to set up / fix our movie theater room downstairs (new receiver, sub, etc., proper wiring and such), set up video and surround sound in the living room, upgrade the in-wall audio throughout the house and on the porch, and a few other things. As part of these projects, we were updating equipment that needed to be updated so the cost of the project was not insignificant. And we bought a service membership, as well.

A consultant, Michael Glenn, who showed up to estimate, at first provided a fairly good impression. He gave us a quote for the first stage of the whole project (video) and we set up a date for the installation which was a month away. He said that such a long wait was driven only by the delivery date of a receiver. Michael was supposed to come back at the installation date and finalize the quote for the second stage of the project (audio). Everything went downhill from there. The receiver actually came in just a couple of days and I called Michael to see if it was possible to move the installation to an earlier date. Once he heard my voice, he asked to call back. Never did. A couple days later, I texted him. He never called me back. A couple of days later I called him again and asked to call back. He never did. A couple of days later I tried one more time. He never returned my call. Michael apparently doesn’t believe that returning a client’s call is necessary or appropriate. He was the only contact we had from Magnolia.

On the date of the installation, the tech team came (the tech team lead by Heather was amazing (!) and I will provide a separate review for them. But they are true professionals and we couldn't be happier with them). Michael briefly showed up… I think… He never said anything, he didn’t apologize for ignoring us for a month, he didn’t say what he did, he didn’t give us any details of the work needed to be done with the audio part, he didn’t say when we could expect a quote, we didn’t even know when he arrived or departed. The only reason I knew that he actually was at our house is because the tech team told us. It’s been more than two weeks now and still no quote, no communication, no anything. I contacted the supervisor of the tech team and asked him to arrange a call between Michael’s supervisor, Adrian, and I. It’s been 3 days and, guess what? Nothing. Apparently, Best Buy/Magnolia, Michael Glenn and his boss Adrian DiLlera, whom I asked to call me and, of course, got no call, believe that treating clients like an annoyance is a good business practice. Given that those two pieces are parts of one project, it seems that we have effectively paid to be ignored. Good job guys!

So eventually, thanks to our tech team, we brought another person to the whole walk through all over and give us a quote for the audio part. So, if you need any sort of support or equipment or installation, DO NOT go to Magnolia! I am not sure about other locations, but the Raleigh location on Glenwood Ave. does not appear to want to service clients; clients apparently bother them by existing. In the modern day and age there are a lot of companies which actually understand that client service is an important attribute of a successful business.

[Update: Upon hearing that I would be posting this review, Michael finally reached out to my husband and emailed the long-lost proposal. I'm sure that was a...