TOPS — Local services in City of Olean

Great place to shop if you're white.... I am one that hates it when black people pull the race card but the service that I receive each and every time I go there is very consistent with profiling. On this trip it started in the frozen food section.

My children and I were selecting food items to purchase and an older man that at first I thought was a customer became angry because I could not move my children out of his way fast enough. This man was wearing a hoodie and did not have a proper uniform on but when he turned I could see the tops t-shirt.

After this I went to the bulk food section and selected a fine assortment of healthy nuts for my children. First I would like to note that the management needs better loss prevention training because he could have not been more obvious or silly when profiling me. He used a flat cart and items to obscure his self all while slowly and intentionally walking past us three times. He went into the back to and as soon as he did I would presume it was him on the PA system calling at least two departments and three employees to the break room.

I continued on my way and went to check out the cashier I have to say was a kind thoughtful lady she gave my children suckers and they were delighted. Having said that she did not need any help and whom I believe to be a member of management said that she would bag my items. This would have been fine if that was her intention but it was not.

I have worked security and loss prevention my self and understand terms such as Bob and Lisa aka bottom of the basket and look inside always. She did this no less than four times and it made me feel like a criminal.

Here is where it should have stopped but it did not. I was followed by a man that was not one of the normal parking lot attendants all the way to my car. He stood behind me which was not a smart thing to do considering I have three children and in what I could only describe as disrespectful tone demanded the cart from me . He looked at my plate number and looked inside the trunk of my car while asking for the cart. I am a responsible adult and always take care of my cart. As we drove away he made it look like he was taking care of carts which he was not doing.

In conclusion I thought dressing in a respectable way, wearing a belt and speaking properly would be enough to allow me in the elitist Tops Markets but truth be told it was not.

I am tired, depressed, frustrated, annoyed and disappointed in this systematic profiling. I pay for my items and I leave but I am followed every time I go there. Please understand that this has been on going for almost a year.

I want to keep my money in the community and shop locally but with a store that seems to encourage profiling on this level makes me want to send my money directly to China and watch Tops Markets fester like...

I waited to do this review due to the emotional nature of the situation. On September 29th, 2021 I ran in to the Olean Tops. It was 11:12pm when I parked, and 11:17pm when I cashed out. Just about every isle was tapped off for floor cleaning. I explained to a gentleman doing the floors that I work, Walmart closest at 11p so I often run in this store at this time and I just needed laundry soap, it was 2 isles from the caution tape, he said "ok, get it, be careful". Another man also working on the floors yelled "hey" and some other stuff I didn't understand. He literally sought me out, stepped in my path, wouldn't let me through to question me. He said "can't you read" and I calmly explained the situation and that the other person told me it was ok to grab the laundry soap (I do my laundry late at a laundromat because of my schedule). He said "yeah so what, you can't read". After being interrogated, insulted and humiliated in front of my young daughter, he let me pass and made sure it was directly to check out. This man sounded Dominican, I could be wrong, but that's the impression I got from his accent. I understand it's acceptable and in some cases typical to talk to people in this manner in the Dominican Republic or at least that was the explanation I gave to my young daughter when she cried believing this man was a threat, but this is a store that closes at midnight, I needed only one item. For him to talk to me the way he did, in the presence of a young child was completely uncalled for. On the streets he'd of been arrested. I do not want my child nor anyone else's little girl to believe it's ok for anyone to speak to her that way. We literally ran in to a store to grab one item and was verbally abused and illegally detained. I used to like this store, friendly staff, easy process. Now I absolutely refuse to enter this store without a male friend. I don't know if these men are always there or hired to do something and are now gone, I only know it's easy to be assaulted in this store as none of the typical employees defended our ability to purchase the laundry soap nor prevented this person from illegally detaining us in an isle, although the regular employees were also female, so I wonder if they too feared this aggressive approach to get a point across. In the future perhaps closing the store early would prevent these types...

Came to purchase twisted tea. Had a valid pa drivers license, valid expiration date. Over 21 years old, as stated on license.

They refused to scan my id nor let me purchase the beverage because they did not recognize my id and stated I needed a specific 21 and older id to purchase. It was a valid id. Issued from the state of Pennsylvania. Does not expire for another year or two. I've used this id, it's been scanned, and I've used this id to purchase alcohol and marijuana from the state of NY.

It is COMPLETELY valid.

They still refused me service. Instead, my father had to come over and buy the alcohol for me. Which, if my ID was not valid, why would y'all allow my father to purchase the alcohol for me??

Came back. Read the policy because they stated that, "I get that you've purchased from other places, but this is just how we do things here." But, y'all's policy states "with a new York Id or any other state issued license or from Canada." So.... Because y'all didn't recognize my id, y'all assumed it was invalid and wrongly denied my purchase.

Please better inform your employees because what y'all...