Ace Hardware Bruno's Home Center — Local services in New York

The manager as well as the employees are absolutely the most paranoid people who I ever met! I was in the store for an hour an half, while they claim I was there for more than 4 hours! Nonetheless I had the right to browse their store as long as I please, during the store hours. As if I was committing a crime them by lingering there! When the employees perceived that I was shopping for the past 3 hours they started to get very suspicious. One of them approached me at least 4 times asking me if I need help. I told him "No I'm fine." "Are you sure you don't need any help?" he persisted. I told him "Yes I'm fine." After selecting some items, I had decided to put them back, because I wanted to go to the other Bruno's hardware (the one located closer to Schermerhorn) to compare prices on some items. The manager from the store near Livingston dispatched one of his employees to follow me. He entered the store and proceeded to ask if he could check my bags and I complied. As we both walked back to the Livingston store, while attempting to explain my intentions he swiftly cut me off, saying " I don't want to hear it. YOU WERE IN THE STORE FOR 4 HOURS! He became increasingly hostile. I desperately continued trying to vindicate myself, when he cut me off yet again saying "I COULD SLAM YOUR FACE INTO THE SIDEWALK!" Another employee yelled out with an air of assurance "HE'S A THIEF! THAT MAN IS A THIEF!" Desperate to prove them wrong I was determined to go back to the store buy everything that I needed - never to do business with them again. After paying about $100 for my order, I complained to the manager that one of his employees threatened with me with violence after suspecting me of shoplifting. He explained to me that he sent him to search my belongings because I walked out of the store abruptly, so he suspected me of shoplifting, and was compelled to send someone to check my belongings in order to alleviate his anxiety. He apologized for this employee's actions. If there was a rating of 0 stars, I assure you that is exactly what I would give the store. In the US justice system, people are "innocent until proven guilty" while in this store the customer "guilty after being found innocent." Business was slow relative to their massive square footage, so apparently these hyper paranoid employees had too much idle time on their hands, so they had to follow customers around the store, in order to keep...

Extremely Rude Customer Service!

I work in the area, and I came here for an insecticide spray for fungus gnats in my houseplants. I had already tried other remedies for this problem, and done a ton of research online as to how to control them. I knew basically the type of product that I wanted, and I hoped to be in and out quickly after work.

As I entered I saw the insecticide section. As I began to look, an employee in that area pricing items asked if he could help me. I replied, "No thank you. I think I'm ok." I found a spray, but I wanted to check the application instructions which were under a peel-up adhesive flap on the label. As I began to peel up the flap he said, "What are you doing?" I explained that I just wanted to check the application instructions.

He turned back away from me and let out a loud sigh and began shaking his head. I said, "It sticks right back in place, it's really not a problem." He said "It's fine." But then, he began muttering under his breath, "If you told me what you where trying to do it would have helped. Some people actually go online and do a little bit of research..." At this point I cut him off and said, "You know what, forget it" and left.

Since when is it not my right to browse when shopping, or to consider a product on my own before purchasing? There was absolutely no reason for him to be so rude and especially to imply that I had no idea what I was doing, when in fact the exact opposite was the case.

I then went to the hardware store down the street where I received very nice service and bought the product that I needed.

I will never set foot back in this place again, and I would discourage anyone else from every...

Bad advise. Worse customer service.

I asked my fiancé to go pickup a 1/2" drill bit and some toggle bolts that I was going to use to mount our TV. She had a 1/2 inch bolt in hand and the clerk told her to get a 5/16 inch instead (even though the toggle is about 7/16 wide. I tried out the suggestion and the hole created wasn't even close to big enough.

I tried to exchange it today explaining the situation and the guy at the counter couldn't have been more rude. "That's on your fiancé if she bought the wrong bit!"

Normally you trust your local hardware store and I was excited to find it in my neighborhood have been there three time already in the five days since moving here, but I've never experienced worse customer treatment. I live one block away and will never set foot in the store again.

The bald guy at the counter is probably Bruno - does not deserve to be...