Wegmans — Local services in Short Pump

My husband and I have always enjoyed Wegman's food selection and have utilized their catering services in the past but unfortunately our recent experience has led us to question their employee hiring/training practices. My husband ran into the store with just his credit card to grab a few items while I remained in the car with our 4-month old. About 15 minutes later, he is calling me from the store asking for me to send him a picture of his drivers license because the cashier requested it for identification. No, he was not buying alcohol and yes, the credit card was in his name. He had entered MY phone number for our shoppers reward card and apparently the cashier was questioning whether he was authorized to use my shoppers card and if our addresses matched? Never in my life, have I or anyone I know, been required to prove our identification over a grocery store reward card. She even involved a floor manager, who had asked my husband to step aside before he could continue checking out and then proceeded to have him sign up for his own card at the customer service counter. My husband, baffled by this process, simply explained he would forgo the discount and would just like to check out, knowing I was in the car with our cranky baby. Eventually after my husband AGAIN declined the need for a card, the floor manager, stated he would give my husband a "courtesy swipe" for the shoppers discount. After finally being able to check out, my husband returns to the car and explains this story to me and I am just shocked by it. I immediately call the store and ask to speak with a manager. The manager listens to our account of the incidence and says she will discuss what happened with the employee and floor manager and then get back to me. When she returns my call, she states that it was a miscommunication and that the employee was simply trying to get my husband his own shoppers reward card and that they suggest each individual have their own card. I took her response at face value but after stewing on this incident, it doesn't make any sense to me as to why she would ask him to sign up for his own card if the number he entered, my number, was valid and if they really suggest each individual have their own card, then why do they give you multiple cards and key tags for your family?! I can't say for sure what the intentions of that cashier were but its rather disappointing and frustrating to think that maybe had my husband not been a foreigner, he wouldn't have been given such a hard time or been asked to "step aside" or required a...

As a seasoned Wegmans customer, I have compiled a list of general advice and information for a better shopping experience.

You can and should obtain a Shopper's Club Card at Customer Service. Give them your name and phone number, and in exchange, you acquire special discounts. Additional coupons are available on the Wegmans app. You MUST clip the coupons for them to be applied to your order.

If for some reason you choose not to use your SC Card, press "skip" on the pinpad before inserting your credit/debit card. Otherwise, the payment will not go through as the pinpad interprets your card as an invalid Shopper's Club Card.

Leave heavy items (e.g. bottled water, sparkling water, dog food, watermelons, etc.) on the bottom of the cart with the barcodes facing up. Cashier have a scan gun, so as long as you inform them of the presence of items at the bottom of your cart, you can have your items scanned without having to take up room on the conveyor belt. This also reduces the risk of dropping the item on your foot.

Receipts are printed and categorized by department.

You can purchase stamps at customer service.

Inform the cashier of a coupon before the end of the transaction but avoid handing it to them until after they've scanned most of the items. Coupons don't register until the end of the transaction,.

To prevent a potential delay at the register, check meat products for intact barcodes before placing them in the cart. This is rarely an issue, but as per Murphy's Law, it can save you from future and untimely inconvenience.

If you are pleased with a cashier's service, tell a manager! There is usually an adult in a Wegmans polo standing by the wall perpendicular to the registers, and the cashier appreciate the recognition.

The Wegmans app has a search bar to look up the location of certain groceries.

Reusable bags are encouraged, and it is advisable to hand them to the cashier at the beginning of the...

Worst customer service experience in any grocery store in the Short Pump/Richmond area, in over 20 years.

I try to share positive reviews and avoid negativity - but this event was too far off the expected Wegman’s brand not to share, in hopes they improve with training and save someone else from having an emotionally challenging customer experience.

A simple (or so I thought) return spiraled into a disaster fueled by management doubt, distrust, and an ongoing attempt to prove the store’s perspective against mine.

If it was one store employee performing poorly I would have moved on and taken the high road. But the store manager and upward of 4-5 more customer service employees ended up encircling me, each offering their own perspective on how my simple return request was wrong and untruthful. I know this sounds crazy but it happened. It’s as if they were trained as a team to have their own Short Pump detective brigade. The customer surely is not “always right” in this store. I walked out feeling dirty, criminal, and unwanted. Keep in mind we spend hundreds of dollars each trip at this location and I was able to easily show my past purchase made within my Wegman’s loyalty account.

My family has (had) been loyal Wegman’s shoppers for years and I reiterated that to the snarky manager who kept berating me with his opinions vs. taking the time to have empathy to understand my perspective.

Sure makes me miss the Ukrop’s days. Needless to say, any and every other grocery store in Short Pump will now start earning our...