pet mart ran me out of store for the shirt i was wearing!!!

[CMcNeil]

ok,yesterday i go into pet mart to get a sebae clownfish.everytime i go there i feel like im saving whatever ive bought,and not buying it.i figure if i got a clown i should give him a home.so me and a friend of mine go to pet mart again.we are inside for 5 minutes looking at some ricordias when this guy comes up to me and says"can you leave"now im thinking he means leave the area cause hes messing with the tanks.NO HE MEANS FOR ME TO LEAVE THE STORE?????????im completely shocked by this request.so i ask him whats the problem.he tells me its my shirt.WHAT ARE YOU KIDDING ME.i happen to be wearing a Rocking Reef T-shirt that was given to me.there was no underlying intentions by me wearing this shirt in his store,it just happened to be what i grabbed on the way out the door.he then proceeds to tell me that i disrespected him by wearing it in his store(claimed i was advertising for his competition) LOL GET REAL BUDDY.at this point i told him he has direspected me by even questioning what "A CUSTOMER" wears.needless to say i will never spend another penny in this store.i have never been asked to leave anywhere,much less a petshop.i guess rocking reef will be getting most of my buisness from now on.

 

[boydx6]

I don't like Pet Mart much either. I couldn't figure out why. Now I know!

 

[flfirefighter13]

Last I checked we live in the land of the free, I would have some very choice words for that gentleman and his manager, as well as most likely his managers manager, just to stir the pot im sure i could find some state or federal statutes to mention as well, If nothing else it will make him think. Acting in that way is simply unacceptable in my eyes. If I where closer I think I would be gathering a few friends and wondering the store with all his competitions shirts on. Sorr for the rant, stories like that just irk me.

 

[CMcNeil]

i think it was the owner.it really doesnt matter cause all he did was reassure me of all my thoughts of the store.bottom line they will never see $1 from me again.i will drive to tampa or oldsmar if i have too.and i did have some words for him but wasnt gonna make myself look like the ***.he did that to himself and i hope his customers saw it.

 

[Family Reefer]

I am going to see Tom tomorrow and I will be wearing a Rockin Reef Shirt in Pet Mart before the day is over!!!!! Those people are rediculous!!! Tom is a great guy and needs some good people to come in and help support his store. *This is NOT an advertisement just simply my opinion thats all* I might see if hes got some really small t-shirts for my Kids to wear. Lets see if they will throw a two and seven year old out of the store.....

 

[CMcNeil]

yes rocking is great.i just got a chiller and halide setup from them.im going to be there saturday morning looking for a home for my clown.
PS....... PLEASE,BY ALL MEANS GOTO PETMART WITH A ROCKING SHIRT ON.

 

[BankerJohn]

The power of free enterprise speaks louder with the DOLLAR than with words. You will do more damage by withholding your discretionary spending from the store in question.

I respect that you are venting, but I think it inappropriate to share the negativity beyond just venting.

 

[sinful]

its all about the $$ with that place IMO

 

[CMcNeil]

i understand your point bankerjohn,and respect your opinion.i was venting,but in my defence i did go there intending on spending money there.heck i even dragged a friend along just cause they had some nice stuff i thought hed be interested in.so like you said,i will withhold my spending from this store.but if i worked for mcdonalds and went to burger king on my lunch break,do you think they would refuse me service cause of my bk uniform?i doubt it,they would have sold me a combo and told me have a nice day.so for him to run me off for wearing a competitors t-shirt was just plain STUPID.

 

[Gimplar]

Yes, it's definetly the owner nick, he's a pretty closed minded person, very paranoid about everything and everyone. Obviously he's demonstarted this by violating your rights of freedom of speech. He's kicked alot of us out of his store for the stupidest reason, but you definetly have a potential law suit against him, if he kicked you out because of your t shirt... That's like kicking someone out of walmart cause they're wearing a target shirt...

But nick (the owner) is a big fat greek guy...can't miss him or mistake him for anyone else..

 

[BlueCoast]

Ahhh. Finally a reason to buy / barter a shirt from RR and PROUDLY showing it off. Too bad St. Pete does not have more stores like this. Sad that others feel threatened by our choice of clothing. I am so glad to have discovered such a great resource as RC. I used to think *other* stores had a nice selection till i discovered what to look for.

If i have not said it yet, go visit Rockin Reef, great guys willing to chat, clean store that looks well taken after. A much different vibe than that of many other stores in st. pete.

Happy Reefin

 

[ladyfsu]

I hate these threads but OMG that is so funny he made you leave!!!! I did the same thing once in a defferent situation and I didn't even notice what I had on (it was a school thing -- remember I'm a teacher -- and I had a Jimmy Buffet type shirt and there was a lot of alcohol on the shirt and some, um, people appearing to be doing inappropriate type things, lol EEK!).

 

[HotReeferSRT4]

Haha... teaching the kids the most important thing in college even at the K-12 level. Awesome.

 

[Don Lino]

LOL, where can I get a shirt like that Ladyfsu?? and checkinhawk??

 

[CMcNeil]

dino just head over to rockinreef,im sure they would be more than happy to give you one

 

[Don Lino]

LOL...Dino?? Like the dinosaur from the Flintstones?? Thanks, will do..

 

[Kubi]

checkinhawk;

He just threw away a sale! That is exactly what his competiters want.

He should of came up to you and said I notice you have been to RR. Then he should of starting asking a series of quetions. What kind of tank do you have? What are you looking for? What do you buy from them? Who else do you buy from. How are threre price? How is there customer service? What can we do for you ?
How can I win all of your buisness..... etc something like that and so on. IMO he should embrace and compete with the competition, not fear it and hope it will go away.

On another note how are those shrooms doing?

 

[pmike25]

Hawk'ster said it best

 

[CMcNeil]

hawkster the shrooms are doing great.im now in the process of switching over to a mixed sps /softy reef.i agree with what you said about petmart.they should of tried to win all my buisness,not run it away.he went about the situation all wrong.like you said hawkster,he should have asked me some questions and tried to get info from me about his comp.here are the shrooms and full tank shot.

 

[hawkeye31657]

well i am just in town till tues so i think i will have some fun with this and ware my coral reef tshirt there and see if they are threatened buy out of town stores hahahaah