@drdoggie00 wrote:
Has anybody done one of these? It was reimbursement only (up to $30), but I took it because I could turn that into a gift and scratch somebody off my list, and it was on my way.
Surprisingly, the guidelines and questionnaire were only four pages long. It looks deceptively easy.
I did one last month. The “deception” allegation is partly correct but on the whole, it’s a very easy shop. What the instructions call the table and what At Home calls the table are two different things. I don’t recall the precise nomenclature but the instructions will say something like “Look for the “fresh finds” table to the right of the “Quick Look” table”. When you go into the store, there is a table that is obviously on a planogram to the right of the to the right of the table that has the sign “Quick Look” but there will be no sign that says “Fresh Finds” on the table you’re supposed to look for. So you’ve got to do some guessing if there are two or more tables.
The problem I had with the shop was the amount of violations you find. You’re given four departments to analyze. I think you could do a separate report-length evaluation on each of the departments. The MSC thankfully limits the number of characters so it sort of saved me from myself in that regard.
Take lots of pictures. But also take smart ones. If your store is anything like mine, you’ll find no end to the number of violations. My store used to be a Sam’s Wholesale club so it’s the size of the Astrodome and the AtHome store is like a high school football team playing there. For example, apparently every shopping cart is supposed to have a map of the store on a placard on the cart. I think there were maybe 4 or 5 of the multiple carts I looked at where this placard was affixed. Most of the carts had nothing. So when they ask if there were any empty spaces on the aisles...I took one of the acreage of empty space while facing my cart and it’s missing placard. Two birds--one stone. And for good measure, I did the same thing when asked about obstructions in the aisles while I came across the American Ninja Warrior type of obstacle course the employees/previous customers put together in the floor rug area for me.
I recommend that you also take some pictures of the well-maintained areas. It has to be another IC who goes there and stocks it but the Lodge cast iron end-cap in Housewares is usually pristine. For my money...if someone is paying me just reimbursement, I go for quality over quantity and a nice cast iron skillet is always good to have laying around.
Hope this helps.