The Saga of the Hdx 27 Gallon Containers and Your Dealership

You Can Always Do Better...

So, I sold my RV, (please hold your applause) and needed to buy HDX 27 gallon storage containers to keep “my stuff,” which had previously lived in the RV basement. I did what I always do, which is go to Home Depot to buy my favorite black and yellow containers. Upon entering a post-COVID-ish Home Depot, I noticed how few people were actually in the store. It was quite empty, actually.

I proceeded to the usual place where my favorite storage containers were kept. (Yes, I have favorite containers – HDX 27 gallons with spiffy, stackable tops.) Lo and behold they were absent. I found a not-so-friendly man, in the requisite orange apron, and asked him where my favorite containers were. He gestured to the “end cap” and said, “they’re over there.” (Glad he didn’t strain himself with that one!)

I walked over and (of course) they were not there. I came back and he was still standing in the same place. I explained (again) that those were the lowly 17 gallon containers and I needed the superior 27-gallon ones, please. He pointed to the floor where I was standing and said “Have you looked there?” (As if I had missed them the first time I brought him over to that aisle to explain I couldn’t find them?) I pointed out that those were the 17-gallon storage containers, not the 27 gallons that I have come to know and love. (You see in my garage I have approximately 40 of these beloved containers and they are stacked nicely and neatly and in a proper OCD fashion along the wall.) 

He then proceeded to the computer where he looked up the SKU number so that he could find out if the containers were on the tippy-top shelves where I had looked for them before I asked him to locate them. 

He announced the SKU number out loud, so we could both look together, to determine if we could physically see the location of my beloved containers. Now, to put this in perspective, a 27-gallon container is about the size of a grown Labrador retriever. They are hard to miss, but I continued looking and played along. 

He left and then drove back to the aisle with the forklift-thingie which acts like a one-person elevator. (Meanwhile about 20 minutes have elapsed and I’m still looking for my containers.) He closed the aisle by stretching out two gates on either end of the each side, so no one could walk under the forklift-thingie. I think he was actually walking in slow motion.  

Then, up he went. (Insert annoying noise here.) After 10 minutes aloft, he sadly announced he could not find the containers. (Immediately after he gave me the SKU, I had told him I did not see any boxes showing that SKU number, based on the old method of “looking up” from the floor where I was standing. He proceeded to look there anyway.)   

After he came back down to terra firma on the forklift-elevator-thingie, (don’t forget to insert the annoying noise), I asked if he had looked at the quantity in stock when he initially looked at the computer. He responded “no.” So, he ambled back over to the computer.

If this is agonizing to read, imagine how it was to be there. 

Now, I’ve been in the Home Depot for almost 45 minutes.

Mr. Orange Apron looked back at the computer and announced (quietly) “We have one hundred eight (108) of them. I’m really sorry, I don’t know where they are.”

And they have 108 of them they cannot find. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? 108! 

108 Labrador Retrievers you cannot find?

Just to be sure, I walked up and down a few of the aisles to see what I could see. It was painful and fruitless. I left in a huff. (Usually, I don’t get worked up over these issues. This saga was particularly painful and dreadful.)

I trudged next door (literally) to Lowes. They had 27-gallon containers made from another manufacturer. I was desperate, so I bought four (4)…from another manufacturer. They are shaped differently than the forty (40) in my garage but I was desperate.   

Now, Home Depot’s ruined my OCD-themed garage because I have about forty (40) of my beloved 27-gallon container and four (4) of the runner-up, “The Commander” – the brand name – of another. (Isn’t that ironic as they are not “commanding anything in my garage?”) Every time I walk into my garage, I cringe.

OK, while this was a long and now-amusing story, (not so much at the time), why am I telling you this, and how does this relate to running a dealership?

Home Depot could have done better. So can your dealership. You can always do better than this.

If I had seen a manager, I would have discussed it with him. I was so irritated, I didn’t go looking for a manager. It likely would have taken another 30 or more minutes. And when I left, I thought I should post a review online. 

Or at least, I should post on Twitter where I would likely get a response.  

I didn’t. 

I just wanted to move on with my life. 

After all, I’m dyin’ over here. I carried on. 

I was irritated about aggravation over $60 worth of containers. Imagine how hot a customer gets when they are spending tens of thousands of dollars. How can you capture this feedback and mitigate the problem before the customer explodes online? 

1. You could prominently post signage in your dealership asking for feedback.
2. You could post a cell phone number for someone who could fix the problem.
3. You could make sure the floor manager knows when there is an upset customer in the building so your managers can be prepared to act.

Do you know the nature of the issues your customers face? Are you certain? How can you stop the problems before they happen? More training? New policies? You have to capture this feedback to attempt to prevent the problems before they start. (Risk mitigation!) 

And what about aggravated employees? Ever considered an employee poll or human resources consultant? How can you capture their attention? (Remember, problems at a dealership are like rotten fish. They don’t smell better as time moves on…)

And as for me, I’ll be standing in my garage staring at the odd-sized containers. (See attached photo.) If you are reading this #HomeDepot, please send me four (4) HDX 27-gallon containers quickly (and for free), and both me and my OCD, will feel much better. PM me on LinkedIn and I will give you my address!