I'm just venting because I hate it when stores misrepresent.

I go yesterday because they have a sale, "Buy one get one free, all bottoms." To me all bottoms means all bottoms, but they specify something like, "Jeans, pants, capris, skirts", etc. Here is what I pick up (blue items are bottoms):

Business pant style capri - $39.95

Business pant style capri - $39.95

Skirt - $39.95

Skirt - $39.95

Linen crop pant - $39.95

Linen crop pant - $39.95

Shoes - $26.50

Clearance top - $24.99

Perfect price top - $12.99

Perfect price top - $12.99

My subtotal was $235.47. It seemed high at the time, higher than I was thinking it would be, but I didn't give it that much thought. At first. But then I started thinking about it. I essentially bought 3 bottoms which should have been about $120, got three free. Plus about $50 for the shoes and clearance top, plus about $25 for the PP items, so $195 (going to be a little on the low side)... why was I charged $235?? I look at my receipt and the linen crop pants were normal price. I call the store and tell them I think I was mischarged and they say no, those pants weren't in the sale. I said, "But the sign said ALL BOTTOMS, aren't these bottoms? I'm certainly not wearing them on top." Their claim - the sign said all bottoms, but it then specified jeans, crops, skirts, pants. What I bought, even though it's a short pant, is categorized as a "pedal", and pedals were not in the sale.

I'm pissed, but also running late for a dinner, so I say I will follow up tomorrow (today).

I went to their website early this morning to see what the fine print sai about the sale, but the sale is over so I can't get it. But I do notice they now have a 30% off your purchase deal going. I figure - go for the 50%, but if I can't get it, insist on the 30%.

I call the store back and talk to the manager. Manager gives me the same "pedals" aren't in the sale. So I tell her (in nicer words) they're full of shit, and that I will come in and want the 30% price adjustment. She tells me, "That's not applicable to previous purchases." I remind her I just bought these lastnight. She says it doesn't matter. I tell her that I could refund the pants and just rebuy them today, and she says, "Yes." I say - soooo... oookkk... save us both the extra time and just do a price adjustment. She says no. (I will be making a visit to the store by my work today, and I will help them realize how this is going to be handled. I don't do this crap.)

WTF? Why doesn't "all bottoms" mean all bottoms?

I have had a LOT of experience with Lane Bryant doing this crap. Earlier this year they had a sale, "All sweaters, buy one get one half off." I pick up 4 sweaters and am charged full price for each one. I question it and they tell me, "Those ones aren't in the sale." (This time there were no specifics listed on the sign, it just said "all sweaters"). I ask why not, they're sweaters.. and she tells me it only applies to these specific sweaters. I tell her she's going to sell them to me bogo half, because that's what the sign says. She calls the manager. The manager insists that it only applies to certain sweaters, tells me she cannot override the pricing, and gives me a customer service number to call. I call, they apologize, and send me a tin of 6 Cookies. Argh! I'm buying my clothes at the fat girls shop! How freaking insulting that you think 6 cookies makes up for your incompetence!

Last year I'm in and there's a sign up by the jeans saying "Two for <whatever amount it was>." So I pick up two pair. I'm rung up and it's full price on both. I tell her the sign said two for whatever, and she says "That ended yesterday." I say, "But the sign is up today." And she tells me - IGNORE IT. (I ended up getting my way on this one)

Oh, and because now I'm all worked up about it again...

Regarding thw two pants they didn't include in the sale, I wanted two different colors, but they only had one of the colors in my size. So I told the lady, who was also the manager, "I want to get the darker ones in these, too, so I will get the buy one get one on these." She says OK, and calls three other stores to locate the pants for me. She finds them, and has the other store put them on hold. She then tells me about a way I could have them shipped to my house and it would still count in the buy one get one, but checks the warehouse and they're out. So I tell her to go ahead and ring up two in the same color so I get the sale, and I will just make the drive tomorrow (today) and exchange one of them for the other color at the store... and she says OK. So like 3 or 4 times I indicated I was buying both pants so I would get the sale. Wtf didn't she tell me then if they weren't included. Argh!

Wow, when I worked retail, if something is marked wrong, and the customer points it out, the customer gets it at the lower (even if it's wrong) price. And then the tagging gets fixed....

There's no LB anywhere near me, and now I'm glad of that.... Can you say....False Advertisement, anyone?

And you continue to shop there why?

I can totally understand your frustration, but if I were you I wouldn't give them another penny of my money and would chirp on the message boards like you're doing to get the word out about how they do business.

. I call, they apologize, and send me a tin of 6 Cookies. Argh! I'm buying my clothes at the fat girls shop! How freaking insulting that you think 6 cookies makes up for your incompetence!

This about made me pee my pants!!

LB Sucks! I can't wait until I am out of that store completely. They really F&^*&% you at the fat chick stores.

And you continue to shop there why?

Because they have clothes that fit me, plain and simple. And I'm hard to fit.

I remember getting ticked at them when they had these signs on the store walls, something about beauty not being an age or a size. With pictures of young slender women. The clerk said they had gotten lots of complaints about that.

I just got off the phone with them again. Here's how it went (slightly abbreviated version). I started from scratch because the girl who answered wasn't anyone I dealt with lsat night:

Me: Hi, I was in lastnight during the buy one get one free sale on bottoms, but two of the bottoms I bought rang up full price, so it looks like the sale didn't get applied to them. I know the sale is over now, but I want it applied to these pants. What do I need to bring? (I know damned well what to bring, but I'm trying to take the "demanding" edge off a bit)

Her: The uh err... what?

Me: Bottoms were buy one get one free. I bought 6, I got 2 free. I should have gotten 3 free. The sale didn't apply to two of the bottoms I got. I was charged full price for each. I need to have the price adjusted.

Her: How was it not adjusted?

Me: How should I know?

Her: What's going on now?

Me: I bought 6 pairs of pants. With buy one get one free, I should be charged for three pairs. With me? (she confirms) I was charged for 4 pairs. With me? (she confirms) I need to have an adjustment made so that I'm only charged for three pairs.

Her: But the sale wasn't just for three pair of pants.

Me: ??????????

??????????????

?????????????????? (this indicates silence while I try to figure out what she just said)

Me: Yeah, I have no idea what you just said. I tried to figure it out but I can't. Look, I bought two skirts, two crop pants, and two linen pedals. I should have been charged for one skirt, one crop pant, and one pedal, right? (I think she's trying to write this down, perhaps I should offer to fax over an illustration.)

Her: Right.

Me: I was charged full prie for both pedals.

Her: Ok... that sounds right.

Me: No, it's not right, and you're just not getting it. Let me talk to someone else.

Her: The manager isn't here.

Me: I didn't say the manager, I said someone else. Anyone. Please.

Her: Err... uh... yeah just bring your receipt in. *click*

I remember getting ticked at them when they had these signs on the store walls, something about beauty not being an age or a size. With pictures of young slender women. The clerk said they had gotten lots of complaints about that.

I've known one of the store managers (unfortunately not the store I shopped at yesterday) since I was in high school. She told me once that everyone in their ad wears their sizes. She said she met one of the models once, and she was over 6'5. Yeah, if I wore a 14 and was 6'5, I'd look that good too.

You'll notice - they have relatively normal sized mannequins (not really plus sized) in the store, but will claim that those mannequins wear their sizes. But all you have to do is look at the back of the mannequins and you'll see where they used clips to pull the clothes taut and make them fit. I don't call that "wearing."

LB treats thier coustomers sooo badly. They are sweet to you while you are shopping but the second you have a problem they turn into these evil creatures. I can not wait until i can shop elsewear. And for those of you that are saying to yourself so just don't shop there, the reason i have to shop there is because they carry my size and have styles other than old lady mumu dresses in horrible frabics and prints. LB knows this so they think they can't disregard out compliants.

I stopped going to LB and shop at CJ Banks or Catherines. Macy's has good plus sizes too, but you do have too look and wait for sales.

BUT, I will have to say that LB has the best selection of not nasty granny-panties. I can not find nice panties anywhere else. I havent worn cotton grannies since college and i refuse to go back in to them

YES! they got me on that sale last year... I picked out 4 "bottoms" 2 pants, 2 capris... got to the register and nope...capri's arent part of the sale... umm.. 'scuse me, but I dont know about the rest of the world, but I dont wear my capris on my friggin head.. .they're called bottoms for a reason!!!!

sadly, I completely fell in LOVE with one pair of capris and kept them.

Wheet!!!

omg thats terrible!!! I come from a women who threw public fits and have turned it into an art. Its too tempting for me to do it. i try not to but this would have gotten me back in that store too, with full out single minded purpose: give me the discount or give me my money back and LOUDLY would i parade through the store as well as the mall what happened. False advertising and YOU DONT HAVE TO SHOP THERE. i like some of their styles too, but you really dont sister, and thats the candle i have to light your darkness.

Ive used these guys and they are good. I buy a lot online, usually just before a show:

www.ullapopkin.com

www.laredoute.com (a favorite parisian shop)

www.roamans.com (another favorite i use alot)

check these guys out. I think you will find the quality and cost much much better than stinky old lane b's.

and with them a sale is a sale.

Wheet- Sounds like a trip, I do all my shopping online so I can use discount codes I scrounge up on google, and I don't have to deal with idiots!!

About the models for LB, I complained once too. A couple years ago in-store they had some kind of credit card or like 'buy x amount and get one free' that you had to fill up. Anyway, the card showed a ripped stomach (6-pack) on a female, with the top of her jeans and the bottom of her cut off shirt. THAT was the picture on the card. And I said "Who the hell LOOKS like this and shops here??" the lady said something about whoever owned LB uses the same models for their publicity, as their 'normal clothing stores'. I don't know about all that, since there's those plus size celebrity LB models (Steven Tyler's daughter for one). But I was really insulted by that picture on the card. And I never liked the skinny mannequins so you can't see how their clothes will look on a real body. AND if they sent me a tin of cookies, they would have gotten hate mail LOL!

I see several people need to vent regarding LB and underhanded retailers. I too have had LB rip me off. I just don't shop there anymore unless I just CAN'T get what I need online or at another store. I guess they feel since they are a 'specialty' store, they can make up the rules as the go along...I don't know, but I haven't bought a LB garment in over a year and don't plan on it any time soon. They're a joke! However, I was REALLY surprised to walk into walmart yesterday and find a WIDE assortment of attractive plus sizes! I went there, hoping to avoid LB, because I had to get specific colors to match the rest of the band for a performance tonight...I thought for sure I was doomed to go to LB, but I tried on 9 outfits and picked between the best two! I never find that many nice things at wally-world! OK...rambling....point...I feel yer pain...LB is rediculous!

I have found in the past that a complaint to the Better Business Bureau in your county and the Attorney General's office in your state, with a CC to the local store's manager and corporate offices....will usually get someone's attention. Plus you get to vent your heart out and feel like you're actually DOING something about it.

Once I actually helped put an online vendor out of business because they were ripping people off left and right. My complaint to the BBB was the most effective in making that happen.