Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores

The employees were very persistent in helping us find what we needed for a project
even though we were a bit vague with what we were trying to accomplish

Visiting from out of town and stopped for some art and journaling supplies. Had an extremely limited selection compared to other Jo Ann stores I’ve been to. Very disappointed.

DON’T GO HERE… unless you enjoy gruesome customer service.
I’ve gone to Jo-Ann’s a lot and was super excited when the one was opened in the Blue Ridge Mall, I didn’t have to run to Fletcher to Foam & Fabrics. Eh, nope, definitely still going to go to Foam & Fabrics, the drive is worth not having to deal with extremely rude associates.
Here’s what happened on my last and final visit, on the evening of 2÷2÷2015… I went with my mom to pick out a fabric for a pillow I was going to make her. We found a fabric we both liked, but when we took it off the shelf we noticed that the fabric was crushed (not wrinkled, but actually crushed) and there was a giant brown mark. We figured it was no big deal, it was less than 6 inches in, they could just cut it off.
When we got up to the fabric cutting area, while we were waiting, we tried to remove the brown mark and fluff back up the crushed area. The mark wouldn’t come off and the place was to crushed to fix. When the associate came to cut the fabric we asked if she can just cut that part off since it was unusable. She kept repeated, extremely rudely, louder and louder each time she talked over us to say, «it was just leaning on other material.» When we tried to show her the mark doesn’t come off and the material isn’t just wrinkled; it’s actually crushed, she kept repeating that same line. She didn’t even once glance at the material when we tried to show her. I said let’s not worry about it, we will find something else. After we realized she wouldn’t even look at the fabric and was just being arrogant and talking over us, it wasn’t worth arguing with her.
The associate was still in view while I was looking at thread and I saw her walk to two other female associates and started taking to them. It was obvious they were talking about us because all three of them would turn around and stare at us then laugh. We were in plain sight of them and in earshot, so I made it a point to stare back, alerting them that we could hear them. This didn’t even cause them quiet down or stop talking poorly about us.
I finished getting the thread I needed (I would have gone else where but I needed the embroidery threads by this evening) and we went up to the register. The man at the register was extremely nice. I told him what happened and he was apologetic and said that they weren’t allowed to cut off wrinkles, but when I told him about the mark and the crushed material his tone completely changed and was slightly stunned by his other associates reaction. Luckily as we were telling him, the manager came up to speak to him about another manner and we got to tell her what happened. The manager was extremely nice and apologetic for her rude associates and offered to right the problem immediately and cut the defective part of fabric off, but we actually didn’t want to go back there where the three associates were.
She went right away back to the associates in question to speak to them. As we were leaving the store, I heard the one associate who was so rude actually starting to rise her voice loud enough that we could hear it outside of the store!
The whole experience was unbelievable. I love (d) Joann’s and was there constantly. The two gentlemen that work there are very nice, they have always been over the top friendly. The girl who was rude to us, I do recall being there during another visit and overhearing her being rude to another customer, but at the time it didn’t raise any red flags because the other lady was being decently rude back. Though, now I understand when you have an associate being so blatantly boorish for unnecessary reasons, it can cause negative reactions with the customer and some people express that distress differently; I absolutely now understand why the customer reacted how she did (not saying it was right.)
I was shaking so bad when I left the store, but I was happy with the manager’s reaction, and the gentleman’s reaction at the register; they could identify that the associate’s reaction, and the other two laughing at us, was uncalled for.
Sadly, that’s the last the Joann Fabrics in the Blue Ridge Mall will see of me. My job is to sew, and I was getting all my supplies there, so they are losing a major customer. Not only that, but word of mouth does leaps and bounds regarding reputation; and I have a lot of friends in crafts. I will be shopping at Foam & Fabrics and Michael’s from now on, I’ve never had an experience anywhere close to this one at Joann’s at either of those places. Plus every associate at F&F and Michael’s I’ve interacted with have been pleasant, plus F&F is locally owned! A little bit of a further drive but I don’t have to deal with arrogant and vulgar employees with a Napoleon complex.