Dear Store Manager,

I would address this to the owner but you operate just one in a national chain of grocery stores.  I bet that person hires someone to read his mail for him, someone who cares almost as little as the owner does about his customers.

We are the ones who spend money in your stores.  It is us to whom you should direct all efforts to please.

I ordinarily do not shop at this location, and my reasons are:  1) It’s a snobbery sort of place, an ideal the other location doesn’t employ; 2) your prices are a little higher, which amazes me because it’s the exact same store as the one I frequent; 3) You share inadequate parking with an entire strip mall of popular businesses; 4) Your carts don’t roll easily.

But I did stop yesterday.  Your store was on my way home, and rather than drive an extra 12 miles out of my way, I bit the bullet and stopped at your place.  Upon entry to the parking area, I could see tarps covering part of your store, signs for hard hat only areas, and big green barricades that directed customers to a new entrance.  I guess maybe you are sprucing up the place.

I got a cart and was not at all surprised to notice immediately that it did not roll well.  I knew that in a few minutes I would be fighting it with every turn.  I wasn’t wrong.

I noticed that your ceiling was gone and all sorts of electrical wires were strung seemingly haphazardly from light bulb to light bulb.  It was a huge techno-tangled mess up there.  I wondered about my safety walking under them.

I had three cases of Pepsi, two bottles of dish liquid, and a box of sugar packets.  I fought my cart to get them to one of your checkout lanes and waited behind a lady who had an entire truckload of items crammed into her cart, slowly being emptied and scanned before being deposited into another cart.  I just know without doubt that neither of them rolled well either.

Finally, the lady in front of me was paying for her stuff.  As soon as the cashier handed over the receipt, she turned her head in my direction and said simply, “I’m closed.”

I got in the next line over.  Again, only one person was in front of me.  Fifteen minutes later, it was my turn.

I wasn’t angry that I had to wait my turn in line.  I wasn’t upset that the wait was long.

I wasn’t even annoyed that your store was torn apart and that it was difficult to find the few items I needed.  Nor was I irritated that the whole place was disheveled and dirty.  I get that you are trying to make improvements, albeit cosmetic ones.

I was a little intrigued, though, at how your regular shoppers felt about you while trying to do their recent holiday food shopping in this chaos.

But there’s one glaring improvement you and all of your ilk refuse to make, and that is what continues to make me angry.

You refuse to fix the carts so that old ladies like me aren’t continually fighting with them at every turn.