Hi All,

Thought I'd check to see what everyone else thinks of Michael's.

I've had nothing but bad experiences since they opened here 5 months ago. Just trying to find out how to get a coupon took weeks ( I do not get the flyers). I call trying to find out if they have something and I wait on
hold (the longest was 15 minutes).

Today I called looking for a character pan and after I waited for 10 minutes I called back and asked to talk to the manager. She made so many excuses, even told me how she had staff quit 'cause a customer got mad when they were on the phone instead of helping them. She also said if you don't have the wording right when you ask for a coupon they will not give it to you.

Also said that the cashier will get fired on the spot if they give you a coupon and you haven't asked the right way. No wonder I've had such trouble getting one. Even when I have asked the right way they make me feel like I'm trying to steal from them, questioning me about it. Poor things are probably paranoid.

She also said the coupons will not be available every week after Christmas, mostly likely every 2nd or third week (good to know - I'd better get shopping

Really, the only reason I go there is to use the coupon, and to get things no one else in town has.

It seems that so many things are over priced there so that their coupon/dicounts brings it in line with other stores.

So...this is my Michael's rant. Just my opinion though.

Anyone else have better experiences? I hope so...

Do you get a Sunday paper? I know if all the Sunday papers here in CA where I am the flyer comes in there. But I believe we only get them every other week and sometimes specials.

The stores here will sometimes give a coupon if you don't have one but some won't.

Also I've found that most places will wait on customers in the store faster then on the phone. The reason is they have the customer there spending money. They have no idea if the person on the phone will really be coming in or not. So if they have to upset one it will be the person on the phone.

you have to ask the right way?!!! i am pretty sure u were not rude when u asked about it the first time! did they tell you what the magic words are besides "please"?geeze...never had a bad experience with michael's before, yet...

I have had bad experience with Michaels. I love AC Moore better. Michaels just dosen't see to care. They also have a limit of one coupon per day and make you sign their coupon book(AT least the one in Vineland, NJ ). I tried to get an item they had in AC moore from MIchaels at the AC moore price, but Michaels would not budge. I prefer to take my business to AC Moore, which is farther then Michaels, but at least AC Moore would match the price!

I love our Michaels. Everything is so much nicer and cleaner than Hobby Lobby. I'm sorry you have had bad experiences there, but I don't think the whole Michael's chain should be blamed. I think it is that particular store and its staff and management. I don't find that things cost any more at Michaels than at Hobby Lobby.

The coupon thing is crazy. Having to ask the right way for it? What is that all about? At the Michaels here where I live, all you do is tell them you didn't receive the ad and want the 40% off. They will give it to you on the spot no questions asked.

I've never had a problem with the Michaels near me. Everyone just about knows me from being in there almost every week. Around here the only way to get the coupons is with the Sunday newspaper, most do not hand out the coupons in store anyomore. When there are coupons I ask all the ladies I work with to bring me their papers because most of them don't shop there anyway. I know the coupons are not in every week sometimes it is every other week. I don't know about the phone issues, I would think some of it could be because of the holidays but not sure.

I live in an area with no Michael's, so the ads which have the coupons are not in our Sunday paper. So I signed up online at Michaels.com to receive there ads online. I also get Hobby Lobby's ads online (they aren't in out area either). They will E-mail them Every Sunday!
I check the ads online first to see if anything I want is on sale. I was a Wilton instructor as Michael's, so I know that coupons run every other week, with the exception of holidays.
One way to know if a coupon is in the ad is to check Hobby Lobby online....if they have a 40%off coupon then Michaels will too.
Then if I need something I drive 1 1/2 hours to my closest Michaels and I stop at the local gas station or grocery store and purchase a Sunday paper - they have ALL the ads with coupons in them - since they are local and I use the coupon in the paper. Our Michael's will not hand out coupons, but they will take Hobby Lobby Coupons. So that gives me two usable coupons from the paper.


Hope this helps your experience get better next time you shop there. Sorry so long.

We also don't receive the coupon, but if I just tell them that I didn't receive it, they simply ask that the discount be signed for. I've never had any problem with it. Of course, there aren't any other options way out here, either. The only exception is that some basics can be found (and much cheaper) at Wal-Mart.

If you sign up with Michaels or AC Moore on their website, you usually get weekly coupons on line. And you can print as many as you want..

I do receive the Sunday paper every week, but in my area we don't get the Michael's ad. So I use the AC Moore coupon at Michaels if it's something I really want. Michaels also will not take the coupons from the internet. I agree Michaels don't know the line "the customer is always right".

I tried to use the ACMOORE coupons at Michaels and I was told they do not take them anymore.

As a person who works retail, I would guess the phone issue because they are busy because of the holidays. They are dealing with several customers at one time and trying to answer the phone. At the store I work at (not michaels) we are pretty tough on our coupons and I personally hate giving them to customers because it seems like they are greedy and what they get off is never enough even though it is the same as my employee discount!!! so with the coupon issue just save up. also being that the store is only 5 months old... they are still trying to work out some glitches and hire the right employees.

edited to add: the phrase "the customer is always right" is not always true... there are several times that I have come across that the customer is just trying to con you or take advantage of you....not realizing that you are hurting the company and you shouldn't expect them to give you everything at the drop of the hat because of the saying.

My coupon comes in the Sunday paper flyer. From Oct. - Christmas, there is a coupon every week and the rest of the time it is usually every other week. The only way to get Hobby Lobby is through their website. We have a JoAnn's and they will send to you via email or mail and I noticed the last 2 weeks they have started putting a flyer in the Sunday paper. I don't know if this is just through Christmas or a way of competing. Since I have all three close I have never tried to use a coupon in a different store but I do know that Michael's will not take a computer generated coupon and you must have the coupon to receive the discount. As far as prices go, they are all priced the same.

Sorry to hear you're having such a bad experience. It's probably all a managment thing. There are several Michael's near me, and they're all pretty cool about coupons, etc. Maybe because there's a lot more competition from Joann's in this area. Michael's in this area will accept Joann's coupons as well as their own, although they don't advertise that fact. Sounds like you may have poor management at your local store.

Mickig

Our Michael's here where I live will take out the 40 or 50% coupon and use it on your highest price item without asking you. They promote it all the time... I've had some students who purchased the $130 cake decorating kit and the sales associates will take out a 40% coupon without even asking the customer and discount it for them... compared to Hobby Lobby, the Michael's is so much cleaner and the staff is so much more friendly to me... as far as the class room situation for cake decorating classes, I've been in both stores and have taken classes with both.. Michael's is by far the better of the 2 stores as far as the classrooms and cleanliness... at Hobby Lobby, you're in the employee's break room/kitchen area... they're always walking in while you're in class .. they don't even apologize and just walk on in like they own the room .. I don't care for their classroom at Hobby Lobby at all!! I think you just had a really bad experience with your Michael's store there .. maybe the management is new and also uncertain of how things should be ran there .. I hope it changes for you!!

I see you are from Nova Scotia, so maybe it's different there. But here (Ohio), Michael's publishes a weekly ad (or every other week) for the Sunday newspaper. I, personally, would not expect the store to "give" me a coupon just because I entered their store. They publish their ads, but it is my responsibility to clip it and keep track of it -- not the store's. If I forget to take my coupon with me, it's my loss, not theirs.

I've had it with Michael's, too. Back when I was planning my wedding (I did all my own flowers, favors, invitations, etc.), I spent $100s of dollars there, and waited until a coupon came out (every few weeks) and would go and buy in mass quantities. At first, they made me have one coupon per item (I bought lots of newspapers ), and that was fine. Then, they said, "Well, we can only use one coupon per transaction," and being the way I am about saving money, I said, "Okay, fine, then ring up 'x' amount of transactions."

Well, recently, I went into Michael's, equipped with three 50% off coupons and three big-ticket Wilton items, and they wouldn't let me use them. They said, "One coupon per customer per day." I was really mad. I don't understand why they care...it's not like I'm photocopying the coupons. There are still the same amount of coupons in distribution if I used three than if someone else used them. Also, many people would simply throw away the ad with no interest in shopping at Michael's. Using three coupons means that I'm buying three items. It's really irritating.

When I questioned them on this change of policy, they told me that they were under new ownership and that the new owners were much stricter. They also said that they will take one Michael's coupon, one Jo-Ann's coupon and one Hobby Lobby coupon per customer, per day, so there's a chance for multiple savings that way.

Also, they NEVER have the Wilton 10 x 10 boxes, and that's the size I use most often. If they do have any in stock, they're torn. So annoying!

Fortunately, there's another Michael's, where I took my classes, though it is further away than the one in my town. They're easier to deal with and their store is nicer, but I wish there was more consistency between the stores and each shopping experience was pleasant.

Our Michael's won't accept coupons printed from the internet.

Yes, they can be a pain in the butt sometimes- usually depends on the clerk. I felt like writing our Michaels manager last week with a note like this: "I want to say thanks. As a cake decorator, scrapbooker, preschooler teacher and stamper I'm in your store all the time. As a matter of fact I came here this weekend to buy a Christmas tree but then your sales associate showed me the last line of fine print on the 40% off coupon- no christmas trees. So I got annoyed for wasting my time and didn't buy the tree. As I looked around I found that even on sale plus 40% off -your trees would have cost me more than at Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, Hobby Lobby and most other stores. Thanks for opening my eyes." Those coupon games irritate me no end. AC Moore takes Michael's coupons. Michael's prices are usually a bit bit higher, imo.

I don't have a Michael's very close to me closest one is about 2 hours from me I'd say. We also don't get the weekly or bi-weekly ads in the Sunday Papers. Maybe once every few months we will get an ad for them with the closest being listed as Salisbury Md which is still 1 1/2 away.

JoAnn's was mentioned... We do have one of them and I used to work there when I was a teen lol.. I stopped in there looking for the triple star tip a few months back and searched the entire store before I finally interupted the cashier (stood there for 15 minutes thru 10 customers and she never asked if she could help me) and asked her if they sold cake decorating supplies and she got snippy with me and said no try the other store.

Well I had tried our only store in town called Ben Franklin's Crafts and Framing and they didn't have them but do now that I suggested it lol. But they don't offer coupon's or anything for cake stuff and have a very slim pickin's selection of stuff. Most of the stuff I buy I buy online or on eBay lol.

Several of you mentioned online coupons from Michaels but I have never seen one online. I get them in my Sunday paper all the time and I also get Hobby Lobby's in the Sunday paper (usually printed on the back page of the comics) and also online. I just went to my email after reading this thread to look at my Michaels' ad and couldn't find the 40% coupon only the 50% off framing coupon. Am I not looking in the right place?

Sign up with Michaels to receive their weekly circular on line. They don't have coupons every week, maybe every 2 weeks...

I've also had issues with Michaels in Canada (Toronto area)....my Sunday paper does not carry the M's flyer, so into the store I go. One cashier kindly gives me the discount when I explain I do not get the flyer in my paper. I sign the coupon sheet (shows my postal code in case they have some crazy way to check whether I get the flyer?)...anyway..she was nice and I got the discount.

Next trip, the crabbiest, most sour, suspicious cashier on the planet. "No coupon, no discount! Not our problem! YOU call the newspaper and tell them you want our flyer! Next!!" She was like a craft bully!

Not with me, my dear. I asked (reasonably) why a retail chain would have their prospective customers call newspapers in search of their coupons. Why was I being penalized because of my address? She snarled that 'everybody cheats and lies about the coupons"...I asked for the manager (to relay this horrendous behaviour) and was given the discount, but have YET to get a clear explanation of their policy from anyone. Frustrating.

Our choices are limited when if comes to craft stores.

The concept that customers "cheat" with the coupons is so stupid. They act like we're stealing from them. Oooo, 40% off of something that's way overpriced anyway. Give me a break. Coupons bring customers into the store. The Michael's around the corner from me does decent business, but when they have the 50% off coupons, especially during the holidays, you can't get in the place because of the crowds. My store also has the policy of one coupon per customer per day. Fine. That means either I bring somebody with me to use another one, or I pay, leave the store, and come right back again. The cashiers couldn't care less if I've been there before that same day. It might take me longer to get my stuff, but at least I save a little money.

Luckily, though, I have a couple of cake supply stores nearby. I buy all my baking supplies from them. I only use Michael's in case of cake emergency.

Mickig

Michael's and Hobby Lobby both drive me nuts.

I can't tolerate waiting in line, and there is always a shortage of cashiers in both stores.

Aaaaarrgghhh!!!

The Michael's near me is great! They also take JoAnn's and AC Moore coupons. I've never asked for a coupon at the store - if they have any they're in a display to be picked up on your way in but I did register on line so I receive them via e-mail.

Debbie

This may not be a popular post, but I work (as the Wilton istructor) at a very busy Michaels store. It is beyond me how some of the customers that walk in there think they can treat people the way they do. (I am not saying anyone here treats the cashiers badly, this is just what I have seen myself) After dealing with rude customers that complain that it is somehow the STORE's fault that they don't have a coupon ~ shoving their items across the counters and telling the cashiers that if they can't have it 40% off then SHE can put it back.....you can't expect the cashiers to just keep turning the other cheek all day long. They are really nice people and after dealing with things that are beyond their control ~ and for the most part irritable crabby people in line ~ I think they get grumpy too. (and you can't blame them ~ they're not super human, they are just trying to do their job too. They are not the ones who dictate store policy.

I've learned a lot from working there. I take a HUGE dose of patience with me whenever I go shopping anywhere now, and I have learned that being kind to the person behind the register gets you a whole lot further in the long run.

5 months is not very long for a store to work out all the bugs. I'm guessing it's a min wage job and you won't find a lot of loyal, dependable, pleasant employees that soon. I'm sure it is still a mad house.

I was told now until Xmas there will be a Michael's ad with a coupon each week. Other than that it's every other week.

I was also told that they will take up to two coupons per customer.

I signed up for the online ad which is useless because you don't get a coupon.

I get the JoAnn Fabric flyers regularly and they always have the coupon and online as well.

Michael's will accept JoAnn's coupon from the flyer but not the one on line that is printed on your computer.

I perferJoAnn's but it is twice as far for me to go than Michaels.

What is this about asking for a coupon?

I am soo jealous of thoe of you with good experiences. I do suspect it's management. We don't get a newspaper and you can't buy a paper at a store that has ads in it. Apparently there are many postal codes in our city that don't get them - cause Michael's did a study and not enough sales in those postal codes so they don't pay for their flyer to go out. They will not accept anything printed online.

The prices are much higher than other shops in the city. Just an example Wilton colour gel is $1 more a little bottle than the other 2 stores that carry it. The Wilton Cake Carrier is $10 more and the turntable is $5 more. I am really selective in what I buy there.

I'm not one to usually post something that might become an issue, but I have to say something here. When I worked retail (and it wasn't a Michael's or anything like that), it burned me up when customers would call and want to know if we had a certain item, how much it was, is there a coupon for it, blah, blah, blah. It got so bad with just a few different customers calling that our manager acutally told us to put the person on hold and conveniently "forget" about them. The clerks/cashiers/managers/whomever at the store are not being paid to do your shopping for you...especially this time of year when stores tend to be overworked and understaffed. Ok, ream away...