So I stopped by my local Suncoast today to pick up DVDs. If you’ve never met the store (and I’m not sure if they exist outside of the States), Suncoast sells DVDs and almost nothing but; the rest of their stock is fannish gear of various sorts (“Anime swords! $19.99 each!”) I don’t go in there often — it’s in The Mall, and I don’t go in there often either — but generally they’ve got a better selection than anyone else in town.
However! They seem to have a new corporate policy to make buying things as annoying as possible. I bring the DVDs up to the cash, and get asked in quick succession:
- Do I have a membership in their club? (No.)
- Would I like one? It costs $10/month and gives you a 10% discount here and at various other unspecified places. (No.)
- Damage insurance on the DVDs? (Um, no. Especially since they’ll be leaving the country shortly.)
- …any magazines that I’d like to subscribe to? (NO.)
I don’t know if I’m justified in resenting all of this, but it does seem weird that I spent more time refusing offers of upsells and side deals than I did actually entering the store, finding what I wanted, and waiting in line at the cash.