This discussion is great, but one thing that we're forgetting, is that this took place 5 years ago
And since I've been Sears employee for over a year selling kitchen appliances, here are somethings that are going on:
We never sell used merchedise as new any more. It's checked out by a technician after it's been returned, and if it still works, then it's placed on the sales floor at a reduced price with a yellow tag that informs the customer why it's at a reduced price. Items that are discontinued also recieve this yellow tag.
Yes, we do work on commision. We make 4% from the selling price of the appliances sold, as well as 10% on extended warrenties, and 8% on installations. For example, last night I sold a customer a Trio refridgerator, with a 3 year Master Protection Agreement. The fridge sold for $2200 and the warrenty for $280. So I made (4% of $2200 is $88 plus 10% of $280 is $28) $116 from that sale. Also, we will help customers on a first come, first served basis. So if a person asking for a mini-fridge arrives before the person that wants a Trio, then the big ticket customer will have to wait
A few changes have happened in the last 5 years. One would be that K-Mart managed to pull themselves out of bankrupcy and bought Sears in the process, and Wal-Mart coming out of nowhere and taking the top spot as the #1 retail store. So some changes have taken place. The most notable would be a 15% percent restocking fee that's applied on a lot of returned merchise. The guide line regarding when it's applied, is that when the product is defective, the wrong style/color was delivered, or the sales person ordered the wrond one, then the restocking fee isn't applied. If the customer changes their mind after it's been purchase, or the Super Bowl is over and they want to return the big screen the following day, then the fee is applied. Personally, I hate these fees.
Regarding the OP, I'm sorry this had to happen. Measures have been taken to make sure this doesn't happen again. And we all hate making errors that cost others time and money. If you had been one of my customers, I would have offered you a new mini-fridge, that we would inspect before you took it home. And apply a discount of at least 10% on top of that.
If you guys have any other questions or comments, then be sure to post them, or PM me