A couple of weeks ago I went to Pearle Vision in La Crosse, WI to get estimates on the price of glasses. A female clerk gave me an estimate of $276 for the glasses I was interested in (a 30 percent discount off the original price).
I told her I would think about it and come back some other time. A couple of nights ago I went back into Pearle and a young gentleman helped me. I told him I had forgotten the estimate, and could he re-write it (same frames that I picked out a couple of weeks ago). The estimate for the glasses came to $206.00. That's quite a difference from the first estimate.
It turns out that the first estimate with the female clerk was for more expensive lens, etc. She never gave me any indication that I could get a cheaper pair of glasses; but wrote out the estimate as if $276 was my only choice. I realized then that the employees get commission on what they sell.
I am disappointed in the fact that a clerk would deliberately try to screw-me-over so that she could get a bigger commission. That, to me, is unethical, and I will no longer go there or LensCrafter which is owned by the same people.
Nicole
Pennsylvania,#2UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sat, April 07, 2012
You have nothing to base that on. You have no idea why she quoted you the more expensive lenses. Did she look at your prescription? If you've got a stronger power, she probably quoted you thinner and lighter lenses. Did she talk with you at all? Maybe after listening to you, she knew she would recommend those specific lenses because they suit your needs. If you didn't talk to her much, and pretty much gave her the old "How much is a pair of glasses?" loaded question, she probably quoted you a "worst case scenario" price, meaning of course "this is the highest you'll have to pay", so if you chose lower options your price drops.
Kind of rude to assume she was trying to pad her pocket. I can assure you, the "commission" she would have made off your $200 order would hardly be enough for her to buy a Coke out of a vending machine. Calm down. Not everyone is out to "screw you over". Get over yourself.