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| - Yikes. That's the word that perhaps best describes my feelings after spending an hour in this place that I honestly used to really enjoy.
Brick and mortar retail is quickly becoming a thing of the past, and it is (in my humblest of opinions) because of stores like this that online retail giants like Amazon are destroying the brick and mortar retail landscape. Even other significantly more successful brick and mortar big box retailers like WalMart and Target are driving speciality big box places like Michael's and Office Depot into oblivion because they simply cannot, or are unwilling to, compete.
I digress, getting back to the subject at hand, the Michael's in Centennial shopping center is a perfect example of why I am a proud Amazon Prime member. Let's start with selection: it's pretty good. If looking for higher end art supplies, custom framing, yarns, and other middle market and higher end craft goods, this is a pretty good place to visit so you touch and feel the merchandise hands on. Just be sure to bring your iPhone (or Android if you insist) and have the Amazon app ready, so you can scan the barcodes and see the insane savings you'll get by not spending a cent in this store. Their selection of art supplies and offering a nice custom framing area is why I granted 2/5 as opposed to 1/5. Allow me to elaborate...
Some of the savings are nothing short of ludicrous. Example: my daughter is a bit of a budding artist. She enjoys pencil drawing and has graduated to using some better than average supplies. One set of outining pencils was $17.99 at Michaels. I scanned the barcode, and Amazon had the EXACT SAME set for $8.99, and it doesn't end there. Amazon has MSRP (Retail price) listed at $15.99. I dug a little deeper and sure enough, the MANUFACTURE'S SUGGESTED RETAIL PRICE was $2 less than what Michael's was selling it for. It's bad enough to pay retail but to pay over retail for the luxury of a rundown store with minimal staff? As if!!!!
Yes, I went all 'Clueless' on that one, as it simply boggles my mind why ANYONE would shop here.
I was sent a print ad with coupons that included an advertisement for Strathmore sketch pads for Buy 3 for price of 1. Pretty good deal, right? The add said prices were in effect through the end of the month. I went there and was told that the particular item I was referring to was only available at that price during the first week of the month. No, it did not say that in the fine print or anywhere in the ad. Come to find out, though, once I scanned the sketch pads, I discovered that even with the coupon, Amazon Marketplace had them for cheaper, with Prime Shipping. LOLZ.
I tried to use a coupon for 25% off a sale item. The clerk told me that that particular coupon hadn't started yet. AYFKM.
So, to not call it a complete waste, I allowed my two kids to pick out 3 Cadbury eggs. The total was OVER $4. They are about $2.79 at Walmart right across the street from this place.
Make no mistake, I am a fan of both online shopping as well as brick and mortar traditional shopping. I LOVE the mall (specifically Forum Shops or Fashion Show in Vegas), but retail stores like this Michael's make it crystal clear that there are at least some brick and mortar stores who stopped caring long ago and are simply waving the white flag to Amazon and WalMart, almost begging them to pound in that final nail in their coffin.
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