For shoppers, few things are more irritating than finding an item online, only to be told in-store that it’s “not available.” When Walmart‘s website said one thing but the store employees said another, one shopper decided to document it in a now viral video.
TikTok user @drab.to.dreamy posted the video on Oct. 31, detailing her search for a popular holiday garland at Walmart. After checking the inventory online, she drove 30 minutes to the nearest store that supposedly had it. But when she asked an employee for help, they told her it wasn’t in stock.
Frustrated, she explains, “I have worked in customer service before. I have worked in retail. I know how crazy it can be, but something that is so frustrating to me is when you’re asking for a specific product, and they’re like, ‘Oh, we don’t have it.’”
She asked the employee to double-check, and eventually, they looked up the item and found that the system showed 28 in the back and six on the floor. Still, the employee dismissed it, allegedly claiming it was “probably just online only.”
Unconvinced, @drab.to.dreamy kept asking for assistance. Finally, a third Walmart employee took her request seriously and went to search for the garland. The video cuts to her holding the garland in hand, thanking the helpful worker she identifies as “Steven” and signing off with, “I knew you had them. I knew you had them.”
Walmart shoppers weigh in on the video
Since its posting, the video has racked up over 96,200 views. In the comments, users had a lot to say.
“Do a store pickup! They will find it and you don’t have to beg somebody for help!” one commenter suggested.
Others sympathized with employees dealing with a chaotic backroom. “If they are busy they don’t have the time to go look for it. It’s a whole world back there,” one person wrote.
“I work retail…it’s annoying when your on-hands are actually incorrect, and the customer still insists you have it, all because it says so online. In-store and online are not the same,” another shared.
“I’ve worked in a big box store and unfortunately the online inventory is only about 50% accurate,” one more remarked.
Walmart’s online inventory listings vs. in-store availability
The discrepancies between Walmart’s online inventory listings and actual in-store availability have recently been a topic of discussion on Reddit. In a post to r/Walmart, one user asked, “Why does the website straight up lie about items being in stock?”
In the post, the user claimed that they’ve tried ordering items for in-store pickup, only to find that the items listed as “in stock” were often unavailable, forcing them to accept pricey substitutions.
“Walmart.com in-stock is only as reliable as the information in the store’s system,” one Reddit user replied.
“The website is 24 hours behind,” another wrote.
@drab.to.dreamy After persistence, your girl got her garland! The only store within 3 hours of me that had it! LETS GOOOOO! #walmart #walmartfinds #walmarthaul #walmartchristmas #christmashaul #christmasdecor #mytexashouse ♬ original sound – drab.to.dreamy
The Daily Dot reached out to Walmart via the media contact form on its website and to @drab.to.dreamy via email for comment.
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