The Most Hated Retailer In The United States: Surprise, It’s Not Walmart

The most hated retailer in the United States might surprise you. According to the American Consumer Satisfaction Index, Walmart is close, but the ultimate loser with public opinion is actually not a major retailer.

Many major retailers face a serious dilemma when it comes to keeping the consumer happy. There is the precarious balance between paying employees what they feel they deserve and turning a profit, but that affects employee morale more than anything else. However, if you let morale dip low enough, it can spread into customer service and make the average shopper not want to return.

Some of the greatest sins in customer service include employees being too busy “doing their jobs” to actually focus on the people supplying their income. Often enough, you find Walmart employees trying to finish a task and being unwilling to help you find that part of the store where floor fans are hiding, for example. At other times, they will be working in an unfamiliar section of the store and literally have no idea where the plastic clothing hangers are, often earning them the privilege of being one of the most hated retailers in the U.S. If none of this bothers you, the usual traffic and tendency of other shoppers to block off walkways so you can’t get through often sends us into an indoor road rage.

There is a retailer who actually ranks lower than Walmart across the board, and it might not be a place where you would typically shop.

Abercrombie and Fitch scored a 65, nearly 10 points below the overall score on the American Consumer Satisfaction Index, according to CNN. This might explain why the retailer is known to be a clothing store for gay men, a popular insult possibly spawned by them being the most hated retailer in the nation.

A possible reason for why Abercrombie and Fitch scored a point below Walmart is the alleged discrimination toward consumers, and this could spell serious trouble for the clothing store. Walmart has been among the lowest scoring retailers on the list for almost a decade, even inspiring an episode of South Park where it is seen as an evil entity bent on destroying civilization. Despite this, Walmart still has a returning consumer base due to the supercenters being a “low price hub” of everything you might be looking for.

“Abercrombie & Fitch ranked as the most hated #Retailer in America for the first time ever” (@MailOnline) – https://t.co/6kaZLZqu37#Retail

— Property Plus (@PropertyPlusMIS) February 25, 2016

This tendency of customers to return to Walmart could be the biggest reason the second most hated retailer in the United States continues to stay in business. Higher ranking retailers like JC Penney and Target don’t offer such a wide selection.

However, CBS News states Walmart chief executive Doug McMillon is working on ways to improve the company’s public opinion. A Walmart spokeswoman has promised the company will attempt to turn the consumer opinion around.

“We survey millions of customers throughout the year and receive great feedback on our efforts to deliver clean stores, fast checkouts and a friendly store environment. We continue to raise the bar in these areas so we can make the shopping experience even better for our customers.”

A raise in pay to $10 an hour minimum may be part of their effort to shed themselves of the dishonor of being one of the most hated retailers. They will need to counter the raise with higher profits, and it could take some time to rise from the bottom of the list. The appearance of Abercrombie and Fitch beneath them might be a positive turn for Walmart, but this is only the beginning of a long and difficult struggle.

Have you been to Abercrombie and Fitch? Why, in your opinion, is it the most hated retailer in the United States, rivaling Walmart?

[Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images]