Harbor Freight Tools dishonest advertising by issuing FREE LED FLASHLIGHT coupons in ad flyers all over the Dayton, Ohio area, home office: Dayton, Ohio

Honestly, think about it... Has an Employee ever won an arguement with a Customer? In the Corporate's Viewpoint, the real answer is: NO! The Corporate "Image" is easily tarnished by a "Head-Strong" Employee who feels they are in the right. That type of attituse is much too expensive to maintain in the business world. Without the Customer, the business will NOT exist and that Employee's job follows with it.



To illistrate an example: Before I entered into the current profession nearly a few decades ago, I had worked for a Retail Store that sold SHOES. The enviroment and selling practices of this organization is totally movated by the actual control of the Profit & Loss Statement AT THE STORE LEVEL. This included displaying all of their shoes on racks for the Consumer to try on and if their size was NOT on the shelf - the Customer knew (most of the time) that the shoes were NOT in stock - because the whole sales floor was the stockroom. The product is generally purchase in massive quantities at fractions of a CENT on the DOLLAR! The profit goes to paying Rent, Wages, Utilities, etc. What that Company cannot afford is bad customer experiences.



I was part of a group of management who had to rectify a Customer Complaint: The details were simple, The Customer brought back a pair of Cowboy Boots that we never carried in the first place and the Employee "Corrected" the Customer by identifying the Boots as being sold by one different Retail Store that only sold high-end products - the boots sold for $200 and we never have anything that sold for more than $55 because we buy in huge supplies. The problem was that the Customer actually believed he bought his boots from our Shoe Store and upon being denied service, he stated he would never shop with us again.



This is actually HOW we corrected the problem: We found out who that Customer was and WE WENT TO HIS HOME, in our business suits bringing with us that same Employee, and apologized for everything under the Sun. The Customer was still not satisified and was asked: "What may we do to MAKE YOU HAPPY?" The Customer responsed - "A Color TV!" Guess what?! That Employee brought over a new 19" Color TV because he could not carry anything larger.



What did our Employee learn from this experience? Because he showed us a "will" to act professionally, he not only kept his job but advanced into Store Management. He is currently a District Manager in charge of 15 other retail shoe stores and made the business his career. 



I am not kidding, this is a true story.



As for the free flashlight promotion, you have to understand that the flashlights are purchased from China at a fraction of a penny because the hugh volume of flashlights bought as one load. They are intended as free advertising ploys to bring in customers, both new & old. The general principal is to GET CUSTOMERS INTO THE STORE. In doing so, sales are generated beyond what would have happened if there were NO Customers in the store. My ruling: Give the Customer what he/she wants! If it's a RED flashlight or BLUE - make them happy! It pays to have happy Customers, because without happy Customers, you will NOT have a business to run in the future. For me, it would be a whole lot cheaper to give up flashlights instead of Color TV's just to correct an immature Employee's attitude. 



I really hope I helped shine some light on this subject. Good Luck and Prosper...

I cant stand it when people make a big deal about either the free LEDs or other free items when they come up to the counters at Harbor Freight!  Its bad enough that I have to work at a p.o.s company like HFT, but then to have to put up with the dissatisfied hillbillies, hicks & crotchety senior citizens!  Yes HFTs may be crap company that puts their ads out when the sales or coupons haven't yet started BUT NONE OF IT IS ILLEGAL.  It says right on the coupons what the terms & conditions are for that coupon to be eligible INCLUDING the expiration date!  HELLO!? DOES "WHILE SUPPLIES LAST" MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?! If you dont like it then just read the ad or coupon & it will explain everything for you so that you wont have to come in & waist our time with your stupidity!  The cashier's jobs are hard enough for a retail position there since the company wont update & give us new registers to better deal with the crowds there without someone staking a right to a claim that wasn't theirs to begin with! So PLEASE.  Do tell all the other dust farters you hang out with to not back in & our stores & our stores will be better off without you all!

Incidentally you said this: "It is a scam to get you in the store." First of all it's not a scam or a ripoff if they didn't charge you anything in any part of this ridiculous story.

Second, of course that's why they are giving any flashlights out.  They hope that if you stop in that you will buy something, it's called a promotion.  It's a pretty common sales tool.

They're purpose is not to supply all of Dayton Ohio residents with free flashlights, use some common sense.

I would not have even expected a free flashlight unless I bought something even though that may not be an absolute requirement.

The munch bunch is having a real buzz and cell phones are ringing huh?  You people need something to do.  Ridiculous.

This is the kind of post that makes me embarrassed to be a 'senior citizen'.  I don't even know what the heck that fact had to do with anything.

You actually got 7 people to drive 10 miles for the express purpose of trying to score free crummy flashlight?  You must really be bored.

You should be embarrassed too.

I don't understand why everyone thinks that it is a RIGHT to get a FREE flashlight. When Harbor Freight first starting sending out these coupons they were always in stock. After a while the company realized how much money they were losing and how many people would come in off the street just for the flashlight and take advantage of it. There were people who would get 4 or 5 a day by going to diffferent cash registers or anything else they could possibly think of. So the company got smart and started limited the amount of flashlights that are sent to the store each week. They use to let us open the blue and red packages, but put a stop to that as well. I see no harm in that. those were not the FREE items. Only the single packaged black ones were. The coupons state that they are while supplies last.  Why don't people understand the concept!? and why in the world do people drive out of their way how ever far it may be just for some piece of s**t flashlight!? I don't get it. You are all stupid. Stop throwing a fit over not getting a free item that states it's while supplies last. and about the expiration date. All coupons expire. There is a reason for this. And almost every retail establishment does not take expired coupons. Plain and simple.  You are not a special snowflake. YOU ARE NOT ENTITLED TO A FREE FLASHLIGHT!