Kinko’s (the Copy Center) is run by the devil. Here is my story and you make your own decision. On Tuesday I came into school after a thanksgiving long weekend. I worked on the final rough copy of thesis until around 6:30 when I went over to Kinko’s to print out my 154 page document. That didn’t seem like such a daunting task. I only needed one copy and it was in Black and White. No big deal. Should be simple. It really wasn’t.
I walk into Kinko’s and there are at least 7 people working. I think to myself “This shouldn’t be too bad, lots of workers, not very many people needing help, I should be out of here quickly”. I stand around for a couple of minutes in the computer line with only one person working it. Eventually I ask him what I need to do to print of something from a Word file. He gives me two options. The first is to use the Self-Serve printer which would cost about 10 cents per page plus 25 cents per minute for computer use (which is an exorbant amount of money for computer use). The second option was to get the other guys in the place to do it, it would cost a minimum of 15 bucks but it seemed to be the way to go. So I go over and stand in line for a minute or so. The guy explains that he will log me on to a computer and then I can send the file over to the full-serve printer. At this point I was under the impression that I wouldn’t be paying for the computer time. Little did I know I was wrong. The guy that showed me the computer and logged me on told me to get him just before printing. So I open my files and get ready to print them. I then go over and stand in line for 10 minutes before someone else tells me all I have to do is send it to the Full Serve B&W printer. So I do that. I then go back to get my printouts. I stand in line for about 15 minutes watching to attract someones attention. I final get someones attention and get the stuff I had just printed. Everything looks good. Now I want to get it bound. I quickly grab one of the employees and he set about binding it. It takes him roughly 10 minutes to punch holes in the paper and wind this plastic thing into the holes. He then informs me that I would be have to get my receipt from the computer so I could finish my transaction. Now if you recall I didn’t think I had to pay for the computer time so I hadn’t logged off. The reciept said I was online for 42 minutes (which would have been a little over 10 bucks). The guy decided that he would be “nice” and drop the usage time to 27 minutes, when I know that what I did on the machine would have taken me 5 minutes at the most. I end up paying around 8 bucks for computer time (which could have been just over a dollar) but wasn’t do to a misunderstanding and the fact that I had to stand in line for over 25 minutes.
I think that all Kinko employees are taught to “pretend like your doing something important at all times and don’t make eye contact with the customers or they will expect you to do something”. I also think that they believe “if 7 people are in the store only 2 should actually be doing work and the rest of you should be wanking off”. I know I’ll never go back to Kinko’s for anything else. This isn’t the first crappy experience I’ve had but I’m sure it will be the last.
17 Comments
“pretend like your doing something important at all times and don’t make eye contact with the customers or they will expect you to do something”. I also think that they believe “if 7 people are in the store only 2 should actually be doing work and the rest of you should be wanking off”.
i couldn’t agree more!!
Man I hate Kinko’s… I think I’d rather get papercuts all over my weiner and then go swimming in a pool of lemonade than walk into a Kinko’s.
25 cents per minute for computer use? Wow. Here we only have to pay around 1 USD per hour to use a computer at some internet cafe.
Firda: Yeah, but Kinko’s is like their own little dictatorship. Sort of like snack prices in a movie theatre, or beer in airports. Jack it up, they’ve gotta pay!
I work at a Kinko’s, and what you are talking about sounds like a bad experience, but dont think thats the same at all the Kinko’s. The branch I’m at is one of the best in the country, and we take care of everyone quickly, and without screwing up…haha….
It’s just a shame that the others cant do the same for you.
Mike you are a brainwashed fool! i too work at kinko’s and your pride is misplaced.
the problem with kinko’s is that the company is sells itself like “MCdonald’s” when the process is more like a Dry-cleaners…
so people come in expecting to get things right away, when it does’nt really work that way.
and also, 7 out of 10 people are mad at us but it is usually thier fault as they waited too long to do thier project.
we can’t help people who cannot help themselves!!!
Kinko’s is a technological convenience store. It understands that most people have access to their own computers/printers and need to use Kinko’s only for emergencies (usually resulting from procrastination) or laziness. Ergo, they charge customers more than one would generally expect to pay for such services. In the same way, I pay more for a can of Coke I buy at the convenience store than I would had I had the time/forethought to buy a six-pack at the grocer’s. As for its employees: don’t fault them. The company is going through financial problems, and the effects are unfortunately apparent at store-level. They cannot afford to pay new employees for computer knowledge, so instead they end up with people who should be (and often feel or sound like they are) saying “Would you like fries with that?”. Along those same lines, they have cut back store-level staffing nationwide but increased their “promise to the customer.” Ask any Kinko’s employee you meet and you will find they are all overworked. Is this because they work a lot of hours, or because every minute on the clock is spent pretending to be extremely knowledgeable about something they really know very little about? I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. The result is the same: unhappy staff and unhappy customers. But either way it is not the fault of the person in the blue apron, because all s/he is trying to do is make enough money to pay rent or finish school. And believe it or not, forty-nine out of fifty times s/he really does want to make a positive impression on you.
You sound like a real loser. You can’t even write without grammatical errors, let alone print without excess charges. If you were in the Kinko’s that I manage, I’d kick your ass out and make you an example to the co-workers in my branch. You are a dipshit. Go to our competition, WE DON’T WANT PEOPLE LIKE YOU IN OUR STORES.
Well in the half dozen or so experiences I’ve had with Kinko’s the service has been horrible everytime. Just because you all think your god (or in your case the devil) doesn’t mean it is so. I don’t think I stated that all Kinko’s are crap (even though the majority of the replies to this post have agreed with me) though if this is the attitude you have with your customers I wouldn’t want to give you my business.
As a matter of fact when I got around to printing off my final thesis copies I didn’t go to Kinko’s. I went to a place where the employees treated me with courtesy and respect. Nuff said.
As for the grammer argument. If you read any of my other posts you’d realize that I know my grammer isn’t perfect. I’ve stated that many times in many different posts. Besides if I took the time to re-read every single post I would have to sit in front of my computer longer than I would want to.
The service at Kinko’s isn’t always bad, but as a former co-worker I can tell you that “HOW” they treat their employees is just awful. You have people in management that would rather hire mindless fools from McDonald’s then to hire someone with experience and chance to feel intimidated by their knowledge. The worse is the elaborate way Kinko’s goes to demean you before they let you go. I’m surprised that a major lawsuit for harassment hasn’t been filed yet.
the computers and kinko’s love not workng. same goes with thier printers.
I just got back from Kinko’s and the service is below par. The customer computers are unable to handle large files. I had to let the Kinko’s people do it for me, and I now have to wait until tomorrow to get my print outs because of the number of people in que. Faster computers, more computers, and a staff that dosn’t open and close the printer paper tray in a violent manner when it dosn’t work need to be implemented in this business. I give Kinko’s two thumb’s down.
I have to agree with Becca on her post. I work at a Kinko’s. I am overworked, under paid and mega stressed most of the time I am clocked in. We’re usually understaffed. Our equipment is old and krufty. Our managers are usually incompetent. I do the best I can with what I have got and sometimes, I get snappy with a customer…but doesn’t everyone???
(I do try to be respectful to customers, just as I like to be treated with respect when I am the customer.)
Think about it from our perspective. For instance, today at work, this customer tells me, “You need to change your system (i.e. the internet) to be set up just like the library’s”! Normally, I would laugh my ass off and tell that person that they obviously didn’t know what they were talking about…but I can’t do that. NO, I have to sit there and take it with a smile just to turn right around and help Mrs. Self Importance get her thesis printed out because she’s too lazy or dense to read the sign that tells you exactly how to print you document. The sign to her left…no her other left…you know. the sign that reads…”How Do I Print My Document?”.
So yeah.
If you ever walk into a Kinko’s again…remember. We think you are just as stupid as you think we are.
And as for the customers who like to get all huffy about time….DON’T COME IN SO DAMN CLOSE TO YOUR DEADLINES and maybe you won’t be so stressed. And please don’t come in with the preconcieved notion that Kinko’s Sucks…so I (the co-worker) suck…just because I wear that stupid blue apron.
So if you Kinko’s employees hate it so much why do you still work there?
It’s better then slinging food and saying “want fries with that”. The benefits are killer and the staff behind the counter are smarter then most custumers 🙂
I too work at kinko’s and those other two people were right, it is a very stressful job. i have developed and anger problem working there. you are trying to help one person and other idiots butt in asking you for help rudely interuppting they (customers) are all so fucking needy!!! when i am trying to do my job i have more fucking idiots burning a hole thru my head because i am not helping them!!! it’s horrible. so i try not to make eye contact with them and most of the time i am actually busy when they bother me. extremely busy.
i used to work at the evil K. Bad scene. I finally went on to manage a small indy copy shop and most of the stress was left behind. It really is a horrible working environment. Most people who go to Kinko’s don’t realize that there are alternatives (alternatives that usually cost 40%-70% less) and they’re always rushed. Most of my kinky’s customers couldn’t manage their time for beans. Not to mention that working under people who are less skilled, but paid more, is quite humbling. I worked with a woman who had been with the company since 85, but still couldn’t use the friggin color copier.
Please, any Kinko’s coworkers reading this… it is possible to move on. If you’ve really got the skills, there are jobs. There is an industry bias out there against Kinko’s, but you need to sell yourself. List your specific knowledge on resumes. Don’t just say “I can make copies”. name the makes and models of the machines. Be specific about the auxilliary work you can perform. Binderies will hire you if can at least prove you can use a GBC punch. There is hope… please leave the evil K.
-slacker