Belk Department Store

I was in town for work and had to return a watch that did not work that I purchased from a different Belk store so thought it would be easy to take care of this errand while in town.
I walked in and… crickets…it was like a ghost town. There was music playing overhead and the lights were on, doors unlocked, so it has to be open, right? I walked around for about 5 minutes, clearing my throat, saying «hello?» in all the departments… and this is a small store so it wasn’t that difficult.
FINALLY a lady came out from the back in the shoe department and I asked her if she could help me with a return in jewelry. She said yes but then kept looking over and around for someone in jewelry. I told her it was like Night of the Comet, there is no one anywhere. She didn’t think it was funny. I handed her the receipt and she snapped, «where is the receipt?» Yikes! She then started telling me she didn’t see the barcode so I started sweating it until thankfully, it was on the bottom of the watch box.
Now, normally, I take full advantage of a return by buying something else.
1. The watching was a Betsy Johnson watch and the lady in shoes didn’t know who Betsy Johnson was. They did not have any Betsy Johnston in jewelry nor anything I would want in it’s place. I guess all Belk stores are VERY different.
2. I was sort of afraid to continue going through the store as desserted as it was to stroll and see if there was something else I wanted to buy. It takes a lot to get me to not shop… just sayin.
3. The lady that took my return was probably the one who would check me out and honestly, I didn’t have time to find her again, nor sweat whether or not I was going to be allowed to make a purchase.
Come on Roanoke Rapids Belk… get it together. You don’t have a lot of shopping options. It’s a shame that someone can’t feel comfy in Belk.