So I looked up metal storage sheds from the usual sources and Home depot had what I wanted and for the lowest price. Off to the Home Depot.
In the door and the high school kid directing "traffic" pointed me to Aisle 9. Got to Aisle 9 and all that's there is some shelving and small plastic "Rubbermaid" sheds. Had to hunt down another associate. They directed me to the back of the store. Went back to the back and nothing to be found. Hunted up another associate. They pointed off in the distance to "garden supplies" and said they were there. Off to garden supplies. Can't find any sheds and can't find any help. Back into the store looking for an associate. None to be found. Back out to garden and saw someone way up front and headed up there. They were in the process of checking out a purchaser so I waited around till they were done. Asked where the storage sheds were. The kid looked around like he'd been caught with is pants down then looked toward the back of the store and said "back there it that Aisle". As with all the associates I talked to after the "greeter" at the front door, they all seemed rooted to the ground. So I went back to the aisle and finally found the box with the shed. There was one intact box and another box of "shed" that was coming apart at the seems. Tried sliding it out but too heavy and unwieldy to risk without help. So of course, no one is around. Took a quick look into the store, saw no one so headed back up to the guy in front of garden. Told him I found the shed and would need help getting it on the cart. Wheels turned in his head... no chance he was going to be uprooted from his spot apparently so he called someone on the phone who seemed disinclined to provide much assistance. So he's looking around and around and starting to sweat. Then a couple of associates wandered into the back of "garden" and he relaxes and points to them and says "Joe should be able to help". So I head toward "Joe" not wasting any time since they could frighten and scatter before I get there. Told the two of them I'd need help loading a shed. From the expressions on their faces this was not the good news they had been waiting for. And clearly the one guy was a higher level associate as he made no pretense of "you want me to help this guy" and just waited for the other guy to hop to. So off we go to the aisle. Finally after about half an hour of this I had my shed on the cart (but it's "not the right kind of cart" according to the guy who helped load it) and was heading to the registers. Paid and just before I told the cashier I'd need help getting it into the truck there appeared, to my huge surprise, the guy who said it was the wrong cart and helped me load it.
Probably the most absurd "customer service" encounter I've had in years. One bright spot was that the price was about $20 less then it had shown online. The online price was $218 and I was out the door with tax included for $215 plus it had a "free" floor kit that wasn't listed in the online ad. I later found that this "floor kit" amounted to about 8 pieces of very thin sheet metal, probably not more then a pound or two of metal.