Store Review: Kohl's Department Stores

On Oct 3, I drove 10 miles to the new Kohl's store in a neighboring town. I had read about the grand opening and also seen the October 2, Kohl's issued a Press Release to about opening 80 new stores October 3rd, and 15 more stores in mid-November. The press release states that Kohl's is a "value-oriented specialty department store offering moderately priced, exclusive and national brand apparel, shoes, accessories, beauty and home products." The press release goes on to say that "Kohl's has raised more than $85 million for children's initiatives nationwide through its Kohl's Cares for Kids® philanthropic program.

The Review:

The reason for my 10-mile trip to the grand opening in a neighboring community was to purchase 3 personal DVD players for my 3 granddaughters for Christmas. The "early-bird" specials were enticing. When I arrived at the store, there were several people stationed at each door to greet you. They made finding the merchandise I needed extremely easy with their directions to the customer service department where the personal DVD players were behind the counter. While I was on my way, another friendly employee stopped and asked if she could direct me. The customer service employee who waited on me was extremely courteous, friendly and helpful, even though they were "snowed under" with customers. Her name is Sheila Richards. She made sure I got all the discounts she could give me and then the rebate forms. I was on my way within a few minutes. With the discounts and the rebates I will get, the personal DVD players will only cost me $61.00 each. The brand name of the personal DVD player is Digital Labs and states that it is manufactured under a license from Dolby Laboratories. They not only have 8 inch LCD screens, but also have a case, a charger, a remote control, ear-buds, built-in stereo speakers, 2.5 hours of battery life, video/stereo outputs/cables which allow them to be hooked up to a TV for large screen viewing, an A/C power adapter for use at home, a D/C power for use in the car and they are JPEG compatible. I am very satisfied with the quality and the price. I have completed a large part of my Christmas shopping and it is only October 3rd!

I did some more shopping in the ladies apparel department and then grabbed a couple of the adorable stuffed animals with the storybooks that go with them. I couldn't resist. They are only $5.00 each and look like they cost 4 times that much. This is one of Kohl's philanthropic activities (Kohl's Cares for Kids®) in which they donate "100% of the net profits on the sale of these items to support health and educational opportunities in the communities for children nationwide." These are for the grand-girls at Christmas, but I will go back to purchase more when I fill up my shoe boxes for Franklin Graham's Operation Christmas Child Ministry. It is such an efficient use of my money. I buy the stuffed animals and books and Kohl's donates the profits to help children in America. Then I pack the items in shoe boxes that Franklin Graham ships to underprivileged children in other countries. When I checked out the rest of the merchandise, I met employee Joyce Filson. She was every bit as friendly and helpful as the person who assisted me in customer service. She made sure I got a scratch off card that gave me an additional 15% discount.

Recommendation:

Kohl's is probably my daughter-in-law's favorite store. The reason is the one in the first paragraph that was taken from the press release. Namely, Kohl's does have national and exclusive brands at a moderate price. The stores are clean, well ordered. I intend to keep shopping at Kohl's not only because of the values and good service, but because I like shopping at a store that believes in giving a portion of their profits back to the less fortunate. I may not make the 10-mile drive every time I shop, but I will be shopping more at Kohl's. It was definitely worth the trip today! If they don't have one in your area now, chances are good that they will by the end of the year.