RudikoEoT

Hi all, i'm a dvd planet employee who frequents these boards quite often and I just wanted to know everyone's opinion on this. Were you happier shopping at the retail store and online back when Kenny used to run the store, or are you happy the way things are going now =P. I would also appreciate if any one who votes would post what they used to like about the store and what they hate about it now. Thanks in advance.

Franchot

I'll bet dollars to doughnuts you'll get very few (if any) people voting for the second choice--liking the way things are now.

When I first started buying DVDs at the old location, I liked the way the titles were arranged in alphabetical order. Although I didn't care for the change to categories, I could live with it. (The change made the store seem more like a Best Buy--which is not a good thing.)

In the old store, I liked that DVDs were in stock on the day of their release, and if they weren't the employees would have a good answer as to why they weren't. (Often times, when asked to, the employees would hunt through just delivered boxes to find titles that hadn't been put out on the shelves yet.) In the new store, they don't seem to know when or if newer titles will be in stock. (Even older titles for that matter.)

I liked the more "laid back" attitude the older store had and enjoyed conversing with the employees because they were true movie buffs. You could talk to Kenny and he was a personable guy who took care of his customers. In the new store I feel like I'm at a BlockBuster Video store--although the employees are polite and try to be helpful, they seem like minimum wage workers just going through the motions. (Since you're asking for criticisms, I don't care for the store uniform (vest) everyone is forced to wear, also. "Clone City.")

I used to like when selected items were on sale for no particular reason. (I like that the top 20 movies of the week are on sale, but these are usually titles that are on sale at Best Buy and Circuit City and can be bought there for less.) In the other store, there used to be a variety of titles on sale from the obscure to the popular. (Sometimes I'd pop in just to see what was on sale.)

Finally, I don't like the thought or idea of good ole Ray standing all night long and waiting on customers. Give the guy a chair to sit on as he works the register. I liked when the clerks sat at the counter and did their jobs. It felt more comfortable and homey. Now it feels like a fast food restaurant.

My main gripes are: 1) the inability of the store to have the newest titles (both popular and obscure) in stock on release day and 2) the corporatation mentality of turning the store into a clone of BlockBuster, Best Buy, and Circuit City. (There's a reason why most shoppers dislike those stores and it begins with them having poor service.)

What's missing is Kenny (and the crew he put together) and the warmth they brought to a family-owned store which excelled in a store that sold only laser discs and then DVDs. He did it with honesty, friendliness, and reasonable prices.

dvde

I'll tell you this. When Kenny ran the place they would never have to come to these boards and ask this question. The Planet is a total joke these days and it will NEVER be Ken Crane's LD/DVD, because there are no traces of what was Kenny and the old team that ran things. Everyone one needs to stop comparing the planet to the Kenny days, because it's not even the same company. First off, they changed the name as soon as Image took over, then they moved from up the way on Beach, now there's no trace of Kenny at all and it was sold again to the current owner (DDD parent company). Sure you may have a couple of the employees from the Kenny days, but none of them from when they were Ken Crane's LD/DVD, actually I take that back maybe a few that came in at the end of Ken Crane's, but by no means did they ever get the full feel of what the Kenny days were like. Plus, the ones that are still there were all in high school when it was sold, except Ray (been there for ever).

So PLEASE everyone, STOP COMPARING DVD PLANET TO KEN CRANE'S LD/DVD. THEY ARE TWO DIFFERENT COMPANY'S.

My opinions are first hand, because I hired most of those high school kids that are still there.

dvde

A true Ken Crane's customer I must say, unfortionately you aren't what the new company that bought Ken Crane's LD/DVD are looking for. They want the Best Buy, CC and Good Guys crowd, a bad idea in my opinion. Those type of customers are not loyal like you and all the others were.

Just to hit on your to other points that I highlighted. The vest were around back in the day, but were black and attracted less attention. That's why Kenny changed them to red ones. Ray is a 100% stud. That guy insisted in not sitting and it was hard to keep him in one place for very longer. I remember when I tried to get him to sit and just wait on customers and he told me it felt funny not doing anything in between customers. What most people don't know is that he works full time at Disneyland Monday thru Friday and then comes straight to Ken Crane's (Now Planet) after he got off work over there. He's also a great artist/drawer, thanks for the logo Ray. He's just a flat out great employee and I wish there were more guys like him.

Ellison42

No one - and I mean NO ONE worked for Kenny longer than I did. But it doesn't matter. This is all moot point. Seriously, what do you think is going to happen? If this thread is read by anyone who really matters @ DDD, do you think it will make a bit of difference? This is how the world works: things change! Get over it and move on with your life - I did, and so did Kenny.

El-Kabong

I used to buy *ALL* my laserdiscs from there - they were quick, friendly, and the cheapest on the block. And then the internet became big, and suddenly there were dozens of choices - and loads of people selling much cheaper.

I dont buy there anymore since I can think of a handful of other stores that are about 25 percent cheaper and ship for free. It's simple economics.

Norm de Plume

I was a customer since '93 (LDs, then DVDs), but no more. I didn't run into any of the problems others did during the transition because I didn't order anything at that time, but you must be joking if you think anyone from Canada with half a brain will order from a place whose shipping prices are $6/first + $2/per. They were once reasonable.

marty888

After a miserable experience last summer with an online purchase (I can accept errors, but the follow-up was lax and dishonest) I've written them off as a place to shop. Life is too short to put up with crap.

matome

What he just said. During the "transition" I probably lost over $100 worth of non-credited returns/non-shipped discs, with nothing but a "We don't have any records transferred yet" excuse. I decided to just write it off as a lesson learned. Nothing good lasts forever.