An emoloyee warned me to tape my own package next ...

An emoloyee warned me to tape my own package next time because, "We charge for that." They seriously wanted to charge me for 1 strip of tape to close up my pre-labeled dropoff package because, "We're not UPS, we're a UPS Store. This is an independent franchise and we don't make money off of those." You don't make money by annoying people into not coming back, either.

What could that possibly cost the franchise? A hundreth of a cent? I guess you can add the time and labor it takes for one person to put a piece of tape on a box, right? But seriously, why even implement such a blatantly ham-fisted policy? The fact that I'm walking in your door is reason enough to accept the package without charging for a piece of tape. It's called foot traffic.

I was a potential repeat customer who would have been interested in print or copy services at some point in the future. Not anymore! I'll take my business to another "independent franchise" that doesn't want to nickel and dime me over 14 inches of packing tape.