Do you hate it when you go into a store and ask where something is and they reply, "IF we have it, it'll be on aisle 42?

I've encountered that. Some stores hire bilingual employees (English/Spanish), while other stores hire ONLY Spanish speaking people. Makes no damn sense to hire employees that can't help the customers. 

I guess when staff can't help you find something then you will go searching and likely to end up buying a few things that you don't need. 

I guess that could be a good sales technique. 

I went to Home Depot the other day looking for some baseboard and I had to ask four different employees before I found one that knew where they were. It's a bit frustrating when employees don't know where their own merchandise is located so they send you on wild goose chases. The fourth employee actually  took the time to personally show me where it was and he even cut the baseboard for me.  And it wasn't easy for him because he had Parkinson's disease but he went the extra mile to help me. 

But one reason I hate Home Depot.
The people there rarely seem  even know the difference between pressure treated and spruce 2X4s.  Sometimes I swear they must hire people too stupid to work at Wal-Mart.  
Home Depot isn't a real lumber yard or Hardware store.  It's an appliance and house ammenties store that happens to carry crap lumber and a lacking and incomplete selection of hardware employing people who couldn't build a model out of Lincoln logs or Legos.  Worst part is they really aren't significantly cheaper than a real lumber yard or hardware store.

Want some cabinets, a door, and a sink?  Go to Home Depot.   Want some good building materials with a full selection and a staff that knows what you are talking about?  Go the local owned Ace and the old family run lumbar yard.