'Like piranhas': 'Pushy' parents slammed over chaotic Ooshies swap day behaviour
Frantic adults have been criticised for their inappropriately aggressive behaviour during a nationwide Woolworths collectables swap event.
The supermarket’s Swap Day for collectors of its The Lion King Ooshies drew chaotic crowds on Saturday between 10am and 2pm.
Not everyone was impressed with their experience though, many taking to social media to slam pushy and greedy parents in scathing posts to Facebook.
One woman “risked the craziness” to take two young children to the event, but was left “pretty disappointed” after being “barged” by an inconsiderate parent.
The shopper said after being struck by the brash collector, she had to leave the store due to the additional pain caused to her prolapsed spine discs.
“That woman barging me suddenly was pretty devastating in terms of my pain levels so I had to leave and didn't end up getting the last one I needed,” she wrote.
The lady explained how she watched parents being rude to children, telling them to “go away” for not having the Ooshies they wanted.
“Pretty disgusting that the children showed better manners than literal adults.”
Another attendee shared a similar experience, recalling how even parents with plenty of “doubles” refused to swap anything, even with children.
One shopper said last year she saw a mother snatch items from a child and offer nothing to them in return.
Someone else shared how she and her 1-year-old were completing a grocery shop when a woman snatched an Ooshie from her son’s hand.
“I turned my back to grab something off the shelf and turned back to see a grown woman grab it off him! She played it off that he had dropped it but was red with embarrassment and practically sprinted away,” she wrote in a comment.
‘They were like piranhas’
Even a teenager claimed adults snatched her Ooshies without her permission and offered nothing in return.
“I would blatantly see parents take my Ooshies. I had lost all my spares, from older people/adults taking them without my permission,” she wrote.
The teen said all but one of her toys were stolen, leaving her with just one to swap.
Another person said: “I went to the plaza with a container full of spares and they were like piranhas, I was surrounded in seconds”.
Not everyone had a disappointing experience though, with some saying their host store’s event was calm and enjoyable.
“Everyone was helping each other. Even giving people the ones they needed without swapping. I was so impressed,” an attendee wrote.
Woolworths told Yahoo News Australia the day was predominantly positive.
“The swap day was a big success, and we found the vast majority of customers participated in the right spirit. It was pleasing to hear plenty of positive feedback from customers in our stores yesterday,” a spokesperson said.
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