False advertisement

I didn't know they sold toilet paper. They don't here.

My suggestion would be read terms and conditions

under product and services information I found this
"The receipt of an email order confirmation is simply a recognition
that we have received your requested order, and does not constitute an
offer to sell. We reserve the right to limit the quantity of any item
sold, or prohibit a sale altogether, including but not limited to
prohibiting sales to resellers. "

You are absolutely correct. They should give you what you ordered. It
seems too suspicious that they would cancel your order and give you
the opportunity to purchase it at full price.

I can see them saying sorry, it is no longer available period, as in
clearance. In this case, they should at least notify you it is
backordered and get more in, then send it to you.

It still is not bait and switch though. They may have baited you and
then switched something in a literal sense, it does not meet the legal
definition of the term. Bait and switch would apply where they did not
intend to offer the special at all. Even if they were planning on
offering a small number of packages for sale, then it would not be
bait and switch. If at least a few people got some, then it is not
illegal at all. Not a good business idea, as they are losing sales,
but perfectly legal.

It just occurred to me. Why would a company like Staples conduct
false advertisement on toilet paper, of all things?

Why not, I don't know, an All-In-One Office printer?

At a pack of toilet paper for $4.99 versus, I don't know, a regular
price of let's say $9.99, this ruse would have netted the company not
only bad will but $5.

With a printer, they could suck in maybe $30-40 on an equivalent
"scam".

I just noticed this was a one day sale. I still am of the opinion
they had a certain quantity, and once they realized it was sold out
they stopped the sale. We have seen web portals frequently do not
have accurate availability information. Hence orders were received
and processed for which ultimately there was no remaining supply.
Then the price returned to normal.

Turns out this is Marcal - some of the worst TP on Planet Earth, IMO.

Evidently big business has finally bred a new type of consumer, one
who will roll over and take it, whatever "it" might be, without
expecting any product or service in return for their money.
Either that, or this site is now filled with big business shills,
trying to socially engineer the aforementioned ideal consumer by
attaching negative connotations to the idea of fighting for your
rights as a consumer.
It's interesting, but I'll let the FTC have the last word. I reported
them, and they're investigating. If staples had no actual supply
available when they did the sale, and thus no one got any at the sale
price, then they'll shut them down quick, or at least slap them with a
fine.
Everyone else, show your support for companies that cheat you or go
back on their word by rushing out to shop there with your unbelievably
and literally disposable income. Not me. My sympathies are with the
consumers, and those who are ripped off or misled in the name of
profit.
Amazon, which owns zappos, had a glitch over the weekend that cost
them 1.6 million dollars, but they chose to honor the orders, even
though it meant taking a loss. That's how it's supposed to be done,
for those of you who have been brainwashed by corporate Amerika into
thinking that being cheated is a great and noble thing, and
complaining is wrong, well, there's not much I can do to help you.
Sorry.You're not going to slow me down, though. I'm not easily
influenced by lightweight opinions with nothing to back them up. .

Because usually it isn't. It is fun to try to make the story told
into one that fits the definition.

On the forums I am a member of, 100% of my colleagues find the same
thing. I don't attend church.

They were out of stock because you and all your friends ordered
ridiculous amounts of toilet paper. way to go. Next time, they'll
just limit quantities.

And if you're out of TP, you can go anywhere in town to get that.

explanation, couldnt have said it better

I truly mean that - I take pride in my company's level of customer
service, but some things are truly beyond our control. We have several
products that we are unable to keep on the shelves (they almost
literally fly off of the shelves when we are able to get them) and
trying to keep track of advanced & accurate inventory levels is darn
near impossible..

AND, when I am able to get ahold of some of those high-demand items, I
like to know I'm going to get paid for them - which is really what the
pre-authorization is all about. (This is also why my company does not
accept personal checks unless you have a LONG established history with
us..)

I understand her frustration - from her point of view, they should
honor the sale price with new stock (although, the sale may have been
to get rid of "stale" stock), and a LOT of times, in a similar
situation, my company does. HOWEVER, I understand from the company's
point of view too - they cannot afford to honor the sale price once
that stock has been depleted (supply price went up, etc) because they
cannot afford to lose the money.

(although, I must admit - there is a fine balance between losing a
customer and losing money, as well)..

If it was me, I feel an apology and explanation from Staples ("I'm
truly sorry, ma'am, but when you placed the order at the sale price,
we had already sold of of the sale stock level and we are unable to
honor that pricing.") is in order, and should be sufficient. Whether
or not the original poster will feel that way is up to her.