Part of a continuing series where I try to teach you, dear readers, to not be ignorant slobs to those of us who work in retail.
So where can we go today in our Retail Etiquette instructions?
I know. Weekend insensitivity. That is a good place to begin.
People who work in retail work weekends. Why? BECAUSE WE HAVE TO YOU IDIOT!!! Someone has to be at the stores to sell you the crap that you HAVE TO HAVE RIGHT NOW so that you can go home and feel good about what you bought that you didn’t really need. So, when we are working and you are trying to assuage your ego by spending money, don’t make semi-sarcastic comments to us about having to work on the weekends. It isn’t funny. We would like some time off with our families also. But the bank likes to know that we will have the mortgage payment coming in on a regular basis.
Which brings us to the next part. We work in retail for a lot of different reasons. Some of us are using it as a bridge, some and just there for some cash, some to support themselves through school, and some of us have made it our career. It is a service profession, not slavery. A store of any kind, is one of many. You can choose to go buy the things you want anywhere you want. But when you get to that special store, you are going to have to deal with one of us. Retail People. Don’t be an idiot to us. We want you to get the things you want, and go home. We are not trying to screw you.
Even though we work in the same store day after day, we don’t touch every single item in the store. Yes, sad but true, we do not know where every single thing is in the store. You don’t know where everything is in your house, don’t expect me to know where every widget is. Be real. I could go on and on about this, but what is the use. You are going to come into my store, or the store of one of my fellows, and want some porcelain covered widget in just the perfect shade of puce and freak out when we can’t find it. doofus.
Ok. That is it for now. More will happen as you make me crazy.
Namaste.
February 17th, 2008 at 9:29 pm
Good one. I’ve worked in retail for years. Now, just part-time at B&N. My very fav. remark from a customer was on Easter, yes, Barnes and Noble is open on Easter. She said, all dolled up in her Easter finery, “I can’t believe you’re open on Easter.” I held my tongue, did not say – We probably wouldn’t be except for dolts like you who shop on Easter. I really wanted to but I figured I’m better and smater than her.
February 17th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
I found your site on google blog search and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. Just added your RSS feed to my feed reader. Look forward to reading more from you.
- Randy Nichols.
February 17th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
Thanks for stopping by Jan. Unfortunately I have a million of them. Like today, I am filling the bread. There are a couple of loaves not in the right spot. The ones in question sell for $.79. They were in the spot for another loaf that sells for $2.59. There is a full 8′ of the cheap, errant loaves (maybe they were trying to up scale themselves, who knows) right below where they were. Guy looks at me and says “How is the consumer supposed to know which is the right price?”
First off, don’t talk about yourself in the third person. It makes you look like an idiot. Actually it makes you look like something else, but I am trying to keep my language clean here.
Secondly, the tags, doofus. THE TAGS WE HAVE TO HAVE RIGHT UNDER EVERY FREAKING THING IN THE STORE SO YOU HAVE SOMETHING ELSE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT!!!!!!
But, yeah.
Thanks for stopping by.
Namaste.
February 18th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Whoa. I work at Barnes and Noble, too, lol. (Just looking at the above comment.)
And thank you for this post. Thank you.
I realize that there are definitely some retail employees who aren’t doing their damn-all best to offer good customer service. But frankly, I rule. As do my co-workers.
And this post gets another AMEN from me.
February 18th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
Hi Jozet, thanks for stopping by. I am a big fan of your blog. Namaste.
March 2nd, 2009 at 10:00 am
[...] as the times that people make comments about my always having to work weekends. That is always [...]