I love when customers try to tell me how to do my job...

[MACnickels]

We actually keep a little book at the counter where we write down stupid things customers say. If you're ever having a bad day, just read a couple pages, and you'll die laughing. I think Boscia Skin care is all organic. I know they don't used presevatives, and it's all really good stuff. It's from japan.

 

[Miss A]

***Girl you have the dark humor like me!! i love it, you had me laughing alone in my room! cats looking at me like im an idiot haha. one time this chick walked in wanting "summthin natural" and proceeds to shun all the glosses and goes to the dark ass like almost beige matte lipsticks and slathers it all over! lol i just let that train wreck happen in slow motion!

 

[Miss A]

haha we have a place in dallas called dicks last resort and there are like that there! yes that would be awesome!

oh and i like the tacky remark! hahaha

 

[Miss A]

you go girl! so many people with no manners.....makes you just wanna smack the living hell out of them, but lets not lower ourselves. please dont think im am idiot im new to site....what is mua and sa? sales associate?

 

[xStarryEyedX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miss A you go girl! so many people with no manners.....makes you just wanna smack the living hell out of them, but lets not lower ourselves. please dont think im am idiot im new to site....what is mua and sa? sales associate?

mua= makeup artist
sa= sales associate.

 

[calbear]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xStarryEyedX here are my personal favorites: 6. "I need my foundation"..Okay what shade? "I don't know, you're the expert" Yes, and you're the one who uses it every morning and drove to the mall to buy it. Wouldn't you maybe take into account the fact that if you're buying something that comes in tons of shades, you should probably take four seconds to read it, and maybe even another 2 to write it down?

This is my favorite one especially when i'm already helping another customer and the 'i just need my foundation' chick yells out me that she already knows what she wants and no one will help her. So you break away from the first customer with a smile that says 'sorry i have to leave you to go help this screaming hag' and SHE DOESN'T KNOW THE SHADE or which product she's talking about.

Unfortunately - my stank side kicks in and i say 'ohhh you are going to need me to match you then since you don't really know what you want and i'm actually already with someone.' and proceed to take my time cause with lovely customer #1. We are short staffed and there is no one else on the floor or even coming out for the next 5 hours so the wait is pretty long

 

[paramourlace]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisStarrlight I had two yesterday...not so much that they were trying to tell me how to do my job, but they weren't letting me do my job. The first was this woman w/ wretched skin. So I matched her concealer & foundation no problem & then she wanted a new gloss & a shadow or two for an upcoming event. So I asked her what she was looking for (to which she replied 'can't you just suggest some colors?') so I picked up one neutral & one a little brighter...before even trying them on (or giving me more information to pick another color) she was like 'nevermind, I've got a lot at home, I'll just wear something I've got, eyeshadows are more important.' Ok, so we move onto eyeshadows. Her eyes are very dark & purple all over so I try to tell her she needs to use concealer on her lids to try to correct some of that....so she doesn't let me do that, she just wants to see the color on her lids w/o concealer...so I put one combo on her (that paint pot that looks like Woodwinked & Mulch) & she apparently hates it & wipes it off. So I ask her how she wants it different & she gave me the same response that she did w/ the lipglass. Hello, I'm not a mindreader....you need to give me something to go on. And then these other two ladies came in....the first words out of their mouth were 'do you have any makeup for black people?' I wanted to be like, well, duh!, but I didn't, I led them over to the foundations...the woman that wanted foundation sat down. I put NW47 on one side...she kept saying it was too dark (which it wasn't at all) & then went to go find the NW45 to put on the other side (to show her how ashy it would be). She looks at both sides & says she can't tell a difference & won't let me even her out. So her & her friend walk over to the lipsticks. Lady #1 said she wanted a bronze...so I showed her Bronze Shimmer (telling her that it was going to be too light, but ti was the only true bronze we had)..so she puts it directly on her lips ignoring all my attempts to stop her & sanitize the lipstick....says it's too light (DUH!) & then goes to pick up Cyber!! Are you freaking kidding me?!?! So they continue to put unsanitized lipsticks on themselves w/o wiping off the previous colors... And then they go to the eyeshadows. I give them a brush & they start putting colors like Samoa Silk, Paradisco, Rule, Brule...all the matte, chalky colors...in their crease/brow bone (w/ nothing on their lids) in the same fashion as the lipsticks (on top of each other so you get one big muddy mess)..ugh! They walk out w/ 2 Alogorithms, 1 Paradisco & 1 Bamboo...whatever floats their boats I guess. Wow...sorry for the rant...

that sounds sooo much like my counter

 

[ms.marymac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by calbear This is my favorite one especially when i'm already helping another customer and the 'i just need my foundation' chick yells out me that she already knows what she wants and no one will help her. So you break away from the first customer with a smile that says 'sorry i have to leave you to go help this screaming hag' and SHE DOESN'T KNOW THE SHADE or which product she's talking about. Unfortunately - my stank side kicks in and i say 'ohhh you are going to need me to match you then since you don't really know what you want and i'm actually already with someone.' and proceed to take my time cause with lovely customer #1. We are short staffed and there is no one else on the floor or even coming out for the next 5 hours so the wait is pretty long

Oh, that sounds like something someone I know would do. *backs away whistling*

 

[Lucenah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lara Not dorky at all! My favourite customers are those who have a list but also want some product clarification/suggestions. You get what you want, I can answer any questions or suggest more appropriate products and we both have a happy, no-pressure time!

Ooo, I ALWAYS I have a list with me, but I'm always hesitant in pulling it out because I would think people would think I was WEIRD!


I have to admit, I'm one of those Asians who are always "Just looking" - mainly since most of the time I know what I want and SAs make me really nervous!

I have nothing against you offering help, but there's something so horribly intimidating with your black suits and perfect full face makeup and made-up hair. It makes me feel so small and intimidated, especially since I'm a sixteen-year-old girl that shops for makeup alone and is just starting out and doesn't look nearly as great as you.

Also, I'm all in with the girl that says that I feel bad that I'm wasting your time. I feel bad I do ask for help since when I do, I get funny looks. I have no idea why? Am I one of those annoying customers that say "Just looking" and then ask for help later? I mean, I could be looking, and then I might find something I want... and then I'd have a question about it. You know

I had this one Asian SA at Sephora ask my four times in three minutes if I needed any help, as if she'd never seen me before - and at the last time, she had a desperate look on her face. I had no idea why, but I had to leave right then. I don't undertsand SAs like that at all. I love Sephora, but that just happens to me way too often. I only go in there now to grab something and go, or either that or talking on the phone so nobody will really bother me (Am I a bad customer? I'm just shy around people I don't know

)

 

[Lucenah]

Anyways, I know all about the bad customers too. I work at a drugstore... and we sell the regular drugstore cosmetics, plus a bunch of higher end stuff.... you know Shoppers in Canada.



Sometimes they would make me cover cosmetics, like when the cosmeticians go on breaks. I don't do it often, but I do remember this one customer that went in looking for foundation.... She was looking for Almay Smart Shade makeup, and she was like, "I'm in a hurry I have to find it now". So I show her where it was, and she was like "Am I Light, Light/Medium or Medium"? So I said that she would be light, since, well, she WAS, and I tried the Light/Medium and that was what I was, and I was much darker than she was.

And then she tells me "No, I think I'm a light/medium, I think I'm too white". And I'm just like "Okay... well I tried this and I'm that shade, and I really think you're light". She replies, "But no, I want some colour to my face, I want my face to be darker".

Um, I'm no makeup professional, but I think I know that would look bad. And I was thinking, "Okay, if you want your face to be a completely different colour from the rest of your body, then go right ahead". I was going to recommend some bronzer instead (right? Wrong?) when her phone rings and she runs off. Okay?




And we had this one man just TODAY. He was getting a bunch of meal replacement shakes and soda. We rang it all in for him, and it came up as $200. He says, "No, that can't be right, this is on sale." Yes, it's on sale, but you got like eight cartons of everything.

So we tell him the prices, and he realizes a certain flavour of shake is more expensive than another, and insists that they are all the same. We tell him that they're no, and that those types are "extra calorie".

He goes, "Oh no! I don't want extra calories! I don't need that." Yes, he was a pretty fat man... but he was also getting six cartons of regular Coke and ginger ale? Okayy. So he cancels everything and our supervisor AND a merchandiser go out to help him get the right type.... they were gone for like 10 minutes, and he comes back with more boxes. Okay, Fun, We can finally ring him through and he can go away. But WRONG.

It comes up at $190, wow, and then he wants to pay $150 of it using his Shoppers Optimum (a card where you get points everytime you buy something to get money off your next purchases). The thing is, he also wants to collect 15x the points on his purchase TODAY too.

We tell him "No, you can't do both, because the promotion is only for $50 or more that you actually PAY for." He says "No, but this doesn't count". Our supervisor is like, "I've been working here for 19 years, and I know you can't do that." He replies: "Well, I've been shopping here for longer than that, and I know I can." The nerve. So he ends up paying $40 for his damn shakes, and then he complains he didn't get 15x his points. Well durh. That's what we JUST told you.

He argues with the supervisor for two minutes, then complains that he's going to call the manager. Good for you. Just get out of our store. Then he realizes he didn't ring in his chocolate milk, potato chips and sugar. Like WTF. Thank God we just rang him in and he leaves.




Among many, many others.

 

[xStarryEyedX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by calbear This is my favorite one especially when i'm already helping another customer and the 'i just need my foundation' chick yells out me that she already knows what she wants and no one will help her. So you break away from the first customer with a smile that says 'sorry i have to leave you to go help this screaming hag' and SHE DOESN'T KNOW THE SHADE or which product she's talking about. Unfortunately - my stank side kicks in and i say 'ohhh you are going to need me to match you then since you don't really know what you want and i'm actually already with someone.' and proceed to take my time cause with lovely customer #1. We are short staffed and there is no one else on the floor or even coming out for the next 5 hours so the wait is pretty long

I hate that, when they interrupt you and don't even know what they need. I was in the middle of helping somebody one time and someone came over and was like excuse me I need help I have a question, and customer number one goes "oh my god, do you realize how rude you're being? You have to wait she's already helping someone".. I loved it, she said exactly what I wanted to say but couldn't because "it's my job".

 

[babyfauxblondie]

haha, those are all so hilarious but still so rude of them! i would never treat an employee with such disrespect. these women need a wake-up call to realize that not all of their demands can be fullfilled by other people. seriously, if a store didn't have an eyeshadow that i longed for, i'd be smart and leave you alone and just order it online

 

[mello]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aleksis210 I've worked quite a few counters and I can honestly say that Lancome was the absolute worst....Lancome attracts some WEIRDOS(It was also in palm beach county where there are millions of people) not only that but the girls I worked with were so nasty to me when I first starting working there...I ended being friends with a girl in fragrance and at fashion fair...Anyway though the TOP things that bothered me the worst... 1. Women that want their foundation to be darker or lighter than their skin...As if people won't notice that it doesn't match or something..umm hello it makes your skin look like shit and you're not fooling anyone lol 2. OMG what is with people and samples? SERIOUSLY we had this one lady that would come in and she would just point at you while she was walking by and mutter "samples!..samples?...samples?!?!...samples." LOL I would just shake my head and mouth the word 'no'...Also for those of you who worked/work for lancome know that we get a bag of samples to give to customers...well umm when that bag runs out we DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO GIVE AWAY...So this lady bought a foundation and asked for samples(I have never denied a customer samples if they buy something) Her: Do you have any samples I can have? Me: We actually just ran out, I'm really sorry. Her:Well, I mean I did just spend $40, I think I deserve a little something.(With major attitude) Me: I apologize, but I really don't have any samples of anything...I mean I can fill up a little sample jar of foundation or something..(?) Her: The lady I usually buy from GIVES ME SAMPLES EVERYTIME! Me: (nothing) She came back 10 mintues later to return the foundation ...I'm thinking yeah.. great job at 'proving your point' as if I give a crap...what did she want me to do slip her a full-size container of something lol

LMAO I just started working for Lancome at the begining of August and I totally know what you mean. EVERYONE comes up to the counter saying 'DO YOU HAVE SAMPLES!?' or 'WHAT IS YOUR PROMOTION TODAY? ARE YOU ON GIFT?'
Um, obviously not, considering there's absolutely no indication of it being gift time around the counter AT ALL (We put up huge signs and displays around gift time).

My favourite one is the people (usually older women) that come in, ask for something, and just as you tell them the price they go nuts and refuse to 'pay that much' for it. Like, really? You walked into a department store looking for make-up, what the hell did you expect!?

I had this other lady at my counter the other day looking at blushes. I went over to help her, and she asked how much. I told her the price and she goes:
Her: Why is it so expensive?
Me: We're a very prestige line of cosmetics.
Her: HUH?
Me: We're a higher end brand. The technology behind a lot of our products, like our skin care, is very advanced. We also specialize in makeup for more mature skin, which is why it tends to cost a bit more.
Her: EVERYONE SAYS THAT.
Me: Well all of the brands here are higher end brands. It's just a matter of preference.
Her: I'm not paying 37$ for a blush. *walks away*

I really never realized how cheap people are until I started working for The Bay. You're in a department store, people. Not the flea market.
Jeez.

 

[ms.marymac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mello LMAO I just started working for Lancome at the begining of August and I totally know what you mean. EVERYONE comes up to the counter saying 'DO YOU HAVE SAMPLES!?' or 'WHAT IS YOUR PROMOTION TODAY? ARE YOU ON GIFT?' Um, obviously not, considering there's absolutely no indication of it being gift time around the counter AT ALL (We put up huge signs and displays around gift time). My favourite one is the people (usually older women) that come in, ask for something, and just as you tell them the price they go nuts and refuse to 'pay that much' for it. Like, really? You walked into a department store looking for make-up, what the hell did you expect!? I had this other lady at my counter the other day looking at blushes. I went over to help her, and she asked how much. I told her the price and she goes: Her: Why is it so expensive? Me: We're a very prestige line of cosmetics. Her: HUH? Me: We're a higher end brand. The technology behind a lot of our products, like our skin care, is very advanced. We also specialize in makeup for more mature skin, which is why it tends to cost a bit more. Her: EVERYONE SAYS THAT. Me: Well all of the brands here are higher end brands. It's just a matter of preference. Her: I'm not paying 37$ for a blush. *walks away* I really never realized how cheap people are until I started working for The Bay. You're in a department store, people. Not the flea market. Jeez.

Get out of my head! lol I've actually had people try to haggle over the price or even ask for a tester at a discounted price. I understand that people have different budgets for makeup, but counter people have nothing to do with the price, so there is no use in giving them a hard time.

 

[mello]

Exactly!
Sometimes I don't quite feel like spending a lot on certain items, but in that case I'll head over to the drug store or grocery store. I just don't understand why they would think a store that is selling a lot of designer items would charge under ten dollars for anything in cosmetics. I'm sorry, but I don't work for a Revlon counter.
But yes, I agree. BA's don't set the pricing, I'm not quite sure what bitching at them is going to do. Even when I used to work at McDonald's, people would hassle ME about the pricing. Like I was the one that was in charge of it. Right.

 

[missbliss2]

For those of you that are stressed so much after a long day working at the counters, watchingthe British sitcom "Man Stroke Woman" will surely brighten up your day...it's hilarious! The episodes with the makeup counter girls are on the link below, enjoy!

YouTube - NashKato's Channel

 

[darkbeauty27]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ms.marymac Get out of my head! lol I've actually had people try to haggle over the price or even ask for a tester at a discounted price.

I had something like this happen the other day. We were out of one of the Lustre Twins lipstick/gloss duos. The lady really liked the shade and I was trying to help her find another duo that was close to it in color. She found one she liked but close to when I was finishing up with her she picked up the tester for the one we were out of and asks "What do you do with these once you are out of the shade?" I KNEW she wanted to keep the tester, which is GROSS by the way. I told her that we send all of our testers back to corporate. I guess maybe people don't think about how many people have touched and used the testers before.

 

[lara]

I don't get the tester thing either.

We have something where we can convert an unused, packaged tester back to live stock if it's a total make-or-break-the-sale emergency, but when people want to haggle for a grimy, used tester?

 

[mello]

Agreed.
People come by our counter all the time and actually start putting the eyeliners and things on their eyes. I really hope these people get an infection, because they never listen to me when I tell them it can happen.

 

[MsMaryMAC]

This is a long thread, so I'm hoping I'm not repeating a question, but I wanted to know something from the MUA/SA- just out of curiosity. I only get my MAC from a MAC store- for no other reason than there's a store right by my job. I buy shadows mostly, but I do try other things and may buy them too (I don't get a full face of makeup.. or even a whole look done). I feel guilty and like I'm wasting the MUA's time if I'm going in there for 1 or 2 shadows (or other items) that interest me. I don't even go in there unless I'm spending atleast $50 at a time. Is that a reasonable amount? What's the average amount that you see people spending when they come into your store/counter? TIA