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

[mae13]

We tend to leave the doors open anywhere from 10 minutes to 45 minutes later than actual closing time because a) it's not policy to kick people out and b) that half hour can be the difference between making budget for the day and coming up short.

But for that one hour after closing we'll start cashing out and doing the cleaning tasks (it's a big store, so it takes an hour to clean, at least). So customers are getting served but we're also getting our procedures done, and they're also subtly getting the message that if they want to buy something, now is the time.

Saturdays are definitely the worst as far as staying open late is concerned, so we tend to schedule at least a couple of people fairly late to makes sure all the stuff gets done while not compromising service.

 

[SarahStarlight]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xStarryEyedX 4. Hi how are you? I'm just looking (mean eff off look).. I hate this!

I dont think you should take this offensively.. if you ever went to stores in other countries you would see how rude and pushy the employees are, I remember going to a mall in cancun mexico and sellers would literally drag you (physically) into their stores to look at products. It left me horrified for life! Or people who sell products in the little booths in the malls, I know its their job but sometimes I just want to be left alone.. ;[

I hope that people dont get offended when i say "im just looking thanks".... because I am just looking..

 

[SarahStarlight]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAC_Pixie04 I bought a few CHI brushes at Ulta only because they were on sale. Well the sale didn't start until the day after I was there. I went to check out and the prices weren't coming up as sale prices. I was like "These are supposed to be 50% off.." and she goes "That sale doesn't start until tomorrow, so the prices haven't changed yet." I polite stated, "Well the sign is up right now, so I think you should honor it." And she said "Well if you come back tomorrow we'll honor it then. Do you want me to cancel this transaction or are you gonna pay?" Haven't been back since, which is a shame because it's a great store with lots of product, but I do not deal with bitchy workers anywhere, not in food, not in retail, not at public offices. When you give someone a shitty attitude, it only perpetuates the cycle, so they'll give a shitty attitude to the next person, and them to the next and so on and so on.

By law companies are supposed to honor prices that are listed in the store... This happened to me too and when I was buying brushes but I showed her the magazine add and she realized that I wasnt making it up

 

[MissMarley]

Closing- if the lights go off (which they do promptly at closing time), customers are supposed to be directed out of the store by security. But usually there's that one lipstick lady or just indecisive customer who really really wants to try a few more things on to decide, even though the only light is from the computer screen on my register! AIIIIEEEE!!!!

My favorite was when one of those customers asked me to match her foundation when the lights were off. Yep, that went well.

 

[xStarryEyedX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissMarley Closing- if the lights go off (which they do promptly at closing time), customers are supposed to be directed out of the store by security. But usually there's that one lipstick lady or just indecisive customer who really really wants to try a few more things on to decide, even though the only light is from the computer screen on my register! AIIIIEEEE!!!! My favorite was when one of those customers asked me to match her foundation when the lights were off. Yep, that went well.

hahahahahha!
that made me lol. i really needed that =).
we really should all write a book. or a list to hang in front of our stores of all these that's titled: "don't end up on this list!".

 

[Chikky]

Wow. Where I work (spa/salon) we are open until 9pm, but if there is a customer we WILL be there until 10 or later. Especially during holidays. If one person wants a gift card, and it's 10 or later, and we see them walking up? We stay open. One Saturday (when we close at 5) it was 7:30 and we were not allowed to close because there was a semi-steady stream of gift card buyers.

And I guess I won't be going near a MAC near closing time. Which sort of sucks; I work a LOT and often during the year I go from 8 am straight to 9 or 10 at night, so I HAVE to go in near closing time. I hate to do it, but it's that or I just don't get to shop there, then. I know some people take advantage, but...

And I have some CRAZY customer service stories. I'll have to think of some good ones.

 

[xStarryEyedX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SarahStarlight I dont think you should take this offensively.. if you ever went to stores in other countries you would see how rude and pushy the employees are, I remember going to a mall in cancun mexico and sellers would literally drag you (physically) into their stores to look at products. It left me horrified for life! Or people who sell products in the little booths in the malls, I know its their job but sometimes I just want to be left alone.. ;[ I hope that people dont get offended when i say "im just looking thanks".... because I am just looking..

yeahhh, it's just kind of hard. i try to go out of my way for my customers and i'm not pushy at all so when people are mean to me from the get go it bums me out. i feel bad for those kiosk people, cause for the most part they are actually really sweet. i've got to know a couple of them from walking by all the time and it sucks that they have to be so pushy for their job.

and i'm sure noone gets offended by you, it's all in the tone man...it's allll in the tone.

 

[calbear]

and just as an FYI - I remember a time when MAC was trying NOT to pay you for having to stay late. We had to threaten legal action. So understand that sometimes things like this are not about me not wanting to give good customer service - sometimes it's about not wanting to 'donate' time.

And sometimes it's about not wanting to walk to my car in a dangerous neighborhood - as some girl made me stay late cause her and her girls were playing in the lipglasses and now the lot is deserted, and security can't walk me to my car as they are shortstaffed too and are doing their closing rounds. I guess i could wait another 45 mins til they're done but that would be me donating more time.

 

[chaffsters33]

Whenever I go to a makeup counter or store I always try to be as nice as possible to the people because whats the point in being rude? After reading this thread though I feel like I've committed a couple major customer faux pas. I'm only 14 and I lusually go in to MAC without a real purpose, but I know I'll always buy something, I just don't know what it will be yet. Is it bad then if you just say "Im just looking, thank you" ?

At my mac store there is this makeup artist who helped me out the first time I went in there and gave me her card so I could make an appointment to have my makeup done for homecoming. She's really sweet and remembers my name whenever I come in. To be quite honest, I always feel special when the MA's remember my name. :] I'm a dork.

But once, there was this woman and she was making the MA follow her around like a little puppy dog while barking out orders. "I want to see THAT LIPSTICK NOW!" The great thing about it was whenever she said something about two seconds later she would yell "PLEASE", as if she had read about how to be a good customer but always "forgot her manners"...
It made me laugh, although the MA did not seem to be having a very good time.

 

[darkbeauty27]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lovesong So people go to get their makeover, buy the makeup and return it back in??WTF??????????That's crazy!!!!!!!!That's a waste of time.

Oh yes, this definitely happens!

 

[Tudor Rose]

I've never worked in a cosmetics store, but I have been in retail for three years now. For the past year, I've worked in a DVD rental place, and I get asked the same ridiculous questions and put in the same situations. I have some rules for my customers.
1. Do NOT yell your question from across the store. We have trailers playing overhead and I don't want to get the annoyed look if I can't hear you.
2. Don't ask me questions while I'm assisting another customer. It's rude to me and the person who's been waiting in line for their turn.
3. No, I will not give you 20 % off of your purchase because 'some stores give discounts.' Your renting of two dvds will not make or break my paycheck.

Also, this woman came in on a Saturday night around 8 pm. and wanted to exchange 30 dvds. I don't even want to explain how much time and effort that takes. Add in the fact that she wrote her name on the dvd and the box in a permanent marker, and I'll welcome you to my hell.

Oh! And we have this crazy woman in her 60s who will rip off the price stickers and put them on the more expensive dvds so we have to 'honour' whatever deal we have going. But unless we see her do it, we can't prove that she is essentially stealing money from us. When did people get so cheap?

So, I feel your pain. Rude customers drive me crazy, and I can't imagine what you have to put up with when it comes to the makeovers and making sales. Our hours are based on sales too. Isn't it just fabulous? (Last note. We have to offer this .25 'playguard' in case you break the dvd. So sometimes 'pushing a product' is part of making the numbers work. Sigh.)

 

[lara]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chaffsters33 Is it bad then if you just say "Im just looking, thank you" ?

If you're just having a look and a play, say so! If people are upfront and say that they're just browsing (or my favourite, waiting for inspiration to hit them), I'll gladly let them take as long as they want and just check in every few minutes to see how they're going.

Good communication is the key!

 

[jsky83]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SarahStarlight I hope that people dont get offended when i say "im just looking thanks".... because I am just looking..

It's only offensive when that's not even what you were asked. If I say "Hi Thanks for coming in. How are you doing today?" Don't respond with "Just looking" Thats sooooooo rude.

 

[TwiggyPop]

A woman came in today asking for a natural foundation so I showed her a few different ones and she slathered each one on her face until she admitted she wanted one with good coverage. I mentioned that we have tissues and make up remover handy and she wouldn't use it and continues to slather on different colors of the foundation of her choice. I had no control over this consultation and I just felt defeated. When she finally agreed on a color that I first mentioned she said she didn't want to buy it yet, she wanted to see how it would hold up after a few more hours at the mall. I'm thinking, "Lady, you have 7 layers of foundations on your face, how will you know?" Before she left she even talked her friend out of buying the stuff that she wanted.
She did come back later and buy the foundation, but she left a seriously bad taste in my mouth.

 

[panther27]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tudor Rose I've never worked in a cosmetics store, but I have been in retail for three years now. For the past year, I've worked in a DVD rental place, and I get asked the same ridiculous questions and put in the same situations. I have some rules for my customers. 1. Do NOT yell your question from across the store. We have trailers playing overhead and I don't want to get the annoyed look if I can't hear you. 2. Don't ask me questions while I'm assisting another customer. It's rude to me and the person who's been waiting in line for their turn. 3. No, I will not give you 20 % off of your purchase because 'some stores give discounts.' Your renting of two dvds will not make or break my paycheck. Also, this woman came in on a Saturday night around 8 pm. and wanted to exchange 30 dvds. I don't even want to explain how much time and effort that takes. Add in the fact that she wrote her name on the dvd and the box in a permanent marker, and I'll welcome you to my hell. Oh! And we have this crazy woman in her 60s who will rip off the price stickers and put them on the more expensive dvds so we have to 'honour' whatever deal we have going. But unless we see her do it, we can't prove that she is essentially stealing money from us. When did people get so cheap? So, I feel your pain. Rude customers drive me crazy, and I can't imagine what you have to put up with when it comes to the makeovers and making sales. Our hours are based on sales too. Isn't it just fabulous? (Last note. We have to offer this .25 'playguard' in case you break the dvd. So sometimes 'pushing a product' is part of making the numbers work. Sigh.)

omg,movie gallery lol!I used to work for them until the store closed.I hated having to offer playguard with every single rental.and yeah they really pushed you to sell.and the buy 2 get 1 free,a lot of customers would do all these returns from that,which would take forever,ugh

 

[erine1881]

when i'm in the middle of a sentence with a customer, don't interrupt me to ask me where the men's department, kid's department, women's shoes, bathroom, mall entrance, or anything else, is.

also, when i'm on the phone, don't start talking to me. i can't hear you, and i just missed what the customer on the phone said cuz your rude ass couldn't find somebody to help you.

and, if you come to the counter and there's a line, when i greet you and say, "i'll be with you as soon as i can", don't respond with "well i just need one thing" or "i know what i need" cuz you'll hear me say "ok. i'll be with you as soon as i can." cuz you know what, the 5 people that were here before you, they just need one thing too. and no, you can't just grab what you need and take it to another counter.

 

[TwiggyPop]

...........

 

[TJgirl]

Well I don't work at a Cosmetics Counter, but I do work Fragrances in a Department store, and I can definitely relate to a lot of the stories. Here are some of my own:

1) An older lady came in on a sale day and the signs up said "10% of all marked prices", this applies only to the shelves that the signs are on. Other reduced items are on other shelves. So this woman comes to the till with a deodorant spray reduced to £3 ($4.50) that was clearly NOT ON the 10% off shelves and I put it through. I tell her how much the sale is and she says "What about the 10% off?" and I explain to her about the signs, and she tells me that the signs are very misleading (as if I printed them myself) and proceeded to ask me to get my supervisor and my manager and complain about the signs and then she wants to speak to the manager of the whole store! All the way through this I was perfectly polite and trying to be patient and she was being very rude. All this for an extra 30p(40cents) off!

2) We offer a free gift wrapping service but only up until an hour before closing (store policy). A few snooty 20-something girls came in about 5 minutes before closing and bought one item (not a hugely expensive one) and demanded that I wrap it (no please, just "wrap it") and I explained to them that we didn't offer this service so late in the day and if they came back tomorrow with the receipt id happily wrap it for them then. Immediately one of the girls started saying how she NEEDED me to wrap it now and that they were a paying customer and its part of the service, so I give in and start to wrap it. AS I am wrapping it one of the girls VERY RUDELY says " I guess this is your first time wrapping then" staring at my attempts, It honestly wasn't that bad so I just kept my mouth shut and carried on but inside I was thinking "well if you can do so much better wrap your own damn presents"

3) I was working a very busy Saturday close to Xmas and this woman came in and bought what we call a "Low end fragrance" (ie. Cheap) and asked for samples. So i put a few in her bag. She wondered around the department some more and watched me put through another sale and I gave another (really lovely) woman some samples also. She then BUTTS in front of the next customer and very loudly says "You gave HER different samples, I want those too" and I politely told her we are only allowed to give out a certain number per sale, but I give them to her anyway just to get her to go. Thing is once you give out a few to one customer, you get every customer in line asking for them. I am usually very generous with samples, but if people ask I'm less likely to give them (especially if they a rude about it).

Although I am lucky that I don't get sales targets, so am usually happy spending time with a customer getting exactly what they are looking for, it's the best part of the job. There are so many more stories, waaay too many to tell. I love it when I get a customer who is polite and jokes with me, it really brightens up my day and I am greatly thankful to all those customers that do because they help keep me sane!

 

[ms.marymac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by erine1881 when i'm in the middle of a sentence with a customer, don't interrupt me to ask me where the men's department, kid's department, women's shoes, bathroom, mall entrance, or anything else, is. also, when i'm on the phone, don't start talking to me. i can't hear you, and i just missed what the customer on the phone said cuz your rude ass couldn't find somebody to help you. and, if you come to the counter and there's a line, when i greet you and say, "i'll be with you as soon as i can", don't respond with "well i just need one thing" or "i know what i need" cuz you'll hear me say "ok. i'll be with you as soon as i can." cuz you know what, the 5 people that were here before you, they just need one thing too. and no, you can't just grab what you need and take it to another counter.

And if I am walking from behind the cash wrap to approach the next WAITING customer, don't jump in between us, or stop me if I am walking in with food and a beverage in my hand, wearing a coat. Thanks.

 

[xStarryEyedX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ms.marymac And if I am walking from behind the cash wrap to approach the next WAITING customer, don't jump in between us, or stop me if I am walking in with food and a beverage in my hand, wearing a coat. Thanks.

* and don't get pissed at me if i don't know where the kids department/mens slippers/maternity clothes are. *
i sell myyy products, not socks/purses/muu muus/etc. do i look like i actually shop in this store? please.

oh. and also, don't bitch because malls are back to their normal hours. the malls hours do not revolve around you giant d-bags feeling the need to come at 9:20 and do all of your shopping.