MA Rudeness/Bad MAC experiences/Rants

[KaytieBaybie]

I have to say I'm lucky enough to have never experienced a rude MAC mua. They've always been friendly and open to answer any questions....well there was one on one occasion who was a bit curt and brusque but I wouldn't say "rude". If I were you I would have just moved on to someone who was nicer...I don't have time for rude people. Don't they get paid commission? I'll let someone else ring me up.

 

[amoona]

When I worked for MAC customer service was a huge thing so if there was a complaint about your attitude towards a customer it was taken very seriously. You should bring it to the manager's attention or write about your experience on maccosmetics.com.

Even when we had nightmare customers we always kept a smile on our face - that's what customer service is all about!

 

[Mabelle]

There is one snotty girl at the store i go to. Every other girl there is sweet and helpful.

I work as an MUA at a sephora in the same mall. I don't believe in competition between the stores, or that one has better service or skills than another. We are different. We both have our strenghts. I love MAC, i shop there all the time, and i do send them clients often enough (if i know i cant help them).
Well, i believe this girl sees it differently. She has never come out and said so, but i get the impression she thinks she is really hot shit working at MAC. she will come in to my store (all of her co workers do too, and they are all lovely) and just be a total snot. She was picking up a buxom lipstick and kept going on about how ridiculous it was that she was buying it because she works at mac and get SO much gratis. I told her i didn't think it was ridiculous, we are passionate about makeup and want to try new things from other companies. I even said, " Hey, i go to mac all the time". I got a little eye roll from her, and she ignored everything i said. I decided to be nice and tell her the benefits and features of the lipstick; it's a lipstick/lip plumper/ lip liner in one and has a sharpener on one end. It was a coral pink she was getting. Her response? "Why would i use a lipliner with this?!" Uhhh cause some people like to, you bitch. Her whole attitude was holier than thou, like she was mixing with the commoners.

I went up to the MAC store a month or so after, and i'm trying to build my bridal kit. I was looking for non frosty/glittery cool neutrals, maybe some subdued pinks or peaches. Honestly, it was the least enthused MUA ever. "Do you have shale? its totz my favvvvveeee" uhhh no. i dont. anyway, i ended up getting two eyeshadows and i think i b2med. When she was ringing me out, she didn't say a god damned word to me. She spent the entire transaction talking to her co worker (who is also freaking incompetent!!! she tried to give me medium dark MSF natural. I wear MUFE HD in 115. i have never been a medium or a dark ever!!!) She handed me my bag, without looking at me or saying a word. I was still trying to be nice (why i have no idea) and wished her a good day and said thanks. Again, not looking away "Bye."

In conclusion, i will not be served by her again. And i have half a fucking mind to talk to her manager, who i am friendly with.

 

[Loraelai]

The MUAs at MAC in Milan, Italy, are never rude or anything, but they are definitely snob. I understand that MAC is unknown to most people in Italy, they always get 15-year-old girls who enter the store thinking it's just another drugstore brand and fuss all the time about prices. Even so, I wish I were treated a little bit less like a bag of trash. So, yes, unfortunately that's something I always have to deal with. Even my friends always complain about them.
Today, on the contrary, I met the SWEETEST MUA EVER. I bought the Select Cover Up concealer, so I went there with absolutely NO makeup on. My face was totally bare. Keep in mind that 3 months ago I began taking the pill and it totally destroyed my skin, I'm suffering from insomnia and other issues. We started chatting about my circles and skin and about the role of the pill in their appearance, and I let it slip that I was ashamed of walking through Milan with NO makeup on. It was just chitchatting, I didn't do it on purpose.
She finished trying the concealer on me and then said she would apply foundation and blush, too, just so that I would feel more at ease while going shopping.
She was the sweetest shop assistant I EVER dealt with.
We then started talking about the reasons why MAC is still so unknown in Italy, other makeup brands and so on (luckily the store was empty, so we had plenty of time). At the end, while I was walking out of the store, she took care to introduce herself.
She was SO sweet I swear I will visit MAC ONLY on Sundays hoping I will see her (Monday-Friday I never saw her).
Considering how snob are MAC MUAs in Italy this was a nice surprise. I know the purpose of the topic was not to describe the meeting with a NICE MUA, but after all I did answer the question on the first part of the post

 

[Amber Dawn]

I guess this isn't really a bad experience, but one of the first times I went into MAC I approached someone to ask what would be a good blush choice for my skin and hair color. I know damn well that I can pick whatever and make it work to some extent, but I wanted their experience and insight. All I got was a "there are no rules, just pick what you like!". ... If I wanted fortune cookie platitudes, I wouldn't have asked the question in the first place! I know I can buy and use whatever I want, I am an adult, I can make my own decisions, and I don't need your permission to "buy whatever", but I was looking for an answer and all I got was BS. :\ I tried to press it, but she didn't give me any useful information at all, just tried to get me to pick something.

The only reason for me to go into a MAC store would be to ask questions, and swatch. Well, I guess there's only one reason now if that's the kind of answer I'll get. =|

 

[KaytieBaybie]

Worst experience at MAC...ever.

Today I had like the worst experience at MAC. So I stopped by MAC because I was in the mood for a lip gloss. I was just browsing and noticed a MA doing the makeup of a customer...the customer looked really good and I wanted that specific MA to do my makeup. But then another MA came back from break and the MA whom I originally wanted to do my makeup shifted me to her. I didn't mind too much since the new MA's makeup looked nice. So I asked her to do my makeup.
BIG MISTAKE.
At the end it was the worst experience ever. The MA was not friendly and abrupt. She was condescending and spoke to me like I knew nothing about makeup. Like boo boo I came in with no makeup to make your job easier so you wouldn't have to worry about taking it all off, I am not a newbie to makeup. I wouldn't say she was "rude" but I surely wouldn't describe her as nice...I just wanted to get out of there. I wanted to cry, the other girl's makeup looked soooo good. I don't think the MA even wanted to do my make up in the first place. I looked like a clown. A ghetto clown. The lipglass she used was too much....like it was dripping off my lips. The lip liner was too heavy. She used like 20 pumps of the Studio Fix (which was in the wrong color NW48, I am a NW47). I originally told her I wanted a natural look and she made me look so gross. She filled in my brows with a BLACK liner and my eyeliner was smudged, the shadows were NOT blended well (as the foundation also wasn't well blended). I was SO pissed. I didn't buy anything that she had tried on me. I ended up buying a lip conditioner, a pump for my foundation, oil control lotion and revealing lipglass. I ran out of the store because I was so embarrassed and didn't want anyone to see me. As soon as I got in the car I took off my makeup. I feel like the purpose of a makeover is to display the different ways you can use the MAC products...the makeover is suppose to make you want to buy MAC.
I thought about it and I want to return the oil control lotion as well as the lip conditoner. My money is my money and I'll spend it as I please.
Can I return the items? It's not like I would be getting a totally free make up application, I'm not that type of customer. I stay steady spending at MAC, I got the receipts to prove it. The MA should PAY ME for letting her do my makeup. I HATED THE MAKEUP!
Also, can I return the items at a different location? I bought them at the Dillard's counter. Could I return them at a regular big store? It would be too awkard running into her.

 

[Nicala]

Sorry to hear your experience. I usually don't like letting other people do my make up in fear of that happening to me! Yes, you can return the items. They're not going to have a clue whether or not you had your make up done for free. Its pointless to keep products around that you weren't happy with. Better off having your money back! If you bought it at a counter, you'd have to return it at that store. In this case, you'd have to go to Dillard's to return it unfortunately. If shes there, just go up to a different MUA to process the return. Chances are, shes probably not going to remember you!

 

[sarahsharkbait]

That sounds sooo horrific.
I have seen something simular happened not with MAC stores so much but with beauty counters in John Lewis, where they would put these horrible yellow tones foundation and too much lipstick on older ladies that makes them look ten times older.
Its horrorfying, I'm not even a professional but one day hope to work behind a counter, and I personally dont see how some of these people got their jobs

 

[sziem]

Ewww, that sounds awful - I avoid MAs like the plague when I'm shopping, it's my idea of a worst nightmare - having a total stranger do my makeup.

Like someone else said, the MA probably won't remember you and so you should have no trouble returning the products

 

[Busttamuv3]

Ugh! I had a similar experience but at Sephora. Damn myself for sitting down at the Beauty Studio. All I did was ask for the MA to apply some concealer since mine was sort of fading off. Instead she decides to introduce me to a new concealer from the Korres line...There was an evident line from the removing makeup around the eye area so she decided that she would do my whole face and I ended up taking off all my face makeup. Then the moisturizer and the primer combination she used started pilling on me! It looked like I had flakes of dry skin peeling off. It was on my clothes and in my hair. It was so embarrassing! I definitely need to learn how to start saying NO! What a nightmare!

 

[Adee]

Ew!! I've never gotten bad makeup at the counter, but that's because I'm such a regular that I have a specific MUA that does all my stuff. I'm also picky about who I buy from and if someone I like isn't available, I have no compunction about telling them I'll wait for them or come back later. Also, if I did get bad makeup done, I wouldnt even leave the store without making THEM clean it off. Their job is to sell you makeup, and that's the reason they do the makeovers. She may be insulted, but if you were clear and she didn't follow your requests, then it's her fault! So yes, take them back!

 

[UrbanEast]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Penn I agree, you shouldn't take that lying down. Don't they have security cameras at the mall?

Yeah but they said she didn't do anything and that I was lying.

This is an old post, but if they have security cameras, you can get the footage of her putting the stuff in your bag. If your story is as you posted, I would try to get a lawyer and sue. You can get $$$ out of MAC in a settlement.

I have to admit that I've heard such stories before though, and they turned out to be false.

 

[Candlecove]

In Denmark we have a chain called Matas. The people working have gotten a reputation for not knowing what they're talking about. Now, I don't think they're all stupid. I have met some very sweet people there, but there was this one time ...

I was just browsing the makeup aisles when I was approached by one of the Matas-women. She asked if I needed help, and I responded that no, I got this, but thank you for asking.
She went away for a few minutes. Then she comes back.
"Don't you think the eyeshadow you're wearing looks a bit harsh?"
"No ..." I said, wondering how a light brown eyeshadow paired with a bit of mascara could be considered 'harsh'.
"Well, I don't think it suits your eyes. It's also a shame about all your piercings. You could be pretty, you know."


Gee wizz, thank you that insightful information, Lady.

 

[LMD84]

^ a bit harsh?! wow! what happened to if you can't say anything nice then don't say it at all!

 

[Busttamuv3]

Wow. I'm surprised they are not out of business with snooty booty customer service reps like that!

"No ..." I said, wondering how a light brown eyeshadow paired with a bit of mascara could be considered 'harsh'. "Well, I don't think it suits your eyes. It's also a shame about all your piercings. You could be pretty, you know."


Gee wizz, thank you that insightful information, Lady.

 

[Candlecove]

...

 

[Busttamuv3]

I guess its the same as Sephora here in the U.S. I've had so many bad experiences with the MAs and SAs there but I still go because of the variety of stuff available. Half the time, they don't know the answers to my questions, are snobby, or just look as if they haven't a clue as to how to wear makeup themselves. Yikes!

Yeah, well, they are the biggest beauty-related chain in Denmark, so I can't imagine they'll close down any time soon. These stores are the only option for a lot of people if you're not up to buying makeup in the internet. And people know that a lot of those girls are dumb as bricks, and accepts that because the huge selection of makeup and skincare they sell. I guess you can't have it all.

 

[MsButterfly]

I've been purchasing MAC makeup for around 10 years now. In that time frame I've only had two to three rude or pushy people. I emailed MAC and complained about one of them because she was quite rude to me.

There are some MA's I like and will approach them if I see them working. There is one who is pushy and if I see her working I shop elsewhere in the mall and go back lol.

 

[dyingforyou]

i went to the mac counter in the very uppity, high-end mall last week. i was looking to see if one of the ladies could match my skin tone for a foundation. i told the MA who assisted me that i had done the online foundation thing and when i told her that of the few times i did it, i got around a nw15-20. the look she gave me made me feel very uncomfortable. then she took another color, i believe it was c4 and wanted to test it on me and seemed really reluctant when i said i wanted to try the nw20 too. in the end we both liked the mw20 better so i guess i got a little satisfaction out of that. she also put a little lipglass and blush on me and i thought it looked really good. but i was also wanting to look at lipsticks but she seemed so rushed to ring me that i just gave up on it.

then yesterday i went to a different mall in a different city and when i went to mac their MA's were really nice. one lady was doing a makeover then they had two others fixing product/asking if we had any questions. it was too bad i didn't have much money on me or else i would have bought something there.

 

[makeuphair]

When I started working at MAC I started with 5 new girls. Myself and three other new hires were actual makeup artists, while two of the other hires were known to be good sales people but knew squat about makeup. They place a higher importance on sales people as that is the goal. Unfortunately in your case looks like the girl was a bit of a twat LOL (fail on the makeup and sales). How DID she get the job? Pretty hilarious!