How to piss a shop assistant off...

kc87 · 09-08-2010 04:27PM

The Agogo wrote: »

Then why customers always asking for help?

Change oil
Wash car
Fill air pressure
count change
find items that are on clear display
blah blah blah blah?

ah when you put it like that my highly educated friend i see the error of my ways :rolleyes:

your a shelf stacker that thinks he more important than u are. does that name badge and sweeping brush all of a sudden make you feel important

sur theres probly a young kid robbing sweeps in ur shop while your on this pretending 2 be working

Antar Bolaeisk · 09-08-2010 04:28PM

The Agogo wrote: »

- Stand there like an idiot even when I'm clearly trying to clean-up/walk past/ close the shop

If there's a customer in a shop looking to get served then they should be served even if that means you have to drop your task for a few minutes to do so

The Agogo wrote: »

- Asking silly questions like "How much is the 6.50 carwash?" and "Are all your papers gone?" - No, we just sell invisible ones.

Nothing wrong with customers asking questions, like many other people who have to deal with the public one of your primary roles is dealing with enquiries. Don't forget that you deal with the shop on a daily basis so everything is routine for you, for customers it's not routine and may not be very obvious (though more likely they're just idiots).

The Agogo wrote: »

- Looking at me angrily from a queue when I'm clearly on my lunch-break
- Asking "Are you closed?" when we're halfway out the door with lock-and-key in hand

Again, if a customer wants to be served in a shop and isn't being served then there's something wrong. The blame in this case obviously lies with your co-workers since you're on a break. However, if you are on a break then why are you behind the counter? Disappear somewhere to take your break then you can escape from the glaring eyes of the customers.

Some things which annoy me are:

Indecisive customers.

Waiting until asked for money before reaching into the deep dark recesses of your nether regions to find the wallet time forget. The depth and darkness of said recess seem to be proportional to the length of the queue.

Produce you coppers from last nights binge. Again, the number of said coppers is proportional to the length of the queue.

Hold up the queue when getting your order so you can continue that absolutely hilarious conversation about yerone from last night.

Asking your 5 year old kids what they want and then waste five minutes telling them what they're getting.

Indecisive customers, make up you're fecking mind already!

Customers who ask for the wrong thing then blatantly lie blaming the shop assistant.

fontanalis · 09-08-2010 04:39PM

kc87 wrote: »

ah when you put it like that my highly educated friend i see the error of my ways :rolleyes:

your a shelf stacker that thinks he more important than u are. does that name badge and sweeping brush all of a sudden make you feel important

sur theres probly a young kid robbing sweeps in ur shop while your on this pretending 2 be working

How's life working in NASA?

scorpioishere · 09-08-2010 04:45PM

My friend works in a coffee shop in town and he told me that the abuse the staff gets from these ignorant people. If people throw money on the counter they do the same as well back. Well what do u expect, if u respect me i respect you. After all if he was not here in this country making coffee for irish people, where will u people get ur coffee made from? Also he told me one day one girl came in and ask for a mashmallow hot chocolate with extra mashmallows in it, cream, flakes and also cookie. With all the trimmings in it the cost was around 4.50. Next prick arrived and said, can i have the same please so my friend start to press what he asked for, then the guy wants a cake which my friend took and put on a plate for him. During that time the hot chocolate was made already and my friend told that guy that all together will be 9.50. That prick got angry and said how much was the items, 4.50 for hot chocolate and 5 euros for cake. He got mad and said its advertise 3.20 and my friend said to him but you asked for the same as the other customers. She had this, that and that so its 4.50. he said he's not paying and my friend told him that its already made so u have to pay. He actually paid but was angry.

I was so happy and laughed when i was told that story. People should respect shop assistants, waiter etc etc. Its not because you have money and being a customer you can do whatever u want.

phill106 · 09-08-2010 04:47PM

krudler wrote: »

Why would you buy a newspaper at the end of a working day?

In fact why but a newspaper at all? they have the internet on computers now.

Because i forgot to buy it earlier in the day!
The mother loves the sunday mail's tv section dont ya know.
She has none of that fancy internet stuff.

scorpioishere · 09-08-2010 04:48PM

Antar Bolaeisk wrote: »

If there's a customer in a shop looking to get served then they should be served even if that means you have to drop your task for a few minutes to do so

Nothing wrong with customers asking questions, like many other people who have to deal with the public one of your primary roles is dealing with enquiries. Don't forget that you deal with the shop on a daily basis so everything is routine for you, for customers it's not routine and may not be very obvious (though more likely they're just idiots).
.

Again, if a customer wants to be served in a shop and isn't being served then there's something wrong. The blame in this case obviously lies with your co-workers since you're on a break. However, if you are on a break then why are you behind the counter? Disappear somewhere to take your break then you can escape from the glaring eyes of the customers.

Some things which annoy me are:

Indecisive customers.

Waiting until asked for money before reaching into the deep dark recesses of your nether regions to find the wallet time forget. The depth and darkness of said recess seem to be proportional to the length of the queue.

Produce you coppers from last nights binge. Again, the number of said coppers is proportional to the length of the queue.

Hold up the queue when getting your order so you can continue that absolutely hilarious conversation about yerone from last night.

Asking your 5 year old kids what they want and then waste five minutes telling them what they're getting.

Indecisive customers, make up you're fecking mind already!

Customers who ask for the wrong thing then blatantly lie blaming the shop assistant.

They always lie. And also like complaining and asked to see a manager to get the stuff free without paying

miss_shadow · 09-08-2010 05:02PM

I always treated shop assistants nicely and politely. It's some of the shop assistants with your attitude who I wouldn't give my time of day for. If your nice and polite though then I suppose you get that back and your day isn't as half bad.

You know the ones where you have your hand out for the change and they chuck it on the counter.

Or serve someone else even though you were clearly next in line!

Mint Sauce · 09-08-2010 05:14PM

How to piss a shop assistant off...

'sorry to interupt your conversation with your friend, i don't really care about what you both got up to last night, and the state that you were both in, but i would like to pay for my paper and sandwich and receive some common curtosy, especially when i have made the effort to be polite and curteous.'

:mad:

09-08-2010 05:22PM

Op, you're working a low skill job that merely requires your presence and a smile. Putting up with customer's shlte is part of the job description and even at that, the things you've listed are nothing compared to the deadlines, stress and overtime involved in other jobs.

clarke1991 · 09-08-2010 05:29PM

kc87 wrote: »

ah when you put it like that my highly educated friend i see the error of my ways :rolleyes:

your a shelf stacker that thinks he more important than u are. does that name badge and sweeping brush all of a sudden make you feel important

sur theres probly a young kid robbing sweeps in ur shop while your on this pretending 2 be working

and you obviousley think highly of yourself.. people in shops are people just like everyone else. so get off your high hoarse and shut the fcuk up

kc87 · 09-08-2010 05:32PM

fontanalis wrote: »

How's life working in NASA?

dont work in NASA it just pisses me off when people that work dealing with people moan like hell about them when alot of people that work in shops or whatever are ignorant fooks and dont realise they're is 2 serve people and help them.

not rocket science is it.

i cant stand seeing rude people in shops and always say please and thanks but you's are dealing with the public so its part of ur job 2 deal with the rude fooks aswell as pleasant chaps like meself

The Agogo · 09-08-2010 05:34PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Op, you're working a low skill job that merely requires your presence and a smile. Putting up with customer's shlte is part of the job description and even at that, the things you've listed are nothing compared to the deadlines, stress and overtime involved in other jobs.

I know that. I've worked in other sectors and it can get a hell of a lot worse.

But your mentality ("low-skill job" worker) seems to give you the right to treat us like sh1te.

ejmaztec · 09-08-2010 05:37PM

Wear a pair of Marigolds and hand em a pile of horse-sh1t covered coins, then ask them to make sure you've given em the right amount.

jill_valentine · 09-08-2010 06:00PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Putting up with customer's shlte is part of the job description

No, it is absolutely not. I think I've already ranted about this to an adequate degree, but the fact that I am working behind a counter does not make me the offically designated focal point for whatever bad attitude baggage you or anybody else happen to be lugging around that day.

My job is to answer your questions and sell you what you require. I like my job. I like the products we sell, and I like answering questions about them, so I'm more than happy to do this. My job is not to stand there like a sap and offer you a consequence-free opportunity to flex your bad manners in public, however. Just because we both know I can't respond in kind does not give anybody license to treat me or their fellow customers badly.

mikemac · 09-08-2010 06:08PM

scorpioishere wrote: »

4.50 for hot chocolate and 5 euros for cake.

At those prices I'd be angry too
5 euro? Realy?

jill_valentine · 09-08-2010 06:17PM

Yeah, but you'd calm down a bit once you had hot chocolate and cake.

skyhighflyer · 09-08-2010 06:28PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Op, you're working a low skill job that merely requires your presence and a smile. Putting up with customer's shlte is part of the job description and even at that, the things you've listed are nothing compared to the deadlines, stress and overtime involved in other jobs.

I think you're doing a disservice to retail workers by being so dismissive of the people who serve you in shops, but your post neatly illustrates the type of ignorance faced by retail workers on a daily basis so thanks, I guess.

I worked in retail during school and college. I am thankfully now a degree-educated professional and can say that, in my experience at least, most 'professions' don't hold a candle in terms of stress, workload and general hassle suffered by those unfortunate enough to be stuck in the retail trade.

In the job I have now I:

make good money;
can make a coffee or take a break whenever I like;
deal for the most part with level-headed, intelligent people;
have a comfy chair in a warm cosy office;
actually enjoy the occasional bit of stimulating work or conversation with my colleagues; and
have people to take care of the more boring aspects of my job for me.

In my old retail job I:

made minimum wage;
got to take an unpaid break fitted around everyone else's schedule and eat deli counter "food";
encountered verbal abuse almost daily and was regularly threatened with physical abuse;
worked in draughty stores, a depressing shop or outside in the pissing rain;
dealt with mouth-breathing morons every day; and
spent the whole day stressed out from a combination of all the above plus the need to be constantly alert for shoplifters.

So I'll let boardsies decide for themselves which job is more difficult.

The most difficult were those who were obviously so inadequate and unhappy with their lives that about the only person they could find to assert their 'superiority' over was a shop assistant who was unfortunately contrained by their job from putting them firmly back in their box. I wonder whether the same principle holds true for those ranting about shop assistants on this thread

.

09-08-2010 06:32PM

The Agogo wrote: »

I know that. I've worked in other sectors and it can get a hell of a lot worse.

But your mentality ("low-skill job" worker) seems to give you the right to treat us like sh1te.

It's not a mentality.. It's a fact.

And I'm sound to everyone who works in shops/pubs because I've done it before myself..

krudler · 09-08-2010 06:34PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Op, you're working a low skill job that merely requires your presence and a smile. Putting up with customer's shlte is part of the job description and even at that, the things you've listed are nothing compared to the deadlines, stress and overtime involved in other jobs.

I have an office job with "deadlines and stress" right now and its piss easy compared to working in the retail environment, right now I can get coffee when I like, surf boards all day between calls, my phone is on my desk beside me, and I sit down all day. When I worked in retail it was 8 hours of standing at a till or lugging boxes of dvds up and down 3 flights of stairs. Our standard delivery size at Christmas time was over 100 boxes of stock at times, most of them were large enough that you could only carry one at a time, do the math. Office workers have a piss easy job most of the time where we complain about politics and deadlines, but I'd never go back to working in retail again.

chiefwiggum · 09-08-2010 06:36PM

anyone ever gone into the esso station outside dunshaughlin on the dublin road???????????..
how do they get away with it???????? i mean is it too much to ask for a please, thank you or even eye contact instead of looking out the window..rudest staff ever.... I MEAN EVER....

mikemac · 09-08-2010 06:37PM

I think a lot of people who look down on retail staff have never done similar.
I've not worked in shops but did barwork so the abuse staff get.
So I wouldn't dream of doing it to staff. If I did have an complaint, just explain it clearly and it'll be sorted.

Sorry for the stereotype.
In my experience my worst customers were the well to do, middle class, middle aged women.
Always looking down on me
"Did you need a college degree to get that job?" she sneers to college student working through college. She hasn't worked since she got married twenty years ago and is out spending her husbands money.

The rich people and we had a few millionaires were lovely. Most ordinary people (like me and you) were great.

Rich people don't look down on you, it's people who think they are rich.
Middle aged women meeting for "coffee with the girls" then going shopping and spending their husbands money.
Yeah I served them in my hotel and they made me feel like dirt

:mad:

I too have an office job with deadlines and stress.
Dead easy comparing to carrying crates of Bulmers up from the cellar, sweat pouring from my face and working 15 shifts which finish with mopping up vomit in hotel toilets. Never again

09-08-2010 06:38PM

I just said it's a low skilled job and dealing with people is inevitably gonna land you with a few dickheads. It's a part of the job if you're dealing with the public. To start threads whinging about what are in fact trivial annoyances is ridiculous.

09-08-2010 06:47PM

wrote:

Yeah I served them in my hotel and they made me feel like dirt

If that happens to me i always imagine them being made to jump up and down naked haha makes me feel better :D

jill_valentine · 09-08-2010 07:03PM

Not to contribute to stereotype but-

feelingstressed wrote: »

In my experience my worst customers were the well to do, middle class, middle aged women.
Always looking down on me
"Did you need a college degree to get that job?" she sneers to college student working through college.

I would absolutely agree with this. Entitled middle-class yummy mummies have an awful tendency to go into a transaction as if they've already been aggrieved. And by God, they want you to know where you sit on the food chain. It's the strangest thing, and I do not understand it.

09-08-2010 07:05PM

feelingstressed wrote: »

I think a lot of people who look down on retail staff have never done similar.
I've not worked in shops but did barwork so the abuse staff get.
So I wouldn't dream of doing it to staff. If I did have an complaint, just explain it clearly and it'll be sorted.

Sorry for the stereotype.
In my experience my worst customers were the well to do, middle class, middle aged women.
Always looking down on me
"Did you need a college degree to get that job?" she sneers to college student working through college. She hasn't worked since she got married twenty years ago and is out spending her husbands money.

The rich people and we had a few millionaires were lovely. Most ordinary people (like me and you) were great.

Rich people don't look down on you, it's people who think they are rich.
Middle aged women meeting for "coffee with the girls" then going shopping and spending their husbands money.
Yeah I served them in my hotel and they made me feel like dirt :mad:

I too have an office job with deadlines and stress.
Dead easy comparing to carrying crates of Bulmers up from the cellar, sweat pouring from my face and working 15 shifts which finish with mopping up vomit in hotel toilets. Never again

Totally agree with that. The middle aged, middle class women are the worst. When I was working in a hotel in New York, I had this awful woman come to check out with her teenage daughter, telling me about all the stuff they'd bought in New York etc, she was really condescending, she said I seemed bright (because I remembered her name and room number :rolleyes:) and asked if I'd considered doing a diploma or something. Eventually she started boasting about how amazing her daughter was, and told me she'd got a place in Trinity for October. I said 'oh brilliant! I just graduated from there!' The look on her face was priceless.

mikemac · 09-08-2010 07:15PM

jill_valentine wrote: »

And by God, they want you to know where you sit on the food chain. It's the strangest thing, and I do not understand it.

As the value of their home went up, they found it easier to look down on others

Hopefully one thing that will change with the recession.

Driving fantastic cars and SUV's that will lose tens of thousands in deprecation and then abusing staff in a hotel over the price of a cup of coffee.

Penny rich, pound foolish?

Edit, it's fine to question something if it's expensive. But the student behind the bar isn't the person to talk to, ask for a manager

2manyconditions · 09-08-2010 07:37PM

RacoonQueen wrote: »

What used to really annoy me in shops was women who would stand in a queue for 5 minutes then wait till they're at the till to dig into their bag for their purse and count the money out, then they'd hold the long queue even longer as they fumbled around putting their money back into their purse etc etc etc I'm glad I don't work in retail anymore...

This is just insane, I'm waiting there for 10 f88king minutes. Why can't I make everyone else wait like I've had to wait.

If I turned around and put my change in my purse and realised you'd given me the wrong change what then? That a 10 min spot check of your till.

Awear for example have a monitor behind the till with a fashion show on it. So times I might get distracted with all the retail buy me stuff all over the place while I'm in the queue and not have the money ready.

And how the hell do I know how much it costs until you tell me. I also look at the screen during the transaction for the customer to make sure i got the bargin I went for (that is if there is one available, Tescos for example - I can't see the price of the stuff going through so I have to check my receipt after instead)

Basically your saying: I've got your money so Fxxk off now fast so I can get someone elses asap. Great service! Don't forget profits go to the big wigs.

The Agogo · 09-08-2010 07:40PM

Deleted User wrote: »

I just said it's a low skilled job and dealing with people is inevitably gonna land you with a few dickheads. It's a part of the job if you're dealing with the public. To start threads whinging about what are in fact trivial annoyances is ridiculous.

But that's what AH is for :pac:

Lockstep · 09-08-2010 07:42PM

jill_valentine wrote: »

Not to contribute to stereotype but-

I would absolutely agree with this. Entitled middle-class yummy mummies have an awful tendency to go into a transaction as if they've already been aggrieved. And by God, they want you to know where you sit on the food chain. It's the strangest thing, and I do not understand it.

This.

When I worked retail, well to do mothers were the worst, with inflated senses of their own self worth. I had one who ordered me to go around the shop with her, pushing her trolley and getting stuff off the shelves for her.

I contributed to Notalwaysright.com a lot in those days.

A V A · 09-08-2010 07:54PM

Ricardo G wrote: »

Dear shop assistant, I hate Shop assistants, why can't you work a bit faster and get through the q. Why dont you ever say please and thank you? Why do you insist on trying to sell us plastic bags when we dont need them? Why dont your employers hire hot broads to serve us? Why dont you make an effort to smile at your customers? Why do you always look like you hate your job? Why dont you try and look some bit presentable? Why do you take so long to turn on the ptrol pumps when its raining outside? Why don't you wear hair nets when making my ham salad roll ?

iv worked in three very busy shops !iv worked in a new agents , a hight street fashion retailer , and a perfume shop. its very hard trying to serve some people that are ignorant and ask questions when your serving them nd expect you to jump and help them > its not the sales assistant fault in most case's!!!

im taking the side of the sales assistant's of the world

and when i know a customer is deliberately being smart i dont get back at them i get even in the proper decent way , as in taking my time etc things like that , if someones going to be ignorant when im trying to help them ill treat them the way they treat me

How to piss a shop assistant off...

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