Is this inappropriate

TheBeardedLady wrote: »

Jaysus.


One of my best friends was recently given a weekend away in a spa by her husband after giving birth to two kids in 2 years and the woman who was giving her a facial told her she'd a lot of wrinkles for someone her age and would she consider botox. After just giving birth, she wasn't brimming with confidence to begin with; she was very upset.

I understand she's trying to sell products to get commission but it seems like a completely unethical way to sell imo. Are they told to do this, I wonder?

Some places are, salons moreso than spas. I couldn't keep a job in a salon that was so sales driven like I understand rebooking and keeping your column full so "so Mary, will I book you in for your next eye combo/leg wax while you're here?" Rather than "Jesus Mary you get awful hairy don't you? Jesus it's very dark, would you not consider laser".

A nice salon and a good place to work will tell you to focus on client care rather than maximum sales, and not sell stuff to people they don't need.

I actually worked in a salon that had us on targets of 4000 a week. I never ever made my target, my manager called me in for chats loads of times to tell me the clients loved me but I needed to improve my sales stat. She dropped my targets to 2k a week to get me "started" and get me comfortable selling. I think the most I ever sold in a week was 400 but my column was always full because I was the only therapist there who wasn't pushy.

LexieOnRale wrote: »

Not really surprised. Those makeup counter jobs are all sales and high targets, and women, usually very conscious of their apperance will be easy to sell to if you can find their insecurity. Once they're making a sale, people's hurt feelings won't matter.

It's the same in a lot of beauty salons. We were always told to look out for women with engagement rings as they were easier to sell to with their wedding coming up. Body wraps/laser/facials. It's a horrible pressure to put on people but you'll get the people who won't care what they say or who they offend once they're meeting their targets.

I went to get my eyebrows done years ago, before I was in the industry (and didn't know how sales driven it was) and I was only about 19, but I had a dehydration line on my forehead that I was horrid paranoid about. Your one doing my eyebrows starts going on about how terrible it was and that if I left it untreated it'd get much worse and I'd need fillers in it. She recommended a course of 3 chemical peel facials to start with. 250 euro for the 3 of them.

Yeah this doesn't surprise me, I'm actually surprised that people are so shocked about this woman's approach as I've encountered it more than a handful of times in the beauty business. Negative emotional selling. Oldest trick in the book.

Few examples I've had:

Getting eyebrows waxed. "You want me to do your upper lip too?"
What are you going to say to that. "Eh no, I'm trying to grow it out thanks" Of course not, you're going to have a mild stroke and say "OH GOD YES", and spend the rest of the day wondering who else has been clocking your grotesque facial hair and how long you should wait til you make your next appointment.

Shopping for foundation. "How are you for concealer to cover those marks on your cheeks?"
My face was flawless at that point, save for a few barely-there blemishes on one side of my face, but as someone who had previously suffered with terrible skin problems, it took all of my strength to not cave and buy the goddamn over-priced thing.

Getting a blowdry. "When's the last time you had a deep conditioning treatment? We do a great one for dry hair like yours, I can throw it in now if you like, it's on half price at the moment at fifteen euro..."
"No I'm OK, thanks"
"Are you sure? You'll really notice the difference"
"Positive, thanks"
Awkward silence.

This is a tactic that is DESIGNED to prey on your insecurities and make you feel inadequate, so that you instantly jump at the chance of having this source of absolute misery fixed with whatever 'cure' is being offered.

I'm sure most of these sales assistants have no choice in doing what it takes to meet their targets, but personally I find it almost harder to stomach that it's nearly always women who do it - who know too well what it feels like to be so completely insecure and anxious about a physical feature. And therefore they know that they're directly adding to that person's paranoia that everyone is looking and judging by pointing it out themselves.

There's something decidedly cruel and malicious about that. Makeup for covering up acne, really? When that girl has probably had to mentally prepare herself for leaving the house without any makeup on that morning and has spent the day avoiding eye contact and mirrors because of her acute self-consciousness. Acne is a horribly soul-destroying affliction and one that even the most remedial individual could tell you will not be improved by slapping on makeup.

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

Well maybe it's just me (and I'm not quite 40 yet but apparently "out of touch" with modern sensitivities) but this seems to be a classic case of making a mountain out of molehill

Young girl arrives into a make-up section of the store with bad acne.. it's not an unexpected assumption that she's there for something to help with it - if her older sister was with her it would look even more likely (moral support/advice as it were)

Sales woman was absolutely a bit tactless but I would be 100% confident that no malice was intended. Teenagers (or kids in general) can also be difficult for some people to deal with as you can't approach them in the same way as you would an adult.

I'm curious why the OP (being nearly 30) didn't step in and politely but firmly refuse the offer of help though. Coming home and asking all of us what we think seems odd to me in that case (and to be honest why I thought they were both teenage girls).

As I said, tactless and a unfortunate misunderstanding yes but hardly inappropriate - but take your business elsewhere is the best option at this stage really

Sorry, but commenting on the "sore-looking stuff" on the OP's sister's face is 100% inappropriate. "Can I help you with anything today?" would have sufficed. But as others say, it's negative sales pitching.

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

As I read the OP, I doubt very much that the sales woman approached with "oh come here and let's sort something for that sore-looking stuff!" as her opening phrase.

We only have the OP's word and she stated that that was how the sales person phrased it. I've worked as a sales assistant. You can generally read whether someone is noncommittally glancing at the merchandise or actively looking for something.

The whole thing here about it being tactless but not quite inappropriate confuses the hell out of me. Surely in a role like this where you're going to be talking a lot about a person's appearance, with no definite idea over what and how they're going to be pretty self conscious about, it's pretty damn important to be as tactful as possible? It seems like first thing on day one of training stuff!


They definitely deserve to receive a complaint, if only to wake up the saleswoman a bit to her ridiculous levels of obliviousness.

Tzardine wrote: »

I appreciate that my post reads a bit crass and not that funny, to be fair we did not know that it was a kid involved. That is a little different.

I think that my point is still valid though. Sales assistant was just trying to help.

No she wasnt, she was "cold" selling. She didn't say "can I help you?" It was unsolicited. Being in the cosmetics area doesn't mean a person automatically wants a consultation. This is obvious. That alone you'd get over, but it's dishonest to say she was trying to help, and then to say the stupid thing she said.