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"You don't know which kind of eyeliner is best? I'm getting your manager!!"

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  • "You don't know which kind of eyeliner is best? I'm getting your manager!!"

    This story is from about a month ago. I work in the health and beauty care department of a large Super Target and Wal-Mart-esque store. I am basically a slave who "conditions" (straightens) everything from the shampoo to the condoms, vitamins to toothpaste and Tylenol. I was in the cosmetics aisle picking up all off the merchandise that people drop on the basedecks and leave (since it's apparently just sooo unbearably hard for people to hang things back up) when the lady browsing next to me initiates a conversation.

    Lady (using this term loosely): "Do you know which waterproof eyeliner works the best and doesn't smudge all over?"

    Me: (still on my knees): "Sorry, I'm really not sure." (in a very polite, apologetic tone)

    Lady: "..You work in this department, right?"

    Me: "Yeah."

    Lady: "Well, imma talk to a manager."

    Me: (getting to my feet) "Talk to a manager? Why?" (in a neutral tone)

    (no response)

    Me: "Ma'am, I work in everything from vitamins to hair care, I can't be an expert on everything."

    Lady: "Oh yeah, I'm gonna tell the manager ALL about you."

    Me: "I could ask a co-worker a couple aisles down if she knows anything about waterproof-"

    (too late, she's already huffed off, ignoring me)

    So a minute later I'm a couple of aisles down telling my co-worker about this crazy lady. In retrospect I know I should have waited until I knew for certain she had vacated the area before speaking about her, but I was just so flabbergasted I didn't think and had to tell someone about the situation.

    As I'm talking, the lady walks by. "Are YOU the manager?" *to my co-worker*

    Co-worker: "No, she can get you one, though."

    Me: *pulling out my phone* "I can call a manager over here."

    (Too late, she's not listening, already walking towards the checkout lanes)

    I then see her over at the lanes, ranting to the cashier supervisor about me. Waving her arms, the whole nine yards. I approach just as the sup says, "I'll talk to her" and crazy bitch leaves.

    Supervisor: "Come with me to the office."

    Me: (thinking what??)

    Sup: *closes door, turns around* "Number one. The customer is always right."

    Me: *look of disgust, I turn to leave, getting pissed*

    Sup: "Hey, hey, wait, come here!!"

    Me: *turns back obligingly*

    Sup: "Second...always look the customer in the eye when speaking to them . And three...NEVER talk about a customer on the sales floor. I would be pretty upset too if that were me!"

    (SERIOUSLY? If you go around acting like a c**t, of course people are going to talk!


    Okay. So apparently a big part of why this lady was so pissed, apart from me not being "knowledgeable" enough about cosmetics and talking about her was that I didn't meet her eyes when replying to her query. Maybe because I was on my knees still, and looking around at the various eyeliners while answering? Jesus, was I supposed to leap to my feet, salute her, and stare her in the eyes? Who in the hell gets this worked up over such trivial things???

    It doesn't end there. That night I had a bad feeling about her so I went onto my chain's Facebook page. The most recent comment, right at the top of the page, is her ranting about me and my lack of customer service. I have all the luck, right? Out of 200 and some stores and all that goes down in them, some of them legitimate complaints, her comment has to be at the top of the page. Of course she twisted it around so that my response to her question about the eyeliner was, "Ummm....I dunno" and then, according to her, I turned away and left. She also said that instead of asking her why she wanted a manager, I said, "What's the manager gonna do?!" Also, that my co-worker answered her query as to whether or not she was a manager in a very snotty tone. Riiight.

    I then proceeded to make a fake Facebook account. I then responded (very politely, mind you) to her post, explaining what REALLY occurred, as well as apologizing for any misunderstanding between us. That night I tossed and turned worrying that corporate would be calling the store asking about me and I'd be in huge trouble. In the morning I logged on only to find her post...gone. She had apparently deleted it. Perhaps she came to her senses? Realized how stupid she looked across from my voice of reason?

    I never heard another word about the incident.
    Last edited by Despina83; 06-29-2013, 04:57 AM.

  • #2
    The looking them in the eye thing-- some people have social phobias or what have you that prevent that. Your sup should've taken that into consideration. Then again, your Sup should also have at least let you TRY to tell your side of the story before tearing into you like that. As for her FB post...she probably didn't expect you to call her out like that. Either that or some miracle did occur and she came to her senses-- if she has senses to come to, that is.
    "And though she be but little, she is FIERCE!"--Shakespeare

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    • #3
      I do have social anxiety problems, so I dislike making eye contact, but I usually do.

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      • #4
        Sounds like this company is worse than the previous. I just love when people ask me, the 4-year vegetarian, about something with meat in it. Nothing I say is going to be right.
        "Is it hot in here to you? It's very warm, isn't it?"--Nero, probably

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        • #5
          Wow, you remembered me! Actually this company has been better to work for than the last. The bosses (I don't care for that cashier supervisor, though...) all like me and are usually fair.

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          • #6
            What's the betting that if you had actually recommended a particular eyeliner to this charmer, and she didn't like it / had an allergic reaction to it, that would have been all your fault too?
            Engaged to the sweet Mytical He is my Black Dragon (and yes, a good one) strong, protective, the guardian. I am his Silver Dragon, always by his side, shining for him, cherishing him.

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            • #7
              I left a job because of this. I had a customer go absolutely batshit on me because she decided I was being evasive, not answering her questions and being sarcastic. She got so aggro I actually cried and my 2IC sent me away while she tried to calm the customer down. Lady ended up making a formal complain even though two other customers came back after she left and offered themselves as witnesses to the fact that 1. I had answered all her questions, 2. I had not been at all sarcastic (to this day I don't know how she got that impression, I was absolutely using the same polite, cheerful tone I use with all my customers) and the lady had over-reacted. My manager, even though he couldn't tell me anything I had actually done wrong with this customer, told me I had to "be more careful next time." I was so disgusted! I had worked there almost a year and had ZERO customer complaints, but he couldn't back me up when I was almost verbally assaulted and reduced to tears by a psycho woman? I left a few months later because I felt like I just couldn't trust my manager to back me up if anything like that ever happened again.

              Sorry for the rant, TL;DR sometimes people are crazy and it's hella frustrating when management expect you to bend over backwards for the crazies.

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              • #8
                Why would anyone expect an employee at a big-box store to know anything really specific about the products, especially cosmetics? If you want experts on makeup, go to the high end stores where you can get makeovers and try the stuff out.

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                • #9
                  Quoth strawbabies View Post
                  Why would anyone expect an employee at a big-box store to know anything really specific about the products, especially cosmetics? If you want experts on makeup, go to the high end stores where you can get makeovers and try the stuff out.
                  "Well, you work here, you should be an expert!" Yep, we're expected to know anything and everything about each of the tens of thousands of products we carry.

                  I get that too. Customers always asking me about, for example, the difference between our two brands of polyester fleece. When I tell them that I've never worked with it, they get very indignant. "You work here! You sew! Why don't you use this stuff?!" Um, yes, I sew medieval garb. Polyester fleece isn't exactly period fabric.

                  Not to mention the folks who expect me to be an expert at knitting/crocheting, scrapbooking, fabric painting or any of the other dozens of crafts our store supports. I make minimum wage. I've got a family to take care of. Where am I supposed to find the time and money to take up all these crafts and hobbies?!
                  I don't have an attitude problem. You have a perception problem.
                  My LiveJournal
                  A page we can all agree with!

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                  • #10
                    What's even crazier is when the customer expects the cashier that's behind the register to know everything about the store! Seriously?! I could have told you where general departments were and maybe the general area in that department an item might be, but I didn't work in those departments, so I didn't know exact anything!

                    I even got questions about makeup, just because I am female. Sorry, does it look like I wear makeup to you? Or are you mistaking the dark circles under my eyes for smudged eyeliner/mascara? Nope, those are the natural byproduct of working such stupid, asinine hours that keep me from getting much sleep. Let me find someone who can help you with those questions. Oh, wait, I can't because I'm stuck behind the idiot barrier that is the register! Grrrrr.....

                    I still get this question when I'm in the makeup isle looking for nail clippers or nail polish... Makeup irritates the fire out of me, so I don't wear it except for very special occasions and shopping at the Mart of Wals doesn't count!
                    If I make no sense, I apologize. I'm constantly interrupted by an actual toddler.

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                    • #11
                      I'm usually a bit of lurker-who-only-posts-when-she-wants-a-whinge kinda gal, but I had to post...you really have my sympathies, and I'm appalled on your behalf. That customer is a type you won't face everyday, but you will likely face again, a special kinda of EW who is practically looking for something to be pissed about. Usually, decent management will just fob them off, and back you up, so the fact your Sup was such a jackass makes me really feel for you. I have certain social anxieties, due to years of bullying, which makes it difficult to look anyone in the eye for longer than a few seconds at a time. I sometimes don't look a customer directly in the eye until I've finished a transaction and am saying goodbye! This is more common then you'd think, and I would always assume it was an indication of shyness, not disregard.

                      I recently had a supervisor completely fail to back me up in a similar sort of situation. Me telling her that I was on the verge of a mental breakdown, and seeing the medication I was put on a week later made her freak out, and I think she's trying to be nicer to me. I'm still looking for another job. I'm fragile enough that I've relented, gone for medical help, and have been medicated as a result. I clearly don't need this shit. I really hope this doesn't keep up for you, there's nothing worse than a dumbass higher-up refusing to look after their team x

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                      • #12
                        A tip for those of us who dislike looking people in the eye:

                        Look at their nose. Or eyebrows. Or read their lips. As long as your optical focus is somewhere on their face, most people won't notice that you're not looking them in the eye.

                        And if you look at their mouth, and they DO notice, claim a mild hearing disorder and 'it helps when I watch lips, I was just making sure I understood you properly'.
                        Seshat's self-help guide:
                        1. Would you rather be right, or get the result you want?
                        2. If you're consistently getting results you don't want, change what you do.
                        3. Deal with the situation you have now, however it occurred.
                        4. Accept the consequences of your decisions.

                        "All I want is a pretty girl, a decent meal, and the right to shoot lightning at fools." - Anders, Dragon Age.

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                        • #13
                          "Well, obviously since you work around the cosmetics aisle, you've tried every brand and product here!"

                          "What, you haven't?!" "You should be fired!"

                          Honestly I don't get these people. It's not impossible to do a little research before you go shopping. Surely there's a website out there for rating products like cosmetics. It just takes a little googleing. But then again, that requires effort on the customer's part. So why would they bother?
                          Some people just need a high five...

                          In the face with the back of a chair....

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                          • #14
                            Kudos for being able to create the false account and put that SC in her place. While you're at it, at the cost of management, explain to them that you'll need paid training on EVERYTHING in the store to meet the needs of management and every customer. If management complains, explain that a customer's complaint over the lack of an employees master knowledge was what caused it in the first place, and that "no, the customer is not always right".

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                            • #15
                              Quoth emax4 View Post
                              Kudos for being able to create the false account and put that SC in her place.
                              I sure hope she hid her real identity enough.

                              I myself would say this place isn't worth working for if they're going to take a customer's side over lack of product knowledge on a vast array of cosmetics, but I'd hate for the OP to lose her job over a social media policy violation.
                              Knowledge is power. Power corrupts. Study hard. Be evil.

                              "I never said I wasn't a horrible person."--Me, almost daily

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