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So, I decided I should post the most memorable happenings of my retail career so far (I'm currently taking a break because the call center job broke -me-)
The biggest and baddest I remember was when I was working at Younkers, also of the Prangees chain, high-end clothing...(most likely made in China by children)
To set the scene, I had only been working at Y for a month, and I was the youngest person they had ever, in their history, hired.It was 1998. At 18, which nowadays isn't a big deal or anything, but apparently in the tiny little town I lived in was a milestone for them.
We stacked our sales signs...and I hated it. It always caused confusion, and this time it caused a malicious little lawyer to get all snotty and entitled with yours truly.
me: looks nervous and waves
him: who has decided to make unhappy waves
So I'm at the counter, doing something legitimately work related, when this guy comes up. He has his wife in tow, and a "I'm right" look on his face before he even starts.
Me: Hello, how can I help you?
Him: I have a question about your sales signs.
ok, I've fielded these questions before, as I had awesome coworkers.
So he points to the "50% off with an additional 30% off" signs.
Me: Alright, sir, what that means is the product is 50% off, and we currently have a sale that gives you and additional 30% off at the register.
Him: You know, to anyone of reasonable intelligence that factors out to 80%.
Me: *oh, wonderful* I'm sorry, but that's not the way we manage that discount, we have to take the 30% off the original 50%, otherwise the sign would say 80%.
Him: I'm a LAWYER, and if I took that sign to a court of law, the judge would agree that anyone with average intelligence would construe that as being 80% off. I'm right, you're wrong, you're going to ring my purchases up at 80%, not 50% with 30% ontop of it.
So I contested it, and he persisted.
What this lead to was calling my Manager, who I had thought was awesome at the time...until she came up to the counter.
She agreed that he was wrong, and that it simply wasn't how we did our discounts
and then...
then...
she crushed my hopes and dreams and let him have it.
This would have been enough to make the rest of my day unhappy, as the way he was going about it was started to get me upset and anxious, and about to cry...but then my coworker dropped the bomb.
"I heard him talking over by the men's socks, and he was talking to his wife about how he could get away with this, and how he was going to pick the youngest person here to do it."
WHAT?!
I've been singled out by an asshole just so he can pull the "I'm a lawyer" crap and make his wife feel good about being married to an asshat?
Well, that definately took away my belief in a fair system.
I also worked at a Marathon gas station/convenience store, where I've been proposed to by the local drunk.
him: Can I have a bottle of blah and some lottery tickets
me: sure
him: Hey, why don't I ditch my wife and you could marry me?
me: *shuddering inside, as he's got unkempt hair, 2 beer bellies, a wife with 4 kids at home, and is currently wearing overalls* No thanks, I have a boyfriend.
him: Well we could ship him off to Japan
me; I don't think he'd like that very much
but I understand that the college student who sells you cigarrettes, alcohol, and lottery tickets, could very well be your idea of the perfect mate.
But no.
At the call center my most favorite memory is of the lady with the dog. The call opened like this:
her: Stop eating those crayons! bad dog!
me: "Sucky Call Center, this is Raventhistle speaking, how may I help you?
her: Do you want a dog?
me: um, no, thanks
her: he eats crayons
me: *chuckles* Yeah, that's what I hear
best call ever.
I've worked at Target, too, but most of the sucky stories i had there involved team leads . My biggest pet peeve was the bait and switch.
Go here, do this.
No no no...go here, do this instead, it's more important.
Why didn't you finish that other thing?
Come up here, and cashier.
Why isn't that 2nd thing done yet?
Don't you do any work around here?
well hurry up, it's almost closing time, and we can't afford to let everyone stay a half hour to clean up, but it's vitally important that we clean up before everyone leaves... >_<
I'm taking a break because the combination of customers calling Sucky Insurance Co and yelling because it sucks, and the hiring company Sucky Call Center's practices (handle your calls faster, customers don't take long on the phone...hit your scripting all the time...don't be friendly,be efficient) wore me down. Yeah, I couldn't hack it. But after 6 years in retail my soul has decided to panic when faced with that crud.
Unfortunately my pocketbook is demanding that I try again.
Anyone know if Joanne fabrics is relatively safe from stupid?
(or, at least, as safe as anywhere in retail can be?)
The biggest and baddest I remember was when I was working at Younkers, also of the Prangees chain, high-end clothing...(most likely made in China by children)
To set the scene, I had only been working at Y for a month, and I was the youngest person they had ever, in their history, hired.It was 1998. At 18, which nowadays isn't a big deal or anything, but apparently in the tiny little town I lived in was a milestone for them.
We stacked our sales signs...and I hated it. It always caused confusion, and this time it caused a malicious little lawyer to get all snotty and entitled with yours truly.
me: looks nervous and waves
him: who has decided to make unhappy waves
So I'm at the counter, doing something legitimately work related, when this guy comes up. He has his wife in tow, and a "I'm right" look on his face before he even starts.
Me: Hello, how can I help you?
Him: I have a question about your sales signs.
ok, I've fielded these questions before, as I had awesome coworkers.
So he points to the "50% off with an additional 30% off" signs.
Me: Alright, sir, what that means is the product is 50% off, and we currently have a sale that gives you and additional 30% off at the register.
Him: You know, to anyone of reasonable intelligence that factors out to 80%.
Me: *oh, wonderful* I'm sorry, but that's not the way we manage that discount, we have to take the 30% off the original 50%, otherwise the sign would say 80%.
Him: I'm a LAWYER, and if I took that sign to a court of law, the judge would agree that anyone with average intelligence would construe that as being 80% off. I'm right, you're wrong, you're going to ring my purchases up at 80%, not 50% with 30% ontop of it.
So I contested it, and he persisted.
What this lead to was calling my Manager, who I had thought was awesome at the time...until she came up to the counter.
She agreed that he was wrong, and that it simply wasn't how we did our discounts
and then...
then...
she crushed my hopes and dreams and let him have it.
This would have been enough to make the rest of my day unhappy, as the way he was going about it was started to get me upset and anxious, and about to cry...but then my coworker dropped the bomb.
"I heard him talking over by the men's socks, and he was talking to his wife about how he could get away with this, and how he was going to pick the youngest person here to do it."
WHAT?!
I've been singled out by an asshole just so he can pull the "I'm a lawyer" crap and make his wife feel good about being married to an asshat?
Well, that definately took away my belief in a fair system.
I also worked at a Marathon gas station/convenience store, where I've been proposed to by the local drunk.
him: Can I have a bottle of blah and some lottery tickets
me: sure
him: Hey, why don't I ditch my wife and you could marry me?
me: *shuddering inside, as he's got unkempt hair, 2 beer bellies, a wife with 4 kids at home, and is currently wearing overalls* No thanks, I have a boyfriend.
him: Well we could ship him off to Japan
me; I don't think he'd like that very much
but I understand that the college student who sells you cigarrettes, alcohol, and lottery tickets, could very well be your idea of the perfect mate.
But no.
At the call center my most favorite memory is of the lady with the dog. The call opened like this:
her: Stop eating those crayons! bad dog!
me: "Sucky Call Center, this is Raventhistle speaking, how may I help you?
her: Do you want a dog?
me: um, no, thanks
her: he eats crayons
me: *chuckles* Yeah, that's what I hear
best call ever.
I've worked at Target, too, but most of the sucky stories i had there involved team leads . My biggest pet peeve was the bait and switch.
Go here, do this.
No no no...go here, do this instead, it's more important.
Why didn't you finish that other thing?
Come up here, and cashier.
Why isn't that 2nd thing done yet?
Don't you do any work around here?
well hurry up, it's almost closing time, and we can't afford to let everyone stay a half hour to clean up, but it's vitally important that we clean up before everyone leaves... >_<
I'm taking a break because the combination of customers calling Sucky Insurance Co and yelling because it sucks, and the hiring company Sucky Call Center's practices (handle your calls faster, customers don't take long on the phone...hit your scripting all the time...don't be friendly,be efficient) wore me down. Yeah, I couldn't hack it. But after 6 years in retail my soul has decided to panic when faced with that crud.
Unfortunately my pocketbook is demanding that I try again.
Anyone know if Joanne fabrics is relatively safe from stupid?
(or, at least, as safe as anywhere in retail can be?)
rb
for dealing with the 'lawyer' I've had to deal with the equivalent and I know you just want to see the back of them.
Good on you for trying to stand by policy. And is it just me, or are 'Lawyer' and 'Doctor' synonyms for 'Jackass' all to often?
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