One from today plus a tale of cuteness

[retailsweetie]

I'm home on spring break this week so my boss put me on the schedule (she rocks!). Luckily, my customers have been pretty awesome for the most part. Someone always has to come along and ruin the party, though.


The way my store is set up, we have three registers at one counter at the back of the store. We don't have anything marking the direction a line should go in, but generally people know to make a line in front of either the center register or the register closest to clearance. This wasn't the problem. The problem was that a coworker was working the register and I was up front but available for backup. I glanced back and saw that a line had started to form, so I jumped on a register and called for whoever was next. I was pretty confident that the customer heard me 'cuz my voice is usually clear and (in my opinion) friendly. The customer (SC) I assumed was next didn't respond, so I raised my volume a little and asked if she was ready. She was looking at some shirts, so I figured she wasn't ready and didn't think I was speaking to her. I gestured for the woman behind her (WB) to come up so she could do her purchase.


As soon as WB got her merchandise settled on the counter next to my register, SC turns around. She looked at me and started complaining about how she had been waiting a long time and that no one had been at the register. I (as politely as I could) told her that I had called for the next customer, but that I had thought she was still shopping. WB moved over so SC could go ahead. SC stepped back and let WB know that she could go first, but she had been waiting a long time blah blah blah.

Listen, lady. I know waiting in line sucks. Everyone hates it. Your inability to pay attention to the people who can make your waiting-in-a-line-syndrome go away is not my fault.




Tale of Cuteness

So, for those of you who don't know, I work at a girls' clothing store. We had a little girl come in with her parents today, and it was her first time in the store. As she walked around marveling at everything, she looked back at me and said, "It's like a paradise for girls!" Girls like her are why I love my job.

[Food Lady]

Kudos to WB for graciously standing aside, and as for the little girl, awwwwwww.

[RealUnimportant]

Your inability to pay attention to the people who can make your waiting-in-a-line-syndrome go away is not my fault.

Oh so very much this! We have 2 staff on in the mornings during busy periods, and the number of times we get a queue at one and no-one at the other, and nobody will look at us to see us waving them over, or hear the second seller yelling "both windows are serving, next customer please!" either due to earbuds or just plain blankness.

[blas]

Once when I worked at the Deb shop, two preteen girls spent forever trying on pairs of heels that were obviously far too large for them. And sure, it was a pain to clean up after, but it was so cute to hear them say "I prefer fashion over comfort!" to their mother.

[XCashier]

Listen, lady. I know waiting in line sucks. Everyone hates it. Your inability to pay attention to the people who can make your waiting-in-a-line-syndrome go away is not my fault.

This, a thousand times this! I work in a fabric shop, so most customers have to wait in two different lines (cutting counter and cash register). 95% of them have enough sense to queue up properly and wait their turn, but the other 5%...sheesh. Standing here and there, nowhere near the line, appearing to still be shopping, then complaining that they were next, like in your story. I'm not sure if it'll get better or worse when we get the take-a-number system.

I work at a girls' clothing store. We had a little girl come in with her parents today, and it was her first time in the store. As she walked around marveling at everything, she looked back at me and said, "It's like a paradise for girls!" Girls like her are why I love my job.

Awww! The rare sweet customer does make things worthwhile.

[RealUnimportant]

I'm not sure if it'll get better or worse when we get the take-a-number system.

Judging from my visits to places that use these, you'll then get people coming up yelling "I was here before them!" who failed to take a ticket because there wasn't anyone in front of them, so why would then need to?

[MoonCat]

This reminds me of when I first started at my job and I went up for lunch one day. I took a tray, and noticed two men standing waaaaaay out from the sandwich counter, yakking away, so I stepped around them. And one of them pipes up, "that was very rude of you, to step in front of us!" Being very shy at the time, I apologized and stepped behind them. And they continued to stand there, yapping, paying no attention to the sandwich person or the fact that there was NOBODY ahead of them.

[DGoddessChardonnay]

Once when I worked at the Deb shop, two preteen girls spent forever trying on pairs of heels that were obviously far too large for them. And sure, it was a pain to clean up after, but it was so cute to hear them say "I prefer fashion over comfort!" to their mother.

And they'll be crying the opposite when they hit about 35 or so and the start having feet problems from putting fashion first and they have trouble wearing any shoes.

Also, at least with me, my feet started getting wider as I got older. I wear a 7 1/2 wide width now where back in high school I could get away with size 8 medium width.

[EricKei]

noticed two men standing waaaaaay out from the sandwich counter, yakking away, so I stepped around them. And one of them pipes up, "that was very rude of you, to step in front of us!"

They were absolutely the rude ones here -- if they're yakking, they don't belong in line...Besides, if they were far enough back for you to just step past them, there were nowhere near "being in line" at all!