All right-- you know what I really hate–Customers who complain about trivial shit. Many staff members says “hello” to you, and you don’t like it. Boo hoo hoo.
Don’t you realize that the last customer before you just complained that our people were not friendly enough?
The customer before that hated the remodeling. The one before that didn’t like that we used plastic bags. The one before that sneered at our coupon policy. The one before that was thrown into a tizzy because her favorite type of olive was out of stock and the one before that bitched about how we had too many products and it was too hard to shop. The previous customer to her didn’t like that the carts were running low, and the one before that was miffed that there weren’t cart corrals in the parking lot because it is so much trouble to have to wheel an entire empty shopping cart another twenty feet.
The customer before that thought the lights were too bright. The customer before him was annoyed because we don’t carry the strawberry-kiwi yogurt in larger containers. Prior to that customer came the one upset about the cashier who checked her watch. This was just ahead of the customer who was upset because he couldn’t figure out the self checkout. That customer was just ahead of the one who complained that the shelves were too high. Before him was the guy who didn’t like the sandwich selection who was just ahead of the woman who thought the signs were too confusing. This group of people was just ahead of these shoppers: the one who was upset because we asked for an ID when she presented a check, the one who griped about the prices, the lady who was disappointed we did not carry a competitor’s brand name item, the lady who thought the bathrooms were too dirty, the customer who railed about produce grown abroad, the customer who despised the reward card system, the man who was riled because he couldn’t understand his receipt, the woman who just couldn’t grasp why she couldn’t bring the dog in the store, the man who couldn’t believe we wouldn’t take his return though he bought the tuna at another store, the woman who couldn’t understand the sale flyer, the man who insisted we are always out of Log Cabin Syrup, and the customer who hated that we were asking for a donation to a charity this month.
Then, yesterday, there was the customer who said he was ignored, the man who was upset about the 13 items in the “12 or fewer” line, the one who swore we carried an item we have never carried, the gent who resented the student discount, the woman who blew her top because we charge 50 cents extra for a book of stamps, the lady who didn’t understand the concept of “out-of-season” fruit, the man who thought the pet food should be in the front of the store, the individual disgruntled by the lack of fat-free choices, the man who complained the music was too loud, the woman who thought the cover of the magazine was inappropriate, the fellow who was incovenienced by our asking for an ID to buy alcohol, the one who couldn’t figure out the lottery machine, the man who disliked the placement of the melba toast, the chap who couldn’t understand why a few screws would clog up the Coinstar, the lady who wanted too much cash back, the man who thought it was too hot in here, the woman who couldn’t find the exit, the customer who blamed us for his dropping his bottle of wine, the girl who found the cigarette selection not to her liking, the woman who couldn’t figure out how to operate the electric cart, the man who was upset because we didn’t carry organic cauliflower and now he’d have to go to Whole Foods, and if he has to get that at Whole Foods don’t we know he will probably do all his shopping there and we wouldn’t want that would we, and the one who thought the month later date on the milk wasn’t enough and the one who couldn’t find the expiration date on the Ragu jar, and the one that liked the aisles better when they were wider. Also, we were visited that day by the person who worried about the toothpicks at the sample table, the lady who wanted her order re-rung because certain items were supposed to be “Buy One, Get One Free”, but instead rang up at half price and who didn’t understand that this was, of course, the same thing, the customer who wanted us to cash an out-of-state check and threatened to call corporate to complain when we said it was against policy, the man who thought the honeydew should be the same price as the cantaloupe, the couple who swore they had money left on the gift card, the man who wished for a different juice, the lady angry because we used too many bags, the man upset because there were too many items packed in a single bag, the one who found the wall colors distracting, the man who thought the olive oil should be by the vinegar, the granny who wanted every day to be senior discount day, the one who missed last week’s sale because she was out of town so now wants those prices, the woman who felt the music was too dull, the man who hated the long line, the guy whose favorite item was discontinued, the one who could get it much cheaper at Wal-Mart, and the girl who was sure the Alpo dog food she bought last Tuesday gave her Fifi a rash.
Thanks. I feel better now.
Sigh. Do you know how many people complain when they are not given the “super friendly” service? Lots.
This is over 20 years of retail speaking…and you may be surprised to hear I mostly like the field I have chosen.
You’d like it if the store would just let you shop your retail in peace. Believe me, we’d sure like it if you’d just let us sell retail in peace by realizing that the store will not always be to your liking in every area and it’s OK to let us know but at the same time there are bigger problems in the world than some minor annoyance at the retail store. Just pick up the paper.