Once upon a time (approximately 3 months ago) some chick at a local store greeted everyone with a hearty “WELCOME IN!” I had never heard this phrase before… certainly “WELCOME!” or “WELCOME TO CHIPOTLE!” but never “WELCOME IN!” I thought she was just a weirdo.
At the mall the other day, no fewer than three different stores had people greeting you with “WELCOME IN!” Maybe it was that particular mall policy, but wtf… I guess there’s nothing particularly wrong with the syntax but it just grates.
Yeah, that’d only sound appropriate on an airlock into a space station…
I think it’s a case of “I’m not used to talking to the public, so i’m going to give it my all!”
Prevalent among young retail help:“May I do anything to be of help or guidance or other assistance, SIIIIIR?”