# Working Retail=Stupid Customers **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 30, 2009, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441 "2009-06-30T03:20:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cosmosdan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@cosmosdan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cosmosdan)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/21 "2009-07-02T13:18:45Z")
After years in retail I’ve learned that things that seem perfectly obvious to those of us who work with it everyday is not so obvious to others. Some customers are just rarely or never exposed to certain things so yes , they may be ignorant but that doesn’t mean they’re stupid. What consistently surprises me is customers who have been shopping in the US for a couple of decades and have no clue about return policies and such. Fairly consistently I have customers who have had an item for over thirty days {up to several months} and are surprised or even indignant that we won’t give them a refund. I tend to blame that on big box stores who seem to consistently over ride their own policies in the name of customer service. I have low tolerance for people who blow things out of proportion and get nasty and make demands because they’ve been inconvenienced. Cussing is out. Cuss and get a warning. Keep cussing and you’re gone. That includes insulting the staff. My latest pet peeve is parents who won’t control their kids. Don’t come in with three of four kids and let them run amok while you shop. Don’t stand beside them while they’re playing with our merchandise and ignore them. That’s right Maam, your five year old should not be playing with our lawn mower. And yes if they open a package and ruin the merchandise we expect you to pay. When they throw things on the floor we expect you to get them to pick it up and put it back. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/22 "2009-07-02T15:30:20Z")
> [@Lacunae\_Matata](#): > > Yep, I get that one often enough to be annoyed by it. My other favorite hotel-specific one is the weekly telephone caller who wants to know whether we’re open all night. I always want to offer a smart aleck answer (“Nope, we clear out the rooms and close between the hours of 3 and 5 am so that I can have my lunch break.”) But I’ve avoided saying that out loud, so far… The front desk can be closed while the rest of the hotel remains open, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/23 "2009-07-02T18:53:17Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > The front desk can be closed while the rest of the hotel remains open, you know. Er, no. Somebody is gonna be working the front desk 24/7. If it’s a _motel_ where the manager lives right there, he may be asleep, but he’ll wake up and come out to check you in. The front desk is the CPU of a hotel. When a guest has a problem, he/she calls the front desk, any time day or night, and there has to be somebody there to take the call and handle the problem. Everything gets routed through the front desk. (Cite: I work for a large hotel.) ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/24 "2009-07-02T19:53:32Z")
If I were at home I could dig up a long list of dumb customer stories I noted from my days in retail. At one time I worked for one of the big-box office supply chains in the electronics department. In the time I worked there I came to the conclusion that all computer users should be tested, certified and licensed before being allowed to purchase or even use a computer. One example I can recall off the top of my head (though it doesn’t pertain to computers, per se): A man wanted to return a printing calculator because it was apparently stuck in the “on” position. When he showed me the unit I saw that _it still had the decal overlay_ affixed that showed a row of seven-segment 8s to suggest what the LCD display would look like when it was turned on! He actually thought this was the actual display itself! When I removed the decal I was going to throw it in the trash but then he asked to keep it, because he wanted to take it home and show it to his wife. So not only was he incredibly dense, but so was his wife. Nowadays I see that they actually have the words “REMOVE BEFORE USE” printed on these decals. If anything ever has a really stupid-sounding warning or instructions printed on it, chances are it’s because somebody had at some time sufficiently demonstrated a level of ineptitude that warranted the inclusion of such seemingly obvious information. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/25 "2009-07-02T20:21:18Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Er, no. Somebody is gonna be working the front desk 24/7. If it’s a _motel_ where the manager lives right there, he may be asleep, but he’ll wake up and come out to check you in. In chains this may be true, but I can assure you there are plenty of privately owned hotels where you’re SOL if you need to check in or out between 2 and 5 am. Cite: I (okay, parents) own three small hotels. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/26 "2009-07-02T20:48:20Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > In chains this may be true, but I can assure you there are plenty of privately owned hotels where you’re SOL if you need to check in or out between 2 and 5 am. > > Cite: I (okay, parents) own three small hotels. Okay! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/27 "2009-07-02T22:17:55Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > I love it when I answer the phone at the ER, and the first thing out of the caller’s mouth is, “Are you open?” > > Not exactly “retail” as per the OP, but seems relevant. I know of at least one hospital in NYC that closed the ER after 9 PM or so. I found out when I tried to take my sick friend there, and they sent us to a different hospital. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/28 "2009-07-03T02:03:26Z")
I fortunately haven’t worked retail in a while. Generally stupid or outrageously angry customers come and go. A variant of this scenario happened a few times: _Mr. Customer enters an art supply store. He walks up to the clerk, garygnu._ _Mr. Customer_: I’m looking for this new kind of oil paint that can be washed up with water. _garygnu_: Absolutely, sir, right this way. _Knowing exactly what he needs, garygnu leads Mr. Customer to the store’s display of water-soluble oil paints._ _garygnu_: Here we are. These are our water-soluble oils. _Mr. Customer_: No, that’s not what I’m looking for. _garygnu_: :dubious: For plenty of stories, check out [NotAlwaysRight](http://notalwaysright.com/). ---
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/29 "2009-07-03T02:05:26Z")
Last job: Miss Anna Cephlic: Do you carry Vanderbilt perfume? Me: Yes, ma’am Anna: What sizes? Me: 1.7oz. and 3.4 oz. Anna: Which is bigger? Me: :eek: ---
**Author:** ![3trew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/13edae/32.png) [@3trew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3trew)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/30 "2009-07-03T04:50:31Z")
You know who I feel for? It’s the people who’ve never worked customer facing jobs who must wander into threads like this, or sites like Not Always Right or Customers Suck, and think that at least half of the stories simply must be made up because nobody could possibly act like that. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/31 "2009-07-03T05:53:15Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > I love it when I answer the phone at the ER, and the first thing out of the caller’s mouth is, “Are you open?” > > . I have heard of ER’s closing for some reason or other- too full, some horrible disaster there, etc. ?😕 ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/32 "2009-07-03T05:57:02Z")
> [@Serenata67](#): > > She said, “I have to have an account with you? Can’t I give you money for my account at \*\*\*\* Bank?” > > I said, “No, ma’am. That’s a totally different bank. We’re not affiliated with them. I can tell you where the nearest one is or we can open an account for you here. Which would be best for you?” I will point out than at many Credit Unions, you can do exactly that. I can deposit and make other transactions for my Credit Union at any of quite a number of Shared Branches. And, at your ATM, can she not withdraw cash ect from her account at her bank?😕 ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/33 "2009-07-03T12:59:04Z")
We sell jewelry. Some is sterling silver, some is silver-plated, some is just silver colored costume jewelry. Some people (not all) have metal sensitivities. We don’t know who will react to what metal. And silver naturally tarnishes unless coated…and that coating can wear off. Some people wear their jewelry all the time, in the shower…and I’m not talking a wedding ring…ALL their jewelry. So we can’t really give a definitive answer when someone asks us if “this will turn”. However, when they point to the entire jewelry display and ask, “is this jewelry real?” I do tell them…“no, it’s imaginary.” No one has hit me yet. (But really, I don’t know what they are asking. Are they asking if it is sterling, or silver in any form? Because if I tell them which pieces are sterling, they do not seem to know what that means. Someone along the line in their life has told them to only wear or buy “real” jewelry, but they don’t know what they mean by that.) ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/34 "2009-07-03T14:27:38Z")
If I talk too fast when I answer the phone – I won’t say I don’t, but I do try not to – how does that explain the ones who start talking to me before I can finish? Obviously _they_ know who they are talking to. People are weird. “I need to talk to Mary.” I’m not the switchboard, but okay. “Sure – what department does she work in?” “Uh…I don’t know.” “What’s her last name?” (So I can look her up in the system.) “I don’t know that either.” “Well, without either a last name or a department, I have no way to find out where to transfer you…” “You don’t know Mary?” We have, in season, probably at least a couple of thousand employees running around. Some work miles away and I have never met them. And no, I don’t know Mary, and also no, I don’t know why they aren’t answering the phone at the office that is three miles away across town. Don’t ask me that. **3trew** , I know exactly what you mean. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/35 "2009-07-03T14:43:03Z")
> [@3trew](#): > > You know who I feel for? It’s the people who’ve never worked customer facing jobs who must wander into threads like this, or sites like Not Always Right or Customers Suck, and think that at least half of the stories simply must be made up because nobody could possibly act like that. Actually, my impression is the opposite - at least some of these “incredibly stupid customer questions” aren’t, in fact, stupid at all. For example - some ERs do indeed close (I’ve experienced this, being directed to a different hospital), so asking if they are open isn’t “stupid”, it’s sensible. For another - not all hotel front desks stay open all night: this depends on the size of the hotel. So asking that isn’t stupid, either. The person no doubt does not mean “do you kick your guests out”, but rather “is there anyone serving at the desk at 2 AM”. A lot of things may _sound stupid_, but only because you, the person serving the public, knows the ins and outs _ad nauseum_. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/36 "2009-07-03T14:55:52Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > In chains this may be true, but I can assure you there are plenty of privately owned hotels where you’re SOL if you need to check in or out between 2 and 5 am. > > Cite: I (okay, parents) own three small hotels. Patel? I just posted this last week, but it is so on topic. I had a customer ask “what is the difference between the vanilla sugar and the cinnamon sugar”? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/37 "2009-07-03T16:25:27Z")
> [@DanBlather](#): > > Patel? Chhabra. Farther north. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/38 "2009-07-03T16:33:30Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > I love it when I answer the phone at the ER, and the first thing out of the caller’s mouth is, “Are you open?” > > Not exactly “retail” as per the OP, but seems relevant. I’ve called other businesses to see if they are open. Of course, if someone answers the phone, my question is answered, and I usually cover it up with something like, “What are your hours today?” but really, I could just hang up rudely without saying anything. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/39 "2009-07-03T16:38:08Z")
> [@Tamex](#): > > I’ve called other businesses to see if they are open. Of course, if someone answers the phone, my question is answered, and I usually cover it up with something like, “What are your hours today?” but really, I could just hang up rudely without saying anything. Businesses can quite easily have employees present and answering phones without actually being open. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441/40 "2009-07-03T17:14:17Z")
First of all, i can understand not wanting a sales person to follow you around the store if you are just browsing - I get it…BUT: When I worked as a cashier at Footlocker I used to say Hi and get the quick and somewhat rude response back: “I’m just looking.” so I would answer “I’m just saying Hi.” or “I am sorry, today is buying day only, looking is reserved for Thursdays, Tuesdays and the first Wednesday of the month.” Luckily I would smile nicely and say it in a way that they wound’t get pissed off and leave, but at least would say Hi back. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/working-retail-stupid-customers/501441.md?page=3)