Treat Others As You Would Like To Be Treated

So here I am writing my first post on How We Get Along With Each Other in A Shopping Environment. I have been writing and rewriting this post and that is why it has taken me an extra two days to actually publish it. Plus I am having problems with my adsense ads on this blog. I cannot get them to show up correctly.

First I would like to say that most of the customers are pretty decent and some are really great. I have people who are regulars and come in at least once a week if not more. Of course there are those who seem to be there almost every day. I believe that some of the customers
come just because they have made friends with the associates (that is what the employees are called now in most stores, I believe, unless they are management). Many of the customers remember us from the old store which makes us feel good because it means we hopefully made a good impression on them in the first place. It also means that many customers now come to this store because of the associates.

Sometimes I wonder if many of these people are lonely and it is a way to get out of the house and be around familiar faces. We really do get to know some of our customers quite well. Also, we find out a lot about them because they will come with others in the family or friends and we see how they are around those they are closest with.

I hate to say it but sometimes how the day starts sets the pattern for the day. If I get a customer who is really happy and really nice my day can go really well. But start a day off with one of those women who treats everyone as if they are their personal maids or those who just are plain rude and nasty to just about everyone that they come in contact with, my day goes downhill really quick. But usually it only takes a few really nice customers to get me back in a good mood.

I have customers who come in to the Fitting Room and if I ask them to hang their clothes on the rack so I can count them I will get a response like 'I can count'. Then I have to tell them I still need to count them also. Then there are those who say 'I have eight items' (eight being the max that they can take it at one time) and I tell them I still have to count the items and when I do there are ten or twelve items instead of eight. And they will act dumbfounded, as if they counted eight when they knew they had more. I really get peeved when the customers treat us as if we are stupid, yet they can not even count the items they have correctly. It just really amazes me how silly people can be at times.

I always try to treat people like I want to be treated. I always try to be considerate and polite to everyone even when I am not treated that way. Sometimes being kind and polite will help turn the person who is in a foul mood or being rude around and they will start treating others better after that.

So, please, again, just treat people as well as you want to be treated and it will work in your favor most of the time. People do appreciate a kind word and a nice smile more often than not.

In The Fitting Room - The Beginning

My daughter has urged me to write about my most recent or present job. Right now I am working in a retail store. It is going to be almost a year in June that I have been at this job. It may not seem that long but I feel good about it after having been out of work for a few years (but that is a whole other story) and also since this is not the type of work I am used to doing. All I can say is that it is quite a change from working in an office.

I have constant contact with the public at the store and situations which arise are unlimited. As I said before I have never had a job quite like this. Of course much of my time is spent checking the clothes people are thinking of buying as they come in and out of the fitting room. I must say it is very enlightening as to the character of people. It has definitely been a new way of getting to know people on a very personal basis. People quite frequently open up and tell me a lot about themselves and their lives. After all, being around people as they change and try on clothing can be quite an intimate situation if you think about it. Even seeing the type of clothing and also lingerie that are chosen can tell me quite a bit about the individual.

My eyes have definitely been opened to the fact that some people are addicted to shopping, but now I find how addictive just trying on clothes can be to many a customer. Some will bring a whole cart full, and since we only allow 8 items at a time, they will make 2, 3, up to 4 and even 5 trips into the fitting room. Sometimes instead of just bringing a cart with the clothes, they will just come back and forth from the floor and bring 8 items each time. But what really amazed me was how many of them will not even buy one item they have tried on. And these are people who are regular customers. They will come in a few times a week and do the same thing every time they come in the store - try on mounds of clothes and never buy one piece.

Right now, with the economy the way it is, we are being more careful than ever to keep an eye on and check what is going in and coming out of the fitting room because theft is way up. So with that being part of my job also, there are many reactions when I tell them I need to check the clothes. I get reactions anywhere from “hey, no problem, that’s your job” to customers who give you this look like you have already accused them of stealing. Some people are so very nice about it and others can be really nasty.

I am always appreciative when the first customers of the day just let me do my job and show their appreciation for the job that I am doing. I always try to be courteous and friendly. And I must say that much of the time the customers are really great.

So this is what this blog is about. I really want to share with you that part of my life and the time that I spend with my customers as I relay some of the stories of what happens in the fitting room; along with other tales of working in retail. I hope for this to be entertaining along with giving some insight to the character of people when they are shopping. Some are quite humorous and can be comical. Others will be of those customers that are just plain rude and even nasty. It is really amazing how much of a person can be seen and learned in such a very short time, in the minutes (or sometimes hours) spent shopping along with trying on clothes.

So stick with me from day to day and I hope you will enjoy what I have to offer.