A Little Background . . .
I work in a Pawn Shop . . . nuff said.
- - -
I am certain you have probably come across a "Whatever" customer. When you ask what they want and they reply with "whatever" and then they're not happy with the "whatever" you produce . . .
Here's my tale of two separate "Whatever" customers I had this week.
We figured we'd come here first -
A young couple came in the pawn room and wanted to sell (or pawn - another of those "whatever" instances) a diamond Wedding ring (we buy as well as pawn things). Well, my co-worker who was working in the pawn room asked me if I could come down and take care of them as he doesn't really deal with jewelry. Our manager, as well as the owner, was dealing with another fellow employee in the back (she stole some things and was getting the axe - which is another story). So, me and my co-worker were basically left to run the store for a few.
Anyways, I don't normally deal with jewelry anyway, let alone something that has never been pawned at our shop before. But I figured I'd give it a go anyway. I ask them with the same ol' question we always ask - "What are you trying to come up with?"
Can you guess the answer? Good, you get a cookie.
"Whatever," they reply. Fine, this should be an easy one. "10 bucks" I promptly reply. They kinda laugh at me, hey, I was being serious. Fine. I, being a complete novice at dealing with new jewelry, take a look at the ring.
It was 14K Gold, marquis center diamond surrounded by quite a few little diamonds. The center diamond wasn't all that big and the little diamonds weren't big enough to do anything about. I acid tested the gold and tested the diamonds with the tester. I figure, with our costs, there's about 17 dollars worth of gold on that ring. I go over the diamonds really quick and come up with "50 bucks."
Apparently that wasn't good enough. So they started going on about how they can take it back to the place and get $998 (yes, almost one thousand dollars) trade-in value for it. That's fine by me, but I told them they certainly were going to get anything close to a grand for it (it seems to me they were gilding the lilly a little, that ring certainly didn't look like a $1000 ring). We could resale at $150 . . . at best.
So, after hemming and hawing and trying to come up with a number (it took me a good 10 minutes or so - when I have other important things to do). If they would have simply told me what they were looking for, I could either aim for that price or tell them "no way." Fine, take it back to the place and get your trade in value - stop wasting my time.
- - -
The CD lady
Lady comes into the store, just about right at closing time. She's come to pick up a firearm off of layaway. Since she's picking it up, we required to do a NICS background check, those can take up some time, especially with all the paperwork that goes along with it. My co-worker (a different one this time) is taking care of her, I'm standing right next to her, counting out the front till. CD Lady is nearby as well. The doors are locked and there are no other customers in the store.
I haven't physically pulled the till out of the register yet, I'm just working on the paperwork when CD lady asks if we have any of the "NOW" CDs (co-worker, I believe, is doing the NICS background check on the phone). I'm in a generous mood, since the store was closed and she was almost done. "Yeah, I we did have one, I saw it a few weeks ago though and it might have been sold."
"Well, I'm just looking for one of those CDs with all the songs on it, something they can dance to."
Thinkin' we still had the "NOW" CD, I hurry over to the CD section and scan for it (we have a couple hundred CDs, but I had a general idea of where it was). She kinda half follows me to the CD section, not bothering to help me look.
"No . . . looks like we sold it."
"Well, 'whatever' you can find then. It doesn't matter - as long as you can dance to it."
Me, still scanning the discs, "well do you have a preference? Rock, rap, country, 70's?"
"Just whatever, they won't notice the difference." I was under the impression she was having a party or somethin.
I grab three CDs (3 for $9.99 deal). I plucked out two compilation albums and a disco album. The compilation albums, I was think she'd turn her nose up at because I saw artists like Britney Spears and Ricky Martin on the covers.
Nope. It was the disco one she didn't like. Throughout the whole gun transaction, she kept bitching about the disco disc, saying "how nobody could dance to it" (yes, she said that). I even offered to find her another disc (we don't have much in the way of compilation albums), but was willing to find another one.
No. She would rather stand there and bitch about it. She keeps saying how she's spent so much money here and stuff (she bought an expensive ring, but that doesn't give her the right to be a whiny brat) and how she wants a discount (come on, it's 3 discs for $10, how much more of a discount do you want? We don't really offer discounts on CDs - because if you don't buy it, someone else will). Honestly, if you would have told me that you wanted just rock, then I would have found just rock music.
I'm still trying to count out the till and eventually pull the till out of the register (basically, I'm not going anywhere now). She *does* buy the discs, my co-worker rings her up . . . full price too. She pays for the firearm and she's on her merry-bitchy way.
I work in a Pawn Shop . . . nuff said.
- - -
I am certain you have probably come across a "Whatever" customer. When you ask what they want and they reply with "whatever" and then they're not happy with the "whatever" you produce . . .
Here's my tale of two separate "Whatever" customers I had this week.
We figured we'd come here first -
A young couple came in the pawn room and wanted to sell (or pawn - another of those "whatever" instances) a diamond Wedding ring (we buy as well as pawn things). Well, my co-worker who was working in the pawn room asked me if I could come down and take care of them as he doesn't really deal with jewelry. Our manager, as well as the owner, was dealing with another fellow employee in the back (she stole some things and was getting the axe - which is another story). So, me and my co-worker were basically left to run the store for a few.
Anyways, I don't normally deal with jewelry anyway, let alone something that has never been pawned at our shop before. But I figured I'd give it a go anyway. I ask them with the same ol' question we always ask - "What are you trying to come up with?"
Can you guess the answer? Good, you get a cookie.
"Whatever," they reply. Fine, this should be an easy one. "10 bucks" I promptly reply. They kinda laugh at me, hey, I was being serious. Fine. I, being a complete novice at dealing with new jewelry, take a look at the ring.
It was 14K Gold, marquis center diamond surrounded by quite a few little diamonds. The center diamond wasn't all that big and the little diamonds weren't big enough to do anything about. I acid tested the gold and tested the diamonds with the tester. I figure, with our costs, there's about 17 dollars worth of gold on that ring. I go over the diamonds really quick and come up with "50 bucks."
Apparently that wasn't good enough. So they started going on about how they can take it back to the place and get $998 (yes, almost one thousand dollars) trade-in value for it. That's fine by me, but I told them they certainly were going to get anything close to a grand for it (it seems to me they were gilding the lilly a little, that ring certainly didn't look like a $1000 ring). We could resale at $150 . . . at best.
So, after hemming and hawing and trying to come up with a number (it took me a good 10 minutes or so - when I have other important things to do). If they would have simply told me what they were looking for, I could either aim for that price or tell them "no way." Fine, take it back to the place and get your trade in value - stop wasting my time.
- - -
The CD lady
Lady comes into the store, just about right at closing time. She's come to pick up a firearm off of layaway. Since she's picking it up, we required to do a NICS background check, those can take up some time, especially with all the paperwork that goes along with it. My co-worker (a different one this time) is taking care of her, I'm standing right next to her, counting out the front till. CD Lady is nearby as well. The doors are locked and there are no other customers in the store.
I haven't physically pulled the till out of the register yet, I'm just working on the paperwork when CD lady asks if we have any of the "NOW" CDs (co-worker, I believe, is doing the NICS background check on the phone). I'm in a generous mood, since the store was closed and she was almost done. "Yeah, I we did have one, I saw it a few weeks ago though and it might have been sold."
"Well, I'm just looking for one of those CDs with all the songs on it, something they can dance to."
Thinkin' we still had the "NOW" CD, I hurry over to the CD section and scan for it (we have a couple hundred CDs, but I had a general idea of where it was). She kinda half follows me to the CD section, not bothering to help me look.
"No . . . looks like we sold it."
"Well, 'whatever' you can find then. It doesn't matter - as long as you can dance to it."
Me, still scanning the discs, "well do you have a preference? Rock, rap, country, 70's?"
"Just whatever, they won't notice the difference." I was under the impression she was having a party or somethin.
I grab three CDs (3 for $9.99 deal). I plucked out two compilation albums and a disco album. The compilation albums, I was think she'd turn her nose up at because I saw artists like Britney Spears and Ricky Martin on the covers.
Nope. It was the disco one she didn't like. Throughout the whole gun transaction, she kept bitching about the disco disc, saying "how nobody could dance to it" (yes, she said that). I even offered to find her another disc (we don't have much in the way of compilation albums), but was willing to find another one.
No. She would rather stand there and bitch about it. She keeps saying how she's spent so much money here and stuff (she bought an expensive ring, but that doesn't give her the right to be a whiny brat) and how she wants a discount (come on, it's 3 discs for $10, how much more of a discount do you want? We don't really offer discounts on CDs - because if you don't buy it, someone else will). Honestly, if you would have told me that you wanted just rock, then I would have found just rock music.
I'm still trying to count out the till and eventually pull the till out of the register (basically, I'm not going anywhere now). She *does* buy the discs, my co-worker rings her up . . . full price too. She pays for the firearm and she's on her merry-bitchy way.
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