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About two weeks ago my store started selling bags rather than giving them away.
We used to have two sizes of bags, but since we started selling them we only have one: the large size. Bags are five cents and in front of every register we have pallets of boxes of bags so customers can help themselves then let us know how many they have. The pallets are accompanied by signs telling the customers that all the money we make from the sale of the bags goes to a tree planting organisation. The store makes nothing off the sale of the bags, and in fact still has to pay for them.
Some customers love this new procedure, others hate it.
Now keep in mind we've been advertising this for months in-store and we even advertised it in the media back in June or July.
Did anyone pay attention to these notices? Of course not.
A few weeks before we started selling them us cashiers would even tell customers so they would be aware of it come Oct. 22 (the day we started selling them).
Before we sold them people would FLIP if we ran out of bags or didn't have any large ones. They would seriously take 10-15 for their purchases. Now that we're selling them they all of a sudden don't need any or only need one.
Ah the lesson of need vs. want. I've been chucking for days about it.
Anyway, now that the massive backstory has been covered, here are some of the things customers have said in response to the knowledge that they will now have to shell out a WHOOOOLE nickel for a bag.
Me: Are you going to need any bags for your things?
SW: PFFT. Not if you plan to make me PAY for it!
Well pardon me, your highness.
SM: You're charging for bags now?
ME: Yes we are. It's more environmentally friendly since we're reducing the number of bags used, as well as donating the money to a tree planting organisation.
SM: Well you're definitely going downhill.
ME: I'm sorry?
SM: This store is going downhill.
ME: What do you mean by that?
SM: You're making us buy things that should be free.
ME: (rather indignant, but he was being a prick) I'd say things are going downhill when people start complaining that efforts to preserve our planet are an inconvenience to them.
I received a shocked stare that kind of made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
FYI I've also adapted a brand new take-no-shit attitude that has been going over famously. My coworkers love me and my customers (the assholes who need to be put in their place) fear me.
I win.
SM: You want my money for bags? Well I'll never be shopping HERE again.
Oh no, please don't! I so very much want to be plagued with serving the likes of you and your wretched family again. Please come back. Your horrible attitude and the deplorable manner in which you treated me is what I crave. It's what gets me up in the morning and puts a spring in my step as I start my shift.
Good riddance, you cheap bastard.
SM: I spent almost $6,000 and I can't have one free bag?
ME: That's right.
SM: What kind of customer service is that?
ME: The kind that doesn't take preference for certain customers based on how much money they spend.
SM: Excuse me?
ME: It's fair customer service. Everyone is equal no mater how much they spend.
SM: So can I have a bag?
ME: Sure. Five cents.
What part of, "everyone is equal no matter how much money they spend," was confusing to you? Did I not speak slow enough? Did I use too many big words like "is" and "how" and "no"?
Get out of my life.
And the cherry on his asshat sundae cam last night.
A man thought he was being funny at 7:30 (store closed at 7:00) and decided to toy with me, saying he only wanted to borrow a bag and he would bring it back when he was done. He and his female counterpart thought this was hilarious. I did not. I wanted them the hell out of the store so I could go home and resume my epic school related stress.
ME: Sure you can borrow one. Five cents to borrow it. When you bring it back you get the five cents back.
SM: Well that doesn't sound very fair. *chuckle chuckle*
ME: Neither does giving away free products just because someone asks enough times.
The SM then proceeded to "best" me by making use of the one remaining free item we have for customer convenience: our paper, meant for wrapping fragile items.
SM: No bags for me, eh?
ME: They're five cents.
SM then flashes me a shit-eating grin and wraps his soft coushy chair pad in about 12 sheets of paper and walks away satisfied.
I couldn't help myself and since the store was mostly empty and I pegged him for being the type who wouldn't complain, I made sure I said in a very loud voice, "And THAT is why you have to pay for bags now."
Idiots. Everywhere.
We used to have two sizes of bags, but since we started selling them we only have one: the large size. Bags are five cents and in front of every register we have pallets of boxes of bags so customers can help themselves then let us know how many they have. The pallets are accompanied by signs telling the customers that all the money we make from the sale of the bags goes to a tree planting organisation. The store makes nothing off the sale of the bags, and in fact still has to pay for them.
Some customers love this new procedure, others hate it.
Now keep in mind we've been advertising this for months in-store and we even advertised it in the media back in June or July.
Did anyone pay attention to these notices? Of course not.
A few weeks before we started selling them us cashiers would even tell customers so they would be aware of it come Oct. 22 (the day we started selling them).
Before we sold them people would FLIP if we ran out of bags or didn't have any large ones. They would seriously take 10-15 for their purchases. Now that we're selling them they all of a sudden don't need any or only need one.
Ah the lesson of need vs. want. I've been chucking for days about it.
Anyway, now that the massive backstory has been covered, here are some of the things customers have said in response to the knowledge that they will now have to shell out a WHOOOOLE nickel for a bag.
Me: Are you going to need any bags for your things?
SW: PFFT. Not if you plan to make me PAY for it!
Well pardon me, your highness.
SM: You're charging for bags now?
ME: Yes we are. It's more environmentally friendly since we're reducing the number of bags used, as well as donating the money to a tree planting organisation.
SM: Well you're definitely going downhill.
ME: I'm sorry?
SM: This store is going downhill.
ME: What do you mean by that?
SM: You're making us buy things that should be free.
ME: (rather indignant, but he was being a prick) I'd say things are going downhill when people start complaining that efforts to preserve our planet are an inconvenience to them.
I received a shocked stare that kind of made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
FYI I've also adapted a brand new take-no-shit attitude that has been going over famously. My coworkers love me and my customers (the assholes who need to be put in their place) fear me.
I win.
SM: You want my money for bags? Well I'll never be shopping HERE again.
Oh no, please don't! I so very much want to be plagued with serving the likes of you and your wretched family again. Please come back. Your horrible attitude and the deplorable manner in which you treated me is what I crave. It's what gets me up in the morning and puts a spring in my step as I start my shift.
Good riddance, you cheap bastard.
SM: I spent almost $6,000 and I can't have one free bag?
ME: That's right.
SM: What kind of customer service is that?
ME: The kind that doesn't take preference for certain customers based on how much money they spend.
SM: Excuse me?
ME: It's fair customer service. Everyone is equal no mater how much they spend.
SM: So can I have a bag?
ME: Sure. Five cents.
What part of, "everyone is equal no matter how much money they spend," was confusing to you? Did I not speak slow enough? Did I use too many big words like "is" and "how" and "no"?
Get out of my life.
And the cherry on his asshat sundae cam last night.
A man thought he was being funny at 7:30 (store closed at 7:00) and decided to toy with me, saying he only wanted to borrow a bag and he would bring it back when he was done. He and his female counterpart thought this was hilarious. I did not. I wanted them the hell out of the store so I could go home and resume my epic school related stress.
ME: Sure you can borrow one. Five cents to borrow it. When you bring it back you get the five cents back.
SM: Well that doesn't sound very fair. *chuckle chuckle*
ME: Neither does giving away free products just because someone asks enough times.
The SM then proceeded to "best" me by making use of the one remaining free item we have for customer convenience: our paper, meant for wrapping fragile items.
SM: No bags for me, eh?
ME: They're five cents.
SM then flashes me a shit-eating grin and wraps his soft coushy chair pad in about 12 sheets of paper and walks away satisfied.
I couldn't help myself and since the store was mostly empty and I pegged him for being the type who wouldn't complain, I made sure I said in a very loud voice, "And THAT is why you have to pay for bags now."
Idiots. Everywhere.
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