I work in a Book STORE, not a LIBRARY or a PICNIC GROUND!

[WHShit]

I am so tired of people treating my Dept. as a library/picnic ground!

Library:

They come in and park their asses on the floor or fashion makeshift chairs from books that we sell (yes this has been the case 3 times). Then they choose the book (s) that they need information out of and get their little notebooks out and start to research/write. If I see them doing this, they get told (none too kindly) to please get up, as this is not a library of free information outlet. I am alone in the Books/ Ents Department alot, so I am usually stuck on the tills or helping customers. Because of this, people get away with alot of crap, which makes me mad, but there is nothing I can do about it.

One day, I was busy as hell. For about 45 minutes all I did was non-stop tills and helping customers. When everyone left, I decided to clean up a bit. I walk down the travel aisle and there is this guy sitting on the floor (more like lying on the floor) with his notebook out copying out of a USA travel guide!!! He sees me and immediately packs up his stuff and leaves. Not before I saw that he had written about 20 pages of information!!!!! He must have been there the whole time and I couln't do anyting because I was by myself! And he knew he was doing wrong!

Picnic Ground:

Mostly young girls do this. They come in groups of about 3-5. They bring their McDonalds or other food. They find a good book. They plop down on the floor, lay out their food, eat, chat and read like they are at home on the livng room floor. NO!!!!!! I will not allow it!

This has happened numerous times and it is not even like they are contained to a corner...they actually spread it all (and themseves) out on the floor. Other customers can't get by and it is annoying for employees when we have to get to a book and there are 5 15 year olds sprawled out on the floor with food and drink.

One time when I worked at my old WHShit, 4 girls were laying on the floor in the Ents dept. like it was a slumber party, eating McDonalds and reading magazines.They were in a tight corner (this time) and people could not walk through. I passed them and told them that they needed to get up as other paying customers could not get through.They said "ok" and I went downstairs to get a dvd. I came up 2 mins later and they are still there. I was not so nice this time. I told them that this was not a picnic ground nor their house. This is a placeof business andthey needed to get up or I woud get someone to escort them out. They got up and headed towards the Books Dept. I wait 5 mins and walk over there...they are there now, same situation! They saw me and immediately got up to leave. I walked them out the door myself.

Yesterday, I was coming back from lunch and came through the stockroom doors (stockroom is connected to the Books Dept.). Now, we can see through these doors but we can't see what is beneath them. The glass of the doors is eye-level. So, I open the doors and almost step on the head of a little boy. Him and his mother are lying on their backs reading in front of the door. It is not an invisable door nor is it hard to recognize. I am sorry, but it is one thing for kids to do this, but this parent was old enough to know that you should not lay down in front of doors in a shop. What if I opened it hard or had to kick it because I was holding stock? I would have hit the boy in the head and then it would have been "my fault" of course! UGH!

Anyone else have this problem?

[Imogene]

Constantly, back in the Chesterfield store (and at the West County store, I'd assume, but I never saw it happen in the two months I was there) adults would bring their kids in, plop them on the ground in the center aisle, and leave them staring up at the tv mounted high on the wall with some movie or other running. If they weren't in the way, fine, but if I had to pass by them more than once, they got moved out of the store.

And then, there was the manga. No matter where it was in the store, we'd have people come in, grab a book, and just start reading through it. Sometimes, they'd be there the entire day. And old SM told us we couldn't tell them to stop. However, new SM did, and boy, did I ever use that power.
M: "We are not a library. You've been back here for three hours, I've gone by ten times, and you haven't once had your nose out of a manga. Buy it or get out."

[CanadaGirl]

Are people too damn stupid to realize a liiiiibraaaary is like a boooook stoooore, but where you can sit on your ass and read? What the heck, people.

[chainedbarista]

yes, canada, they are; not only can they read it, they can do it for free, which should be attractive to them, if not for the appeal to their cheapness alone, however...

yes, we get the 'freebie whores' who get their samples, then camp out for hours; dammit, move your sorry asses out, so that PAYING customers can use the tables, not bring in your shit from other stores and use us like a food court. that i want to see stopped; if you don't buy something, you shouldn't have rights to be there, period, regardless of 'how hot/cold it is outside;' you chose to get your food at x place, what makes you think that bringing your crap into store y to eat is acceptable? if the heat/cold is such a problem-GO HOME. (and stay there, loser)

[KuzcoLlama]

:: blushes:: I am partially guilty of reading, but I do stay out of the way, and only read the first chapter to see if I like the book enough to buy it.

Back on topic, I actually have successfully tripped over people who do it at my favourite B&N. Usually a few choice words let them know how much I don't appreciate them. Never fear, I usually hiss at them so nearby kiddies can't hear.

My favourite was one of the times I tiptoed through sprawled out reading kids and complaining loudly to my roommate behind, "OH GOSH DON'T YOU HATE IT WHEN KIDS DON'T PAY ATTENTION AND WE HAVE TO WALK AROUND THEM?" They ended up only squeezing their legs so we had more room to move. :P

Perhaps next time I'll just walk through doing a kickline.

[Rapscallion]

Eating burgers and reading books/magazines? Um, can we say 'unsaleable due to grease stains'?

Rapscallion

[WHShit]

:: blushes:: I am partially guilty of reading, but I do stay out of the way, and only read the first chapter to see if I like the book enough to buy it.

I don't mind people reading a little of a book to see if they will like it, but it when they go through a book, magazine or paper to get information and actually write it down while they lay on the floor that makes me angry. So, no need to blush! LOL

[Brighid45]

Back in my bookstore days we had orders from S (our excellent replacement for the satanic manager) to make sure no one hung out for hours or brought in food and drink. It was a constant struggle to do this though. We often had parents who treated us like a free babysitting service--they would haul their kids in, dump them in front of the desk or by a spinner full of talking books (where they would rip open the packaging on new books and hand them to their spawn, even though we had a table full of demonstration books right there for kids to play with), then leave them sometimes for hours. I mean HOURS. Or we would get people in who thought we were a food court and would perch on top of remainder tables with their swag from McD's or the supermarket food court a few doors down. Rapscallion, 'grease stains' doesn't even begin to cover it. I would often find spilled drinks or half-eaten bags of fries left atop books, which were ruined beyond any hope of repair. Ditto magazines.

Of course if you protested this behavior in any form, you were a heartless corporate lackey who hated customers and never did a moment's real work in your entire life.

[Dreamstalker]

I remember a woman at the bookstore who would bring her lunch in from McD's or wherever, sometimes also an ice cream cone (naturally when it was hot out so as to ensure maximum drippage) and stand over the remainder-book tables eating her lunch on the books and sometimes reading one as well. Now, if she had been sitting in a chair it probably wouldn't have been as much of an issue (that I have seen people do, but they are always careful). I don't recall exactly how many books had to be damaged out due to her lunchtimes (nor was it clear how long she had been doing that before we caught on), but she was banned shortly after being discovered.

I admit to just sitting myself down and reading a book through (usually cartoon collections that are quick reads anyway), but I try as hard as I can to stay out of the way and if asked politely by another browser to move I will do so. If I have food with me, I clean my hands as much as possible before handling a book.

[BlakeMP]

The only time I've ever sat down in a bookstore and started to read was when I was waiting for someone (either to arrive or finish shopping) and it was a book I had already paid for/had every intention of purchasing. And even then, it was in the provided chairs or the coffee shop area.

Sitting in the middle of the store with FOOD? That's just inexcusable...

[repsac]

Recently, while doing some research on a series of ghost stories (I write for nanowrimo www.nanowrimo.com) I wandered into a B&N to look for one or two books I would need. Well, I got talking to the manager while there and was told by him that not to worry. Since I needed only a bit out of each book, and there was the likelyhood I'd not need the book after it, for me to just gather up the books I needed and go sit in starbucks to do my research. Just don't get anything on the books and he was cool with it.

I've gone back since then to do research. A few times, I've bought the books, but most of the time I do what I need, then head out. From the number of college students I see in there all the time doing the same, I wonder what the MGR has to gain by doing this? NOT that I'm complaining mind you

[tenaciousb]

No excuses to be made here, I never go to books stores, only once a year at christmas time to shop for other people.

[CrazedClerk]

I read this thread this morning and thought "gee that's never really happened to me" but today...

I work at a video games store and we have systems on display for the customers to try out.

This woman comes in with her two young kids and the THREE of them (yes the mom too) plop themselves down on the floor in front of one of my demo units and proceed to play the game together. It should be noted these units are close to the counter and there are no chairs.

I thought people had more common sense...until I found this site of course

[Lehk]

if someone ditches their kids in your store, call child and family services (your local equivilant) and the local police

the police will take the kids untill the parents arive, then take the parents as well.

most places child abandonment is a fairly serious crime

[Greenday]

Most of the bookstores by me actually have areas where you can take books and just sit and read. I'm cool with this. Probably doesn't help their sales too much but that's their problem. But for people to bring food in and eat it over books they DON'T own is pretty bad. Come on folks, seriously.