I work in a bookstore and from what I've heard from the corporate representatives people only briefly browse, purchase their books, then sit down and read a bit. Granted, being a corporate tool requires never being in a store and ignoring any and every fact that one might encounter, so they MIGHT be a little out of touch. In reality, I've observed that more than half of the people who come in will pile up books and magazines but have no intention of ever buying anything.
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I work in a Book STORE, not a LIBRARY or a PICNIC GROUND!
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I talked to the MGR yesterday about this, and found he did a bit of research on this. Here's what he found:
Of the customers who would come in and take part in something like this, X (not real initial) found that while they may not buy right away, very often they would. He said, the figure is like four out of every five people who come there to just read. Further, he said that the simple word of mouth advertising he gets from it makes up for the difference.
Prior to allowing patrons to read (and not forcing them to buy) he said that his weekly take was around five thousand. (rather good for a book store.) With an average of about 100 customers per day.
After the rule change, he said that his weekly take has gone up to an average of seven to eight thousand. The average customers per day has doubled to 200.
There was a lot more he told me, but the point is he seems to be makinga good bit of money off of it.Learn wisdom by the follies of others.
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I work in a bookstore, and when Harry Potter 6 came out, there seemed to be a few people who didn't wanna pay $21 for their own personal copy, but would come in, grab one from the stack, and sit in a chair and read it. At that time there were two chairs real close to the door to the back room, and me and a co-worker were so tempted to walk past them to get to the back room, and just "happen" to be merrily chatting away about how the book ended. Mwa ha ha! Didn't do it, but should have!
::sigh:: It seems like the only people who come in on Sundays are the ones who plan on grabbing a huge stack of magazines/books/sex books/kids' books/all of the above, read for a couple hours, then leave without buying anything. Honestly, I understand browsing and the whole "looking before you buy", and not always finding something you want to buy. But do you HAVE to grab 25 items and leave them in a huge mess next to your empty coffee cup, three feet from a garbage can?Any fool can criticize, comdemn, and complain—and most do. ~ Dale Carnegie
Sarah: That's not fair!
Jareth: You say that so often. I wonder what your basis for comparison is...
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In this part of the world, books in bookstores are sealed in cellophane packages. If you open the package without confirming to a store employee first, you must pay for the book.
If you need to open the package to flip through the book to see if you would like it, you must first notify an employee, who would then proceed to follow you to the book display area, unwrap the packaging for you, and then stands there and wait while you flip through the book and decide whether or not you want to buy it.
The larger book stores have big, mean-looking security guards conveniently placed in sections of the stores, but they would circulate through the store, discouraging people who would treat the book store as a library or a picnic ground.
The smaller book stores make you pay for every 15 minutes you spend reading the same book. It's okay if you flip through it for less than 15 minutes, but more than that and it'll cost you, bub!
I've never even seen anyone bringing their food into any of the book stores here. Probably because the entrance to book stores are guarded by the aforementioned large security guards and you have to leave your bags AND coats/jackets at the entrance. Pretty good policy, if I do say so myself.-It's only after you've lost everything that you're free to do anything.
-I see the strongest and smartest men who have ever lived. And these men are pumping gas and waiting tables.-Fight Club
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Quoth DigitalEngine View PostIn this part of the world, books in bookstores are sealed in cellophane packages. If you open the package without confirming to a store employee first, you must pay for the book.
If you need to open the package to flip through the book to see if you would like it, you must first notify an employee, who would then proceed to follow you to the book display area, unwrap the packaging for you, and then stands there and wait while you flip through the book and decide whether or not you want to buy it.Labor boards have info on local laws for free
HR believes the first person in the door
Learn how to go over whackamole bosses' heads safely
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Quoth Brighid45 View PostOf 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.
Quoth Hraesvelg7 View PostIn reality, I've observed that more than half of the people who come in will pile up books and magazines but have no intention of ever buying anything.
Now, my friends know not to enter a bookstore with me. Because whether or not I purchase something, I will be there for a loooooong time. Usually I will make a purchase. I often stack stuff up (and move the stack with me) of stuff I am interested in. A lot of times I am trying to decide which books that have caught my interest I will be buying that day. And those that I don't purchase I put back where I got them. Novel concept, I'm sure. I think it is neat that many bookstores provide reading areas, but I just can't imagine spending all that time reading something you have not bought. Perusing, yes, but reading?
Now, when I eat out alone, I almost always have reading material with me, be it the sports page or my latest book. That being said, the very thought of someone bringing food into a bookstore to eat while they are looking at books they are not buying is just sacriligeous to me. This may be why it is a good thing that I don't work in a bookstore....I might end up killing some of these dolts.
"The Customer Is Always Right...But The Bartender Decides Who Is Still A Customer."
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i recently moved into the Major Home Fashion's department and GOD DO I HATE TEENAGERS NOW *ahem* ok most are fine but its the 8-12 yr old guys and the 10-15 yr old girls who think the beds we have are there for their using pleasure. i dont mind if they sit on one or two going 'ooo this is comfy' pretty much product testing, maybe get daddy to buy it for her/him and i get commision. but jesus......once i had a 10 yr old kid try and hump a bed as we told him to get off. yeah kid your cool....another batch of kids came in and started flopping down on the beds. i told em they can test them if they wanted but dont jump on them. they then start jumping on any so i kick them out. one actually called me an asshole as i was cleaning the bed because of her shoe stain! grrrrrrr.......Fan? This is shit. Shit? Meet fan.
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Quoth Gopher View PostI had an acquaintance who worked in a book shop (and possibly may well still do so) who was once asked by a "customer", yes I use the term loosely, whether the shop had a photocopier she could use!Any fool can criticize, comdemn, and complain—and most do. ~ Dale Carnegie
Sarah: That's not fair!
Jareth: You say that so often. I wonder what your basis for comparison is...
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Quoth Gopher View PostI had an acquaintance who worked in a book shop (and possibly may well still do so) who was once asked by a "customer", yes I use the term loosely, whether the shop had a photocopier she could use!
My old store was a block away from a college and had a nursing school in the same mall. The same people came in day after day, taking what they wanted from the books, and often taking the books themselves. They would harass customers to leave the cafe so they could use the tables. They brought their laptops and sometimes printers as well. Some of the lazier ones came prepared with cameras to take pictures of the pages they wanted, and a few even had portable scanners.
This was on top of the usual bookstore lurkers, the manga kids, psuedo-homeless, abandoned children/elderly, and porn hounds. The store closed after a few years of being in the red due to catering to these people. I often wonder what possesses people to behave like that in a bookstore. Would they bring a stove to the supermarket and start making dinner there, complaining if anyone tried to stop them?
On a side note, I do know that some of the regulars from that store would frequently call a nearby Circuit City to ask what movie was being played on the display tv's, so they could come watch on the nice comfy couches. So I guess they will go to some lengths to get what they can.
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