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Okay, this is my first post here and i had something happen to me at work about a week ago that I just feel the need to share. I work in a somewhat well known gift shop (not hallmark) and we pride ourselves on carrying a wide array of products so that we have a little of everything for almost anyone, no matter what they like.
Since a few months before this past Christmas, there are these Pillow Pet things that have been insanely hot items. We have trouble keeping them in stock now during our less busy time of the year. But, we got a nice big shipment of them in about a week ago. All sorts of different stuffed animals that fold into pillows. They're neat, but I don't understand the craze.
Anyway, a lady called in the morning on a Saturday asking if we carried the "real Pillow Pets since there are so many rip-off brands now". I assure her that we do have the real thing in stock and give her the price. She thanks me, says someone will be in to get a couple, and hangs up.
Jump to about six hours later. A very large man comes in and heads straight for the Pillow Pets. I greeted him, asked if I could help him, and he asked me the same questions as the woman on the phone. I showed him the tag on the things that proved they were the original brand and he was happy. He turned to talk to someone who was waiting by the door. I couldn't see her, but he told her exactly what I had just said. Now, he was calm, polite... she was the exact opposite. I hear her yell back at him to ask me the price. He informed her that he already had, they're $25 each. She yells across the ten feet again to ask if we have a certain dog. No, we don't have that dog, but we have a different dog in stock and that one is just as cute. She comes around and I get a look at this woman, who is in one of those Rascal scooter things. I knew then that this was only going to get worse. She looks over the dog pillow, frowns at it, and starts looking at the other animals, demanding to know if I have any in back. I inform her that we don't. Due to their popularity, we keep the floor completely stocked when we have them in. What you see is what we have left.
She hems and haws over it for a few minutes before taking out her cell phone and making a call to the woman who had called the store earlier so she can let her know we don't have the dog she wanted for her child, but we have this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this... you get the idea. She gets off the phone, glares at the man who originally came in because he's taking down a few different ones and raises her voice again, "This stupid dog is fine, but we need to send pictures of the tags. She's not sure they're really the real ones. The girl on the phone this morning probably lied or something."
Okay, I might make a mistake on occasion and say we have something when we don't if I haven't worked in a few days or say we don't have something when we do, but I DO NOT lie. I was livid, but I stood there silently as the man took a photo of the tag with his phone and sent it to the one they'd called. They finally get permission to buy the things and bring them around to the counter. Note, almost 40 minutes has passed since they entered the store. When they get to the counter, the man says something along the lines of, "Why don't you get that one and she can pay you back for it and I'll get this one and it can just be a gift from me. Then she doesn't have to worry about being out fifty bucks." Nice guy, thinking of the lady with two kids and trying to save her some money. Or so I thought. The woman on the scooter screws up her face into the most grotesque scowl I have ever seen in my nearly ten years in retail and starts to scream, "She wants both of them to be gifts from her to the kids! Why would you want to interfere in that! All you think of is yourself!" This goes on in the same line for another minute or so, then the guy calmly puts the pillow on the counter with the other one and simply walks away from her. I look at her and ask if they are together or separate as I've already rung one up and she snaps, "Just wait a damn minute," whips out her phone again and proceeds to call the woman again. She speaks to her very calmly, asking if the man can buy one as a gift for one of the boys. Obvious the woman answered with a yes, because she hung up and screamed his name across our not very large store. When he came back, she snapped, "You got your way, you can buy the f
pillow for the kid." She pays for hers, he pays for the second one and waits until she's out of earshot to apologize to me for the way she's acting. I just smile and nod and give him a look that would correctly translate to, "I'm so sorry you have to live with that" and hand him his change and the bag the pillows are in and watch them as they make their way out.
What I hear on their way out is priceless. The man looks at the woman and says in a very calm, quiet tone, "If you continue to treat me like this when we are in public, the next time you want to go shopping, I will stay home and change the locks." I wanted to clap for him, I really did.
My only question is, who the hell acts like that in public?
Since a few months before this past Christmas, there are these Pillow Pet things that have been insanely hot items. We have trouble keeping them in stock now during our less busy time of the year. But, we got a nice big shipment of them in about a week ago. All sorts of different stuffed animals that fold into pillows. They're neat, but I don't understand the craze.
Anyway, a lady called in the morning on a Saturday asking if we carried the "real Pillow Pets since there are so many rip-off brands now". I assure her that we do have the real thing in stock and give her the price. She thanks me, says someone will be in to get a couple, and hangs up.
Jump to about six hours later. A very large man comes in and heads straight for the Pillow Pets. I greeted him, asked if I could help him, and he asked me the same questions as the woman on the phone. I showed him the tag on the things that proved they were the original brand and he was happy. He turned to talk to someone who was waiting by the door. I couldn't see her, but he told her exactly what I had just said. Now, he was calm, polite... she was the exact opposite. I hear her yell back at him to ask me the price. He informed her that he already had, they're $25 each. She yells across the ten feet again to ask if we have a certain dog. No, we don't have that dog, but we have a different dog in stock and that one is just as cute. She comes around and I get a look at this woman, who is in one of those Rascal scooter things. I knew then that this was only going to get worse. She looks over the dog pillow, frowns at it, and starts looking at the other animals, demanding to know if I have any in back. I inform her that we don't. Due to their popularity, we keep the floor completely stocked when we have them in. What you see is what we have left.
She hems and haws over it for a few minutes before taking out her cell phone and making a call to the woman who had called the store earlier so she can let her know we don't have the dog she wanted for her child, but we have this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this... you get the idea. She gets off the phone, glares at the man who originally came in because he's taking down a few different ones and raises her voice again, "This stupid dog is fine, but we need to send pictures of the tags. She's not sure they're really the real ones. The girl on the phone this morning probably lied or something."
Okay, I might make a mistake on occasion and say we have something when we don't if I haven't worked in a few days or say we don't have something when we do, but I DO NOT lie. I was livid, but I stood there silently as the man took a photo of the tag with his phone and sent it to the one they'd called. They finally get permission to buy the things and bring them around to the counter. Note, almost 40 minutes has passed since they entered the store. When they get to the counter, the man says something along the lines of, "Why don't you get that one and she can pay you back for it and I'll get this one and it can just be a gift from me. Then she doesn't have to worry about being out fifty bucks." Nice guy, thinking of the lady with two kids and trying to save her some money. Or so I thought. The woman on the scooter screws up her face into the most grotesque scowl I have ever seen in my nearly ten years in retail and starts to scream, "She wants both of them to be gifts from her to the kids! Why would you want to interfere in that! All you think of is yourself!" This goes on in the same line for another minute or so, then the guy calmly puts the pillow on the counter with the other one and simply walks away from her. I look at her and ask if they are together or separate as I've already rung one up and she snaps, "Just wait a damn minute," whips out her phone again and proceeds to call the woman again. She speaks to her very calmly, asking if the man can buy one as a gift for one of the boys. Obvious the woman answered with a yes, because she hung up and screamed his name across our not very large store. When he came back, she snapped, "You got your way, you can buy the f
pillow for the kid." She pays for hers, he pays for the second one and waits until she's out of earshot to apologize to me for the way she's acting. I just smile and nod and give him a look that would correctly translate to, "I'm so sorry you have to live with that" and hand him his change and the bag the pillows are in and watch them as they make their way out. What I hear on their way out is priceless. The man looks at the woman and says in a very calm, quiet tone, "If you continue to treat me like this when we are in public, the next time you want to go shopping, I will stay home and change the locks." I wanted to clap for him, I really did.
My only question is, who the hell acts like that in public?
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