Why must you HANG OUT in my store??

[CrazedClerk]

For some reason lately my store seems to have picked up its share of loiterers, mostly high school age kids who come in, play all our systems for like a half an hour and then leave without buying (or even intending to buy) anything. They are also frequently loud and boisterous.

We have a guy from the Costo across the way who always comes in on his break and plays our PS3. Like 20 minutes every lunchtime. Now this guy isn't rude or anything he just always hangs around, never buys a thing.

Then we have Mr. Once-a-week. He shows up, without fail on monday morning and proceeds to browse the store/play our systems for close to an HOUR every time. He does this every week, he's been doing it for months now and I'm pretty sure he's never bought a single thing from us.

I've asked my manager several times if I could politely ask these people to leave and he forbids it every time saying either "they really haven't done anything" or "it would be bad customer relations". I always thought you didn't technically become a customer unless you actually BUY something, but maybe I'm wrong...

I just wish these annoying kids wouldn't hang around in my store. It's a store, not an arcade or movie theatre or bowling alley or whatever. I'm so tempted to put up a big "No Loitering" sign somewhere but I have a nagging suspicion the above mentioned visitors would even notice it.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Wish they would do the same with some of the people who hang out in electronics and play the interactive displays sometimes for hours on end, without buying anything.

This was especially a problem when the video game interactives were located right outside the receiving doors. You would be trying to bring things out to the floor and here would be people too engrossed in their video game to notice you coming and move--sometimes accompanied by a bunch of onlookers waiting for their turn to play and blocking up half the aisle.

[Gurndigarn]

I just wish these annoying kids wouldn't hang around in my store. It's a store, not an arcade or movie theatre or bowling alley or whatever. I'm so tempted to put up a big "No Loitering" sign somewhere but I have a nagging suspicion the above mentioned visitors would even notice it.

FWIW, you will occasionally get sales from loiterers. Not all of them, and not always right away, but you will pick up a few. You may have seen the booksellers griping about people using their store as a library. Well, I'm one of those people. Usually this is when I'm an hour away from my home, and I always reshelve the books I read properly. But I don't buy anything...

...most of the time. But when I am going to spend money, I make sure I do it at those places where I've done my reading. I've even gone out of my way (and paid more money) when the bookstores have had something I've been interested in that WalMart also had. If the bookstores had kicked me out for loitering, I wouldn't have spent any money there.

OTOH, if the kids there are causing problems, or creating an image issue, yeah, it's time to do something. I frequently had to move kids out of the arcade when I was working there.

[Retail Associate]

Me thinks if the loiterers had to deposit a quarter for 10 minutes of game time, they'd find somewhere else to hang out.

[powerboy]

Me thinks if the loiterers had to deposit a quarter for 10 minutes of game time, they'd find somewhere else to hang out.

No, at my store, they gladly plop $2 out, to play an hours worth of Game Time . Plus they also buy sodas and candy.

[CrazedClerk]

Me thinks if the loiterers had to deposit a quarter for 10 minutes of game time, they'd find somewhere else to hang out.

Oh how I WISH I could do this, but we're corporate owned and head office would never go for it (even though it would likely make us some money) I saw that exact thing at local games store yesterday (it was a dollar, not a quarter).

I also do read in bookstores sometimes, but I am always quiet and I always put the book right back where I found it and I'm usually not there very long either, 30 mins tops. I also buy books from said store routinely.

[Auto]

We have a guy from the Costo across the way who always comes in on his break and plays our PS3. Like 20 minutes every lunchtime. Now this guy isn't rude or anything he just always hangs around, never buys a thing.

Then we have Mr. Once-a-week. He shows up, without fail on monday morning and proceeds to browse the store/play our systems for close to an HOUR every time. He does this every week, he's been doing it for months now and I'm pretty sure he's never bought a single thing from us.

I've asked my manager several times if I could politely ask these people to leave and he forbids it every time saying either "they really haven't done anything" or "it would be bad customer relations". I always thought you didn't technically become a customer unless you actually BUY something, but maybe I'm wrong...

I just wish these annoying kids wouldn't hang around in my store. It's a store, not an arcade or movie theatre or bowling alley or whatever. I'm so tempted to put up a big "No Loitering" sign somewhere but I have a nagging suspicion the above mentioned visitors would even notice it.

Why are you so pissy? The kids sound like the only ones likely to be a problem. But you want to ban customers who are just browsing? How come? They're not being pains in the asses.

Stores want people to check out the merch, even if they rarely (never) buy. It's why car dealers welcome foot traffic. Get a rep for being unhelpful to browsers and window-shoppers and sales will soon drop. There are too many other places that don't abuse browsers.

(And before I get flamed, it's different if they tie up clerks or someone prevent
other customers from buying.

[Jewels]

For some reason lately my store seems to have picked up its share of loiterers, mostly high school age kids who come in, play all our systems for like a half an hour and then leave without buying (or even intending to buy) anything. They are also frequently loud and boisterous.

We have a guy from the Costo across the way who always comes in on his break and plays our PS3. Like 20 minutes every lunchtime. Now this guy isn't rude or anything he just always hangs around, never buys a thing.

Then we have Mr. Once-a-week. He shows up, without fail on monday morning and proceeds to browse the store/play our systems for close to an HOUR every time. He does this every week, he's been doing it for months now and I'm pretty sure he's never bought a single thing from us.

I've asked my manager several times if I could politely ask these people to leave and he forbids it every time saying either "they really haven't done anything" or "it would be bad customer relations". I always thought you didn't technically become a customer unless you actually BUY something, but maybe I'm wrong...

I just wish these annoying kids wouldn't hang around in my store. It's a store, not an arcade or movie theatre or bowling alley or whatever. I'm so tempted to put up a big "No Loitering" sign somewhere but I have a nagging suspicion the above mentioned visitors would even notice it.

One little trick I have picked up through my many years in retail...bug them.

Keep going up to them and ask if they need help...drone on and on about the game or the system....just annoy them. Either they will get fed up and leave or they will realize that maybe they should actually buy something. The beauty is...you can't get in trouble because you are trying to get a sale.

[KamenRiderOsaka]

I remember when I worked at the game store, this one guy came in all the time and would play Bouncer (shows hold old this story is!) Just day after day, Bouncer Bouncer Bouncer.Kids would want to play, but he would just ignore them. He couldnt really do anything because he wasnt really harming anything, and we were in the slow season. The only time he would leave is to go use the bathroom after drinking a bottomless bottle of Dew. He smelled like moldy cheese, funk and sweat. Not the good, healthy sweat either. Like the "I havent showered in a month and I like to roll in my own fecal matter" sweat.

Well, one day, he came in, and I had put in a Gandam game, and he got MAD. Like, nostrils flaring and he slammed his hand on the counter and yelled "WHERE IS BOUNCER?! I WANT TO PLAY BOUNCER?!"

I looked at him, smiled and said "When your funky ass takes a shower and learns the wonders of deodorant, I will put in Bouncer. Until then, get out of my store."

He never came back. My manager over heard me tell him this, and said I shouldnt say "ass" in a store full of kids, but he was glad someone kicked him out finally.

[Tigress]

I second the "bug them" sentiment. We do that all the time at the Big Box. Not only does it annoy the (non-buying) loiterers into leaving, but it also discourages thieves that are loitering in order to case your store. Buy bugging them, you are showing them that you know they are there and will likely catch them if they try to steal.

You don't have to be obnoxious about it:

"Can I help you?" *5 minutes later* "Are you sure I can't help you find something? You've been staring at the PS3 display for quite a while. Please, ask me anything!"

And what will a customer complain about, really? That you tried to help them? The horror!

[BookstoreEscapee]

I second the "bug them" sentiment.

We did that at the bookstore too, especially for the suspicious looking people with huge backpacks. Just make sure they are aware you're around. Because you are working in that section, of course....

My old store used to get the teenagers sitting on the floor in the last aisle at the back, which is the logical route to the bathrooms/breakroom/fire exit. They'd sit on either side with their legs stretched across the aisle and sometimes we'd literally climb over them because it was the only way to get through, and they wouldn't bother to move. And they looked at magazines and left a mess. The store is set up on a grid so you could really go down any aisle and get to the same place, but when they were sitting there blocking the whole aisle, we'd tell them they had to move because they were blocking access to the fire exit and therefore a safety violation.

Then there's the homeless guy who hangs out all the time. He reads the newspaper, or pulls out several books, and when he's done, what does he do? He puts the books back where he got them! And puts the newspaper back together neatly the way he found it! And puts it back on the rack!! What a concept. He's even been seen straightening shelves just for the heck of it. So they let him leave his things behind the door in the vestibule, and even found out when his birthday is and have given him gift cards and even a new coat one year.

[Broomjockey]

I gotta say, I think this is a little harsh.

I get to see my dad basically once a week. We go for lunch (now supper, we switched days), and then we go to certain stores, because they have the things we, as guys, like to look at, large tvs, stereos, gadgets, and such. And frankly, we rarely buy anything, because we can't afford to get something every time, or even every second time. But that's the time I get to hang out with my dad, so we'll stick around the store, sometimes for as much as an hour, before moving on.

It might be annoying to the employees, but we keep to ourselves, sometimes ask a couple questions, but mostly just wander.
And if we go to a bookstore, I really can waste some time.

I think, if they haven't done anything, then leave them alone. It's better than them running around getting into who-knows-what trouble otherwise.

[kibbles]

I agree Broomjockey, I don't think there is anything wrong with someone just shopping or browsing and I don't understand why the "bug them" tactic has to be used if they are genuinely not causing any trouble and are just keeping to themselves.

[Lyger]

In parts of retail stores, like electronics or furniture, I wouldn't mind people walking around without buying anything. After all, they could be doing some research on the prices of something, and come back later to buy something... which I admit, to being guilty of doing a couple of times myself.

[sarahj]

I love going to a certain electronics store. It's cheap and they have a huge variety of things. I always go through the music DVDs section, cos there's heaps of concerts on DVDs! $20 for the DVD is sooooo much cheaper than a $70 concert ticket! So I spend maybe half an hour in there each visit.

Anyway, I like to buy one every week or two, so I plan ahead. When I get paid (weekly), that store is usually my first stop.