If Only You Could Mumble What You’re Really Thinking
JERK, RETAIL, USA, VIRGINIA | RIGHT | MAY 17, 2021
My coworker is doing curbsides and passes by a woman in our vinyl section.
Coworker: “Hi.”
Customer: “Hi.”
My coworker continues with her duties for a bit.
Customer: “Well?! Aren’t you going to offer some help?!”
Coworker: *Taken aback* “Do you need something?”
Customer: “Forget it. I don’t want your help! This customer service is terrible!” *Storms off*
Coworker: “O… kay?”
Later, I have to deal with this customer, as she comes to my line and finally tells us what she wants.
Me: “Hi, how are you doing?”
Customer: “I want to know if you have a similar item in another store.” *Gives me a vinyl*
Me: “This same item?”
Customer: “No, a similar one with green lines on it. You’re out of stock.”
Me: “Got it. I can look it up, but it’s going to have a different barcode than this item. Let me go to the vinyl section and see if I can get the code.”
She follows me to the vinyl, but on the way, another customer stops me.
Other Customer: “Excuse me, I need help with something—”
Customer: “UGH! FORGET IT! THE CUSTOMER SERVICE HERE IS TERRIBLE!” *Storms off again*
Me: “So you… don’t want my help, then?”
Befuddled, I try to help this other customer who didn’t blow up at me. In the process of helping her with her curbside, the first customer comes up to me.
Customer: “Well?! Aren’t you going to help me?”
Me: “You want my help now?”
Customer: “YES! I was first; you help me now!”
Me: “All right, but we’re just really busy today. I can only help one person at a time—”
Customer: “And my time is just as valuable as anyone else’s! You don’t know if I’m in a hurry! And I hear you mumbling behind that mask; that’s not helping you!”
I tend to mumble sometimes, and I hum when I think. This usually isn’t an issue, but it’s hard not to have a knee-jerk reaction when you’re trying to help someone and they’re being as rude as possible.
I try to find the barcode — easier said than done. Like she said, the item’s out of stock and I can only try to find an empty peg and hope that the correct barcode is there for me to scan. Her daughter tries to speak to me.
Customer: “Don’t bother, dear. She’s just going to ignore you!”
Me: “I am literally trying to help you right now.”
Customer: “That’s it! Where’s your manager?!”
I call my manager, who can thankfully spot an entitled jerk from a mile away. The customer proceeds to complain about my coworker and me, claiming that we ignored her and that I was “mouthing off” to her.
Customer: “I don’t pay you money for people like this!”
I finally had enough and left her to my manager to deal with. Thankfully, I wasn’t in trouble, just told not to mumble so much.
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