My first job was working for a luxury toiletries brand. I was only about sixteen at the time, and I was eager to do a good job of representing the company.
I was left in the store on my own while my manager took her lunch break; it was a quiet afternoon and there were a few customers browsing. I hadn’t been working there for long, but I couldn’t foresee that there would be any major issues in the hour or so that I’d be running things on my own.
I was quietly tidying up the till area when a middle-aged, well-to-do-looking woman came striding in with a look of thunder on her face. She proceeded to slam a very expensive room fragrance down on the desk in front of me while exhaling a huge huff.
Me: “Hi there. How can I help?”
She snapped at me, waving her hand toward the bottle of fragrance.
Customer: “It’s this! My son bought it for me as a present. I mean, I don’t know what the h*** he was thinking!”
Me: “I’m sure we’ll be able to give you a hand. Would you have preferred something with a different fragrance? I’m sure your son meant well, but everyone has different tastes. If it’s not to your preference, I’m sure we can find something more suitable.”
Customer: *Fuming* “It’s not the smell I don’t like! He knows I only use the hand wash in that smell! Why would I want a bloody air freshener to smell like lemons?! Get me the hand wash, instead.”
At that point, I was still standing behind the desk; the customer was about two feet away from the hand soap she wanted to exchange the air freshener for. When I pointed out the product, she snapped again.
Customer: “Well, get it for me, then!”
Despite the fact that she was actually closer to it than I was, I try to be a good employee, so I obliged. I could feel that other customers were watching this take place, and I was starting to feel a bit pissed off at this woman’s entitled attitude.
When I returned to the desk, I realised that I was not authorised to process exchanges for products. The customer didn’t have a receipt, and the company did not offer refunds.
Me: “As I’m only part-time, the exchange will need to be processed by a member of the management team. My till credentials won’t even let me attempt to do the exchange; the system is physically blocking it.”
Customer: “Well, go get the manager, then!”
Me: “Apologies, but my manager is on lunch and will be back within half an hour.”
At that, she pretty much exploded.
Customer: “What do you mean, half an hour?! I don’t have half a f****** hour! I live in [Town], and I have to catch a bus in ten minutes! Do you have any idea how far away that is?!”
I actually did know how far away [Town] was, as I lived there. It was about eight miles away, and a twelve-minute train ride or forty-minute bus ride. There were about four trains or buses per hour. I didn’t tell the customer this as I didn’t want to risk incensing her further.
I opted to call my manager on her lunch break and ask for some advice. She was stuck queuing in a department store at the other end of town and, as expected, would not be returning for another half hour.
I explained this all to the customer whilst apologising profusely. At that point, she was starting to turn red and almost began foaming at the mouth.
Customer: “Well, just give me the bloody hand soap, and let’s be done with it! I haven’t got time for these games!”
Me: “I’m sorry, madam, but as the product your son purchased is actually more expensive than the one you’d like to swap it for, I’d need to issue you a gift card for the difference in price.”
This was the bit that really got to me. Up until that point, I’d been quite calm, but she was really starting to test my patience. She then leaned across the counter (which was fairly narrow anyway) and viciously shouted in my face:
Customer: “ARE YOU STUPID? DO. YOU. NOT. UNDERSTAND. WHAT. I’M. SAYING. TO. YOU?”
She enunciated each word as if she really thought I was very stupid.
Me: “Yes, I understand perfectly well. However, I do not have the authority to exchange your products on my till number, as I explained to you earlier. I do apologise, and I have contacted my manager, who will be back shortly. If you’d like to pop back another time since you don’t have time today, I’m sure they’ll be happy to take care of it for you.”
Customer: “Are you some kind of idiot? I told you, I live in [Town]! I’m not going to come back another day! I’m taking what I want and I’m leaving now!“
She snatched up the hand soap, tossed it into her handbag, and went to make a run for the door. I blocked the exit and calmly told her that she would need to return the soap as I had not completed the exchange and it would constitute a theft. (On later reflection, I realised it probably wouldn’t have really mattered, since my manager would have just run an exchange on her return from lunch, but I was so stressed and annoyed that I didn’t really know what to do.)
Customer: “Fine! Your manager will be hearing from me! I’ll be putting in a complaint about you personally!”
And with that, she threw the soap at me and stormed out.
The next day, she did call to put in a complaint. Thankfully, the management team took my side and set her straight. I was so mad immediately afterwards that I was shaking, but some sweet customers who’d heard the whole thing were nice enough to reassure me that I’d handled it well. I mean, really, who screams at a teenager over something as petty as soap?
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