Humanity Hasn’t Completely Checked Out
It is my fifth shift on the job and, as such, I am spending a large amount of time manning the checkouts. It is a quiet period in the store and two people approach the tills at the same time to pay. One is an old lady with a large number of reduced items while the other is a young woman with her infant with a basket full of what seem to be “top-up” shop items for restocking a home fridge and such.
The old lady places her basket next to the till.
Old Lady: “Could you ring me up slowly? I’m not too sure what I have the money for today.”
Me: “Sure, would you like a bag?”
Old Lady: “Please.”
I ring up and bag most of her items and tell her the total as I go along. It gets to about £6 or so and she takes out her purse and pulls out a £5 note and 50p explaining that this is all she has.
Me: “If you want, I can take the muffins off for you, and it should take the total down.”
Old Lady: “That would be great, thank you. Could you put the rest of my items behind the till, please? I might come back for them later.”
Me: “Sure.”
I go and place all the rest of her items behind me in a box and have her pay for the stuff she can afford. The young lady, who has been very quiet, speaks up as the older lady is turning to leave.
Young Lady: “Put the rest with mine, please.”
Me: “Are you sure?”
Young Lady: “Yes.”
I rang up the rest of the old lady’s items and she left with a smile on her face, seeming so happy that someone else was willing to help her. I am happy to have served both those people today.
This story was included in our May 2020 Inspirational Roundup.
Question of the Week
Have you ever served a bad customer who got what they deserved?
