A tale of two customers. TalesFromRetail

LTLFTP on mobile etc etc.

So I work at a pizza place, and we get all sorts of customers. Our pizza is pretty good, so we don't usually get many jerks or idiots. Everyone is pretty nice, and the customers are alright. Tonight, we had two interesting customers.

The bad customer (henceforth BC) came in asking to speak to a manager (politely, thank God). BC wanted to return his order because "the pizza was cold when it arrived, like it had been in a refrigerator." It got returned with everything in the order still hot. The claim was physically impossible since it was about 80 degrees (about 25 Celsius) outside and it was delivered fresh out of the oven. We all shook our heads at that one together. (but hey, free food!)

The good customer (GC) called later in the rush, and she was one of the best callers I've ever had. She cracked jokes a bit, we had a nice conversation, she ordered a sizable amount of food, and it was generally a very pleasant call. (In hindsight, I wish I had thanked her for being an awesome customer.) I told the driver about how nice she was and he was excited to hear that she would likely tip big. (She did.) I think the reason this made me so happy is because I hate answering the phone.

It wasn't much of a story, but I really just wanted to share those with all of you.

TL;DR 1. My hot food is cold. 2. Best caller ever.

Submitted August 28, 2017 at 08:45AM by AcePhoenixGamer http://ift.tt/2vjD4Em TalesFromRetail

Sweet yet oh so dumb TalesFromRetail

My favorite: I am a manager at a large home improvement retailer. Our appliances dept had a customer call and since my salesmen were all busy, I took it... customer wanted to order a refrigerator over the phone for delivery (know that we absolutely hate phone orders... come in or order online. It is guaranteed that you get someone cursed out when you order over the phone because other customers don't understand why you get priority, you are the worst)... she had the model number so this was a quick transaction... I rang her, set everything up for delivery, and asked for her credit card number... me:me... her:squirrel (note, she sounded at least 80)...

Me: ok ma'am we can make that happen and that'll be $xxxx.xx, can I have your card number. Squirrel: no, I just want to pay cash... Me:... I'm sorry ma'am but we don't do COD... the product needs to be paid for before it gets ordered... we don't have anyway around that... Squirrel: (sweet as can be) I know that, I have the money right here... Me:... Me:*sigh Me:... Me: ma'am, I can't take a cash transaction over the phone, if you want to pay with cash I can save what I have done here and you can come in and pay at any register by giving them your phone number. Or you can just pay by card... Squirrel: but why can't you take my money? Me: ... distance? Squirrel: (not getting it but still just being a sweetheart) but I have the money right here... Me: (being kind of a jerk): but the question is do you have a trustworthy carrier pigeon...? Squirrel: (after some silence followed by chuckling)... Oh I didn't think this through at all... I will call you back...

Thank you for breaking my brain and being so sweet. You are an angel.

Submitted August 02, 2017 at 01:11PM by Kalelssleeping http://ift.tt/2vmYYW1 TalesFromRetail

A Break Gone Wrong TalesFromRetail

Background: I worked at a supermarket a while back as a janitor/bagperson. It was my job during the evening shift, among others, to clean any and all messes and spills that happened in the store.

Several of my coworkers started complaining at the start of my shift about a smell of raw sewage coming from the break room and the back area by the walk in refrigerators. My manager and I went to investigate. A leak had formed and sewage was leaking from the ceiling forming a pool of nasty brown colored water in the back corridor and the room itself. The smell was absolutely horrible. My manager called in an emergency work order and we put buckets and paper towels down to catch the leaks. It was obvious that a pipe had broken from the employee restrooms upstairs and was leaking sewage everywhere.

Still employees needed to brace the stench to get to their food and belongings inside. Aside from the many drips, a bulge had appeared in a panel of the break room's drop ceiling. As my shift went by the bulge got larger and larger.

Unfortunately, at peak bulge one of my coworkers took his lunch break. Braving the stench, he went to the fridge to get his food and most likely find somewhere outside to eat. Just as he was walking out the drop ceiling panel collapsed on top of his head. He was covered head to toe in sewage. Several lockers must have been flooded. Instead of enjoying his lunch he got to go home and change because he was covered in human waste.

Later in the evening the plumber finally arrived and fixed the broken pipe. I made sure to mop the break room with bleach. The drop ceiling panel that gave way was never replaced, forever exposing the guilty pipe.

TL;DR: My coworker was covered in sewage on his lunch hour from a broken pipe in the ceiling.

Submitted June 30, 2017 at 10:56AM by glasses_the_loc http://ift.tt/2ssFR8a TalesFromRetail

Physics Are for Poor People TalesFromRetail

Never make eye contact with someone waiting by the doors. Especially if it's your coworker.

New guy waves me over on my way to the break room. He's got a refrigerator, a dishwasher, and a large shelving unit all stacked by the door, and there's a Trophy Wife type standing next to him tapping her nails impatiently.

He starts to explain something but she jumps right in.

TW: Oh thank God, finally! He's refusing to load this for us! We just gave you people a huge sale, you need to help us. We can make or break this store.

Oh goody. I don't know about the rest of you but that last line is one of my pet peeves.

Me: I'm sorry to hear that, let's take a look at your vehicle and we'll see what we can do.

She scoffs loudly and rolls her eyes, but takes us outside and points...At this little four door Honda thing. Now. I may not know cars but I do know appliances. Maybe we could get the dishwasher in, with a little lube and a lot of determination. But a fridge? And a shelf? AND a dishwasher? Nah son.

Me: Well, we could probably get this guy in there, and you could find somebody with a truck to come back for-

TW: Are you FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW! I paid for these items and you need to load it into my vehicle or there are going to be CONSEQUENCES!

Me: Ma'am, it is not physically possible to get all these items in your current vehicle. I would love to help you. I would.

TW: Well then what the fuck is stopping you!

Physics.

Me: I'll get the manager.

In case you were wondering the manager didn't bend the laws of the universe for her either. We lost a (admittedly large) sale when she returned everything and stomped out. Seriously though I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I mean it was a smallish fridge but an idiot could see it wasn't going to fit!

Submitted June 17, 2017 at 11:17PM by ThoseWhoWander-111 http://ift.tt/2sBCf7s TalesFromRetail

TA-DA!!! TalesFromRetail

I work in the back area of a home improvement store, this story happened a couple hours ago.

There are a couple places in the back area designated for emergency exits, we are legally not able to put anything in those areas or we could get massive fines. Of course, not everyone cares and stuff gets put in front of them all the time anyways.

When I came in this morning I saw a couple refrigerators stacked in front of the emergency exit, so I let one of the managers know and went on with my work (I don't have the training to operate the equipment to move it myself). A little while later one of the other managers ($M) and one of the new-ish stockers ($S) come into the back area with a forklift.

$S: Well how am I supposed to know which areas we aren't allowed to put stuff in? They need to mark them so we know where to avoid.

$M: Oh, what would you recommend? We could put some illuminated signs and paint the ground, would that help?

$S: Yeah that would probably be good.

At this point they have the refrigerators loaded onto the forklift and the manager backs it up, revealing a big glowing red sign saying "Exit" and bright yellow paint on the ground

$M: TA-DA!!! Now don't do it again.

Submitted June 09, 2017 at 11:55PM by Fakjbf http://ift.tt/2s5fc4E TalesFromRetail

"There's no way in Hell that's going to fit" TalesFromRetail

So, I work in electrical retail in a European country. Before I get into this, I'm going to give a bit of background information, because I know the vast majority of people here are American. The fridge freezers (refrigerators) we have in Europe are, on average, half the size or less of the monstrosities you have over in the States. So when I say "USA fridge", just think of a standard double door fridge if you're American. Recently, these have become much more popular in Europe, even though houses and apartments that are older than about 5 years weren't really built with appliances that size in mind. You can probably see where this is going....

Anyway, this woman came in last week to get a USA fridge. She wanted it delivered last Friday. I asked her was the kitchen easy to access, were there any corners, narrow hallways, stuff like that. If there's any access problems, the drivers have to unbox the fridge, take the doors off and then reassemble it, and there's a labour charge for that.

She said it would be fine. I think it was an apartment, she said there were 15 steps to get up, but other than that it was easy access.

What she DIDN'T mention was the 90 degree turn and banister at the top of the stairs.

So on Friday she rings the shop.

Her: "Yeah, I've just had this fridge delivered and your drivers refused to even attempt to bring it up the stairs"

Me: "Okay, well I'll just check the order here and see what's happening"

The drivers all have PDAs, so they can amend orders from their vans. He had mentioned the 90 degree turn and said he didn't think it was possible. So I told the lady I'd ring her back, and rang the driver.

Me: "Yo, what's the deal with this fridge"

Driver: "There's a 90 degree turn at the top of the stairs. We'll have to take the doors off, and even then it'll be a 4 or 5 man job to lift it over the banister. There's only 2 of us in the van (which is the norm) and she hasn't paid the labour charge anyway"

So I rang her back and explained the issue

Her: "It's not a 4 or 5 man job, all it'll take is one of them at the top and bottom and my husband to help it over the banister"

Me: "Okay, I'm not even going to get into why your husband can't help them lift this 120kg (265lbs) fridge, that much should be obvious. Second, this guy does this for a living. If he says it'll take 4 or 5 men, then it will. If you had told us about the corner earlier in the week, we could have sent more guys out today. But you didn't".

Her: "I've already gotten rid of my old fridge, all my food is defrosting on the table!"

Me: "Like I said, if you had told us it would be difficult to access the kitchen, we could have planned accordingly. Now if you want, I can ring the warehouse and see if there's any way we could send out 4 or 5 guys tomorrow. There would obviously be a labour charge, as they'll have to take the doors off"

Her: "No, forget it, I'm never using you guys again. I'll get some friends to help me and my husband do it" click

So, presumably, I'll get a call from these idiots later in the week saying their backs are in spasms and can we please go out and put their fridge in. Fucking idiots.

Submitted May 15, 2017 at 05:40PM by Akephalos95 http://ift.tt/2qjODat TalesFromRetail

"Get me 12 gallons of milk" TalesFromRetail

So I used to work at an organic grocery store where upper midd class families came to shop for juices. Generally, the customers were all considerate and weren't at all rude to me (I was a cashier), but there's this one man who showed up every couple of weeks with his, I assume, wife and he was a nightmare.

Every time he'd go to check out we'd all be praying he wouldn't come to us because he was NEVER pleased with anything. One day, it was because the milk that we had in the refrigerator was set to expire in about a month probably but that was WAY too soon for him so he came up to me to complain and when I asked if there was anything I could do, he demanded that I go in the back and get him 12 gallons of milk. I did a pained smile and told him okay and went to get a cart for 12 very necessary gallons of milk because my supervisor overheard and told him that it was "no problem at all". I came back with the 12 gallons and he had left the building because apparently I was taking too long (I had only been gone for a minute when he stormed off).

I hate retail.

Submitted April 06, 2017 at 06:37AM by thumbelinax8 http://ift.tt/2nMslKP TalesFromRetail

Delivery Between 1 and "A Lil After 1" TalesFromRetail

I work at a family owned, regional electronics and appliance store. I'm in sales, so I have a plethora of ridiculous customers acting a fool. This one concerns delivery, which as many salespeople know, is among the worst parts of the job because you have literally no control over it, yet you field the majority of anger because the delivery gets fucked up. This is at least a weekly occurrence but normally its resolved quickly and everyone is happy.

Our delivery system is simple, yet aggravating. You get two windows, either BEFORE 1 PM (8-1) or AFTER 1 PM (1-8). The reason for this is that we install most of our appliances with the delivery and we don't know how long it will take. We can't schedule someone for 3:15 because we don't know how long the person before will take (for example a refrigerator takes longer to install than say a chest freezer).

The customer in question was scheduled for an AFTER 1 PM delivery. Sale was simple, she was cordial, everything went well. Until I received a call at approximately 1:15 PM. Me= me, CL= crazy lady.

ME: (Store Name) NYCub717 speaking how may I help you?

CL: I had a truck coming to set up my stove and it ain't here yet.

ME: I'm sorry ma'am, let me have your phone number and we can see when you're scheduled and clarify it.

My assumption was this was a morning delivery and the drivers were running late and I'd apologize and say they'd be there soon. However, I see this was scheduled for an afternoon delivery and I begin to cringe.

ME: Ma'am it looks like this was scheduled to be an afternoon delivery, they should be there between 1 and 8 this evening.

CL: Nah, that's not what ya'll told me.

ME: (Knowing I didn't give a time) Well what did the salesperson tell you who sold you this?

CL: He told me between 1 and a lil after one.

(MY MIND EXPLODES AND I WANT TO YELL)

ME: Well ma'am, I'm sorry for the confusion but when we set up delivery we only give two windows, before 1pm and after 1pm.

CL: Lemme speak to da manager, dis is ridiculous, he told me between 1 and a lil afta 1

(I WANT TO TAKE MY EYE OUT WITH A RUSTY SPOON)

MANAGER: (Goes through whole thing with her again)

CL: HE TOLD ME BETWEEN ONE AND A LIL AFTER ONE

MANAGER: Well, I guess NYCub717 lied to you. Do you want me to write him up and discipline him?

CL: Well yes, he did lie to me. So write him up and do what you have to do.

MANAGER: I will ma'am. Have a nice day. Your delivery will be there in the next few hours.

Manager and I laugh about the insanity. I don't get in trouble because no sane person would say "between 1 and a little after 1".

Submitted March 25, 2017 at 12:44AM by nycub717 http://ift.tt/2nl1ckC TalesFromRetail

The order that didn't exist TalesFromRetail

Here's one of the last incidents that occurred while I still worked in the deli/bakery at the store. By this time, my friend who also worked there had left, and we'd gotten two new employees.

The new clerk (NC), and the new dishwasher (ND).

Co-worker (CW), not to be confused with Awesome Co-worker (AC), was working that day as well, but had clocked out for her break half an hour prior to the incident. By this point, she'd gotten what she wanted, full time, all the while continuing to royally screw the rest of us. Her breaks were only thirty minutes long, but she'd gotten a free pass from the department manager to take an hour or longer, even though it was against store policy. This is relevant.

NC was standing at my usual work station, near the back, making salads and sandwiches for the next day, and I was up front waiting on customers when one came up to the counter.

C: I'm here to pick up an order for fifty piece fried chicken.

I was immediately confused. I had not seen, anywhere, any note that said to expect this, nor had I seen any food being prepared for it.

Me: I'll check this warmer right here for you.

I had a smile on my face, but I was screaming internally. The warmer, which was under the table that had the scale and the slicer on it, did not have large enough shelves to place a box with fifty pieces of chicken. Sure enough, it wasn't there. I stood up, with a look of dread falling upon my normally collected face.

She sees the way I look, and dawning realization fell upon her face.

C: I called the order in yesterday.

Me: It was probably put in the back so no one would sell it by mistake. I'll be right back.

She seemed placated, so I hurried to the back, but on my way there, knowing that there was no place to keep it, I paused. There was a large pan with a dozen or so pieces of cold chicken in it. It had been sitting out all day.

I turned to NC.

Me: Do you know anything about an order for fifty pieces of fried chicken?

She stopped, and the look on her face told me everything I needed to know.

ND: What's going on?

Me: This lady is here to pick up an order that we don't have.

All three of us scattered around the department, looking for an order form. The only real ones we have are for cakes, and for fruit or sandwich trays. Everything else has to be improvised on blank paper and left on the manager's desk. We looked everywhere, we looked in the bakery side's order sheets, looked all over the desk, on all the clipboards, nothing.

ND went to the front, and a quiet argument ensued. The customer ordered the food more than twenty four hours ago, which is the latest you can order something and expect it the next day. ND explained that we didn't have an order form. She confirms that she called this store, and gave the order.

NC and I have already gotten the fresh, uncooked chicken from the fridge, and have opened the batter.

The customer is becoming agitated, I'm assuming because we haven't made the order magically appear. ND is having none of it.

ND: Look, by the time you finish arguing with me, we could have already started making your order. This way, it'll be fresh. Do you want it or not?

C: Yes, I do. How long will it take?

ND: About half an hour.

C: Okay, I'll be back by then.

The customer huffed away, and the three of us frantically began sorting through what we needed and started dropping everything in the fryer.

Exactly thirty minutes later, the customer returned, and we were just pulling everything out to box it up.

NC: Where are the boxes?

Me: They're supposed to be in the bakery.

The customer is getting irritated again, because it's not ready yet.

C: You said it would be ready by now!

ND: It is, but we're trying to find the box to put it in.

I made a mad dash for the warehouse, and was digging around for the right boxes. I couldn't find them, so I ran back to the deli. NC and ND wound up putting it all in a cake box, and the customer left without so much as a thank you.

It was after she was out of sight that I turned around and saw a tiny, bright yellow post-it on one of the refrigerators. The chicken scratch that was written on it said something akin to '50 piece chicken,' and the date. I was livid. Whoever took the order completely ignored procedure and thought that this was acceptable.

I showed it to the others. We initially thought that it was the day shift who had done it, but that would imply that the order was placed that morning, not the afternoon before.

An hour and a half after clocking out for her break, CW saunters back in, and asks why we all look so pissed. ND showed her the post it. She laughed.

CW: I took that order yesterday! Now I remember, I forgot why I made all that chicken earlier. indicating the cold chicken sitting on the stove

She went about her business, and ND looked at us.

ND: What do we tell (Department Manager)? She's going to be pissed.

Me: I glared towards CW, this wasn't the first stunt she pulled Throw her under the fucking bus. I'm done.

Unfortunately, I wasn't quite done until another week later.

Submitted March 04, 2017 at 08:56AM by AttackDoughnut http://ift.tt/2mlypMK TalesFromRetail

Why aren't you open?! TalesFromRetail

Reading the story about the bomb scare earlier reminded me of a story I have.

I once worked at a store that was open 24 hours a day. One night around 8 or 9 pm, a small plane crashed in the grass outside our parking lot, taking out some power lines on its way down and knocking out power to a good portion of the town. Since there was 1) no power and 2) an airplane stuck nose-first outside of the parking lot, the store obviously had to close temporarily. The store remained closed overnight while police/FAA investigated and cleared the crash site and the utility crews worked to restore power.

I was scheduled to work at 5:00 am the next morning because we got our warehouse delivery that morning, so I got to work while the store was still closed. As my manager was opening the door to let me in, a customer came walking up and asked if we were re-opening. She told him no, power had just been restored and the plan was to re-open at 7:00 am so that we had time to reboot all the computers and registers to make sure everything was working properly, get the refrigerators/freezers cold again, pull any cold items that may have gone bad, etc. The customer seemed a bit disappointed but said ok, no problem and went on his way. We decided to put a sign on the door that said we would re-open at 7:00 am, sorry for the inconvenience, blah blah blah, since the pitch dark store was apparently not enough of a hint that we weren't open.

Now if the story ended there, it wouldn't have been a big deal. The customer was polite and understanding about everything, just a bit oblivious. But hey we put a sign up on the door to deal with anyone else that walks up. Problem solved, right? Haha, yeah, no. Sure enough, around 6:30 I'm walking near the front of the store (which still has it's lights off by the way) and hear someone banging on the front door.

Me: We'll be back open at 7.

Idiot: What do you mean? Why aren't you open?

Me: We just got power back up. We'll be open in about 30 minutes.

Idiot: But you're supposed to be open 24 hours!

Me: (after pausing for a few seconds to stare at him like he was literally the dumbest person on planet earth) THERE IS A PLANE. IN OUR PARKING LOT. RIGHT BEHIND YOU.

Idiot: (after turning to look at the plane sticking out of the ground about 50 feet away from him, accompanied by a police car with its lights on to guard it) So what?

Me: We'll be open at 7. Goodbye.

And I just turned and walked away because it was too damn early to deal with that level of stupidity.

Submitted February 17, 2017 at 02:22AM by jrr05j http://ift.tt/2lQvs7p TalesFromRetail

"There's a problem with your door" TalesFromRetail

Just discovered this subreddit. I'll make a quick little post for my first story (I've been working 15 years in retail. I have a million stories. Some involving murder! Hooray!)

This man walks up to one of our refrigerators, opens it, gets a bottle out of it, then just stands there staring at it for a good minute before turning his head to me and shouting "Hey buddy! Something is wrong with your fridge! The door stays open!"

I just shout back "Then close it!"

And he closes it. Remarkable!

Submitted December 02, 2016 at 08:22AM by Flying_Toad http://ift.tt/2fMeVyM TalesFromRetail

I need it today! TalesFromRetail

Obligatory first time poster...

I work in a department store that is known for its appliances and tools. I had this lady come in today wanting a refrigerator. She will be rude lady (RL), I'll be me.

RL: I need a refrigerator and how good is your delivery?

Me: Well our delivery can get out appliance rather quickly. Being that tomorrow is thanksgiving and they will not be working tomorrow we can have it delivered either this Saturday of next week Monday.

RL: that won't do! I need it today!

Me: Well I have clearance fridges over there that are available to be taken home today.

• she begins looking at the fridges and starts to complain about the prices*

RL: Why is this floor model $899!?

Me: because it's marked down from its original price of $1300.

RL: I won't spend that much, I'd consider it if it was $800.

Me: let me see what I can do, I'll talk to my manager.

manager approves the reduction

Me: We can do $800. Do you have means of transporting this home with you today?

RL: no, I need it delivered today.

Me: we don't have the option of getting it delivered to you today unfortunately.

RL: can you check with your manager then..

Me: absolutely! (Me knowing well in advance what the answer was going to be I proceeded to talk to my manager)

Me: ma'am, unfortunately due to the grid lock of delivery we can't have it sent out today I'm sor.... (she didn't let me finish my sentence as she slammed the refrigerator door and stormed off not saying anything else)

I yelled out have a happy thanksgiving to no response.. it was petty of me but it made me feel a little better. Why do people think treating the person helping you out poorly will end positively for you?

Edit: a few words.

Submitted November 24, 2016 at 11:33AM by Chodi_Foster http://ift.tt/2frf7y4 TalesFromRetail

You're only $XX lower TalesFromRetail

Hello again TFR on mobile if formatting is jinky

Black Friday deals a flyin' Selling new appliances at a local independent dealer that has the word discount in the name.

C: how much for this refrigerator M: let me take a look M: you can see here "various big box store" price is $1200 and it's black Friday pricing so they are 37% off which is a very good deal.

M: I can sell it to you for $1150 to save you an extra $50 bucks!

C: only $50? M: well the pricing is so low now, they come down to around where we sell it for normally (This is actually true, we usually don't have to change our pricing much during these big % off sales at big box store)

C: I'm not sure that is a big enough discount.

M: well Mr. Customer, if I were $50 more would that be enough of a sale at "various big box store" to make you leave here and buy it there?

C: well yeah, why would I pay $50 more to buy it here if I could buy it for less somewhere else?

M: blank stare

I. Just. Can't. Even

Submitted November 20, 2016 at 08:51AM by itsabadbadworld http://ift.tt/2eSFJwI TalesFromRetail

Can you tell me who serviced my item before you did? TalesFromRetail

Let me start with, I sell new appliances for a small local dealer and we have a factory authorized service department. We had a customer call us and got a service call for a refrigerator she bought from a notorious used, scrapped dealer that always claimed product was new.

We did a service call on it and charged her for parts and labor. She called me, on the sales floor, and complained that she didn't think she should have to pay two service companies for work on her used (and now 2 year old refrig) and that we should refund her money to her.

Today she calls me (on the sales floor) and asked me what the name of the service company was that did the service work previous to us doing the work.

wtf, how am i supposed to know?!?! YOU called THEM!

Today is just a pure hell day. /vent off

Submitted November 11, 2016 at 12:37AM by itsabadbadworld https://www.reddit.com/r/TalesFromRetail/comments/5c9no9/can_you_tell_me_who_serviced_my_item_before_you/?ref=search_posts&utm_source=ifttt TalesFromRetail

"I work in Internet Security....I know better then that" TalesFromRetail

So, I am a former [Large Home Improvement Store] associate. My department was Appliances, and one day this lady came in and was looking for a refrigerator. So naturally i do my thing and figure out what she wants, After all is said and done she cant decide between two different models so she said needs more time to think it over. Which is fine, so I told her to call the store whenever shes ready, so she doesn't have to drive back up to the store, and to ask for me. Later that day she calls back. I will be me she will be L.

• me: Thank you for calling [Home improvement store] this is rymannoodle, How can i help you.
• L: Hi, yes this is L we spoke earlier about those refrigerators. Iv decided i want the second one.
• me: Sounds good, Lets get you staged for payment!

Now here is where it gets fun. I got through the normal process of getting her address for shipment and all the other necessary information for purchase. We get to the point of payment and she informs me she wants to use her consumer credit card. Now, in order to take payment over the phone for our consumer credit card, we need the ID number linked to their account. Be it Drivers License or a School ID we need it, Along with your social security number when you open an account. Here is how that went.

• me: Alright now all i need is your drivers license to confirm it is your card to process the payment.
• L: Uh.....no im not giving you that.
• me: Well.....would you like to use another form of payment?
• L: No! I want to use my consumer card! I NEVER have to give my ID number when i use it in the store!
• me: Well, that is because you physically have the card with you. Being that i dont physically have the card the system needs proof it is your card.
  
• L: I work in Internet Security! I never give out any of my information!
• me: You do realize you had to give us some form of ID and your social in order to even apply for the card?
• L: Not possible i never give that stuff out!
  

This goes on for another ten minutes or so of me explaining the only options are, another form of payment or come back in the store. Eventually she bursts out "LET ME SPEAK TO A MANAGER!" to which i reply "I will transfer you but understand, this is a company policy and completely out of all of our hands." So i call my manger and explain the situation and he reiterates everything i have been telling her. I told him i know and that she wont listen to me, So he reluctantly takes the transfer. 5 minutes or so pass and her call gets sent back to me.

• me: This is Rymannoodle
• L: Long drawn out overly dramatic sigh I guess ill be coming in the store!
• me: Yep! See ya then!

Still do not understand her thought process through this whole ordeal.

Submitted October 13, 2016 at 10:21PM by rymannoodle http://ift.tt/2dZPu90 TalesFromRetail

It's a...boat? Wait... TalesFromRetail

I've got a thousand stories from back when I worked as a manager in $retailStore.

It involves...a return! Of course. I'm walking by the jewelry counter and I hear my name called. My stomach turned and I knew from the exasperated tone and the look the cashier gave me that this could be annoyance #436 of that day.

I walk over and it's explained to me that this woman is returning an item but the refund is less than she paid at the time. This is because there was a promotion for buying that item that gave her store credit in her membership account that she'd already spent. Since having that store credit was predicated on her having bought the jewelry, the difference was deducted from the return.

She said she hadn't used her credit, hadn't bought anything since then, and that she'd had problems with identity theft on her credit card. So I have to go into the database and find her transaction. It turns out that it was done in-store and thus would need her personal pin and membership ID.

I find a reference to it and input the item number into the $storeWebsite and it comes up as a boat. She's understandably freaking out about having never bought a boat. I then have to call the membership dept and figure out what's going on. They go through a verification process with her over the phone and are then able to tell us what was purchased with those points. It turns out it was a sweater and not a boat. These things happen;Item SKUs can be changed or be different on different platforms.

I put in the updated upc and...it's the fucking sweater the lady has on right NOW! I look at it, the cashier looks at it, and we turn the screen towards the lady and she looks at it...and laughs. She totally remembered buying it now and there's no problem; she'll take the return the way it is.

I then leave to deal with the lady in appliances who is demanding to see a manager because she wants one refrigerator for the promotional price of a completely different one...a day after the promotion ended. Yay.

Submitted September 25, 2016 at 10:34PM by milleniumsamurai http://ift.tt/2cNKCSI TalesFromRetail

I was HONEST, give me free stuff! TalesFromRetail

Hello TFR! I've posted before, but for those of you who missed it, I work in a juice bar in a grocery store. My job is ~60% food service and 40% customer service. Since I'm the first person people see on my side of the store, I get hit with all the complaints/questions/'where do you keep...?'s/'you're out of...'s/'is there any ... in the back?'s/whatever else pops into the customer's head. I don't mind it, but sometimes I'm just floored by the stuff that comes out of people's mouths.

Some necessary information before I begin: Our juice is pricy. It's freshly pressed and made to order in most cases, so our small (7 oz) is $5, our medium (12 oz) is $7, and our large (16 oz) is $9, at the very cheapest. We also recently found out that the fill line we've been filling to was giving people 2-4 ounces extra per drink, so we've been cracking down on only giving people the exact amount that they pay for. It doesn't seem like an awful lot, but those extra couple ounces add up really quickly.

On with the story: A few days ago, a regular who I'll call Honest Lady (or HL for short) comes up to our counter and orders a couple drinks. HL is the type of person who always seems impatient and annoyed, and she really likes to micromanage us while we're making her orders (telling us how to make it, what to make first, how to handle it etc), so usually if she's not annoyed when she comes in, she's miffed by the time she leaves for one reason or another. Fine -- people get mad. I get mad. I really want to not be upset or have her be upset, so I commit to following every instruction I'm given and getting the drinks out just as she comes back from the register so they're put into her hands fresh. She seems pleased, and I'm pleased -- I've done my job, hooray! I tell her to have a great day and she starts to turn away, so I go to clean up my station.

HL: Excuse me, miss? This is two larges and a medium.

Me: Oh Gosh, I'm sorry, I didn't take the order. What did you pay for?

HL: It's fine -- I know she (my coworker) took it. I got two mediums and a large.

It's a simple enough fix. I take the drink she indicated should be medium

HL: It's fine.

Me: thinking she means the situation is fine Yeah -- it's a really quick fix. I'll just put it in a medium cup and you can be on your way :)

HL: No, it's fine. as I switch out the cups You can leave it in there.

Me: Oh I'm sorry, I thought you wouldn't want to go through the line again.

HL: I don't, but I mean, it's fine if you just want to give me that indicating the large cup

Me: Well, we're not allowed to give out free product, so unless you want to pay for it I can't do that. I'm sorry your order was processed inaccurately, but it looks like the express registers are free so it should only take a minute to fix it.

HL: Just dump it in here. You didn't fill it all the way, anyway.

I can sense she's getting annoyed now and I'm trying my best to handle this in a way where she understands why I'm not giving her what she's asking for, but I'm starting to panic a little. I don't want anyone to be upset with me and she's looking more and more annoyed.

Me: Sorry about that -- That line right there is the liquid fill line, so that is the amount of juice you paid for and I'd be more than happy to measure it out for you so you know we're not trying to cheat you out of anything. If you want to get refunded for the medium and pay for the large, I'd be happy to keep the cup in my refrigerator until you come back.

HL: impatiently It's fine -- just dump it in.

She shoves the cup at me and at this point I'm really uncomfortable. I want to stick to policy and I don't want my manager to be upset with me, I don't want this lady to be upset with me, and if she'd just pay for what she was asking for everything would be fine. I hesitate, and she just keeps repeating 'it's fine' with varying amounts of force and telling me to give her the rest of the juice.

Me: I'm sorry but if you don't want to pay for the rest of the large, I can't give you any options aside from taking the medium. It doesn't seem like a lot, but my manager's been cracking down on this because of the money we've been losing. I realize it's a new policy, but you are getting all 16 ounces.

HL stares at me for a moment, and I can see the rage building in her eyes. I'm pretty done at this point -- I don't like how she's been talking to me and I really don't like when people try to badger me into doing what they want. She clearly wants to be rewarded for telling me about my mistake, and I'm not giving in.

HL: putting the top back on her juice Fine, I figured because, I don't know, HONESTY...

She keeps muttering to herself, packing up her stuff really slowly so she can continue to hit me with super well thought out arguments for why I should have just given her a large like 'I was honest -- you should have just given it to me' and 'never be honest again in this place' and something about robbing her. I'm speechless because I'm literally giving her exactly what she paid for. She keeps shooting me glares and I'm getting so anxious. I want everyone to be happy and no one is happy. I'm trying to find something to say that would fix everything but I have no idea what I should say.

Eventually I just told her to have a nice day and went to calm down in the back. I went to tell one of the managers, and he said he thought the whole situation was stupid and HL was childish for wanting a reward for being honest, so at least I know that they were on my side, but I still felt bad that HL didn't understand why she wasn't getting what she was asking for. I was being as honest as I could, but I guess it just didn't get through :(

Submitted July 04, 2016 at 07:03AM by itsathrow-away http://ift.tt/29fR9pW TalesFromRetail

"Oh, you can't help me then!" TalesFromRetail

So like I've said before, I work in a big box home improvement store. I work in the assembly area, putting together mostly grills this time of year as well as tillers, mowers, porch swings etc. Recently, the Appliance guys have been encroaching on my area in order to store their refrigerators, so there's less and less room, necessitating me taking grills out to the floor myself for staging outside rather than waiting for the Seasonal Dept. to do it. They're swamped anyway, so I don't mind. It is, after all, Memorial Day Weekend.

So I'm hauling out grills, and I've taken out three or four and seen the same guy poking around in plumbing (getting stuck in Plumbing is the worst... all the little parts that have to fit exactly and whatnot, I try and just get the Pros to help when I can. We were slammed and no Pros were available). So I'm on my way back, and I remind you, this guy has SEEN me hauling grills from the back. He'll be Garbage Disposal (since that was what he was buying) or GD, and I'll be me, or M.

GD: I need something M: Okay, what can I do for you?

Dude proceeds to tear open a disposal box he's been carting about and hands me the whole piece.

GD: I need the piece to hook this up to my line, I've already got the line, but I need this piece

I look at it and although I'm VERY unfamiliar with the Plumbing area, and absolutely HATE getting caught back there, I try and help out since this is something I can actually manage!

M: Okay, looks like you need a 3/4 fitting with male threads. GD: Where is that? M: Well if you'll just follow me, I think they're in the next aisle

I do in fact, know exactly what I'm doing this time! I'm thrilled, I can get this guy taken care of and get back to my hole where I belong!

GD however, does not follow. He starts looking at brass fittings that aren't what he needs. The ones with little handles and stuff on them.

M: Sir, they're over this way GD: Okay sure... (starts looking at gutters and whatnot) M: If you'll just follow m...

At this point another customer walks up and looks at me and says "Hey, where ya'll hidin' the Sump Pumps!?"

M: I don't actually know sir, but I can look that up on the app for you in just a second - I don't actually work in this department, I'm in...

GD: You don't work in plumbing?! M: No sir, I work in assembly, but I do know where the fitt...

GD Oh... well you can't help me then, what use are ya!?

He proceeds to snatch his disposal from me and continue poking around at water softeners or some other nonsense that aren't the fittings he needs - Sump Pump guy has also found exactly what he needs just down a few feet - that one I'll admit is my bad. But still.

At any rate, I'm no longer stuck in plumbing and the idiot who won't listen still isn't finding what he needs. I'm happy and hightail it back to my hole where I proceed to put together a few more grills and listen to a Superman Podcast far away from annoying customers.

Submitted May 30, 2016 at 10:22PM by captainsinfonia http://ift.tt/24h1B2I TalesFromRetail

The Lady Who Tried to Blame My Non-Existent Employees For Something That Was Her Fault TalesFromRetail

Hi guys and gals. Sorry it took awhile to post another story. It rained, our new roof leaked and now there's water all in our walls and ceilings and floors. It's a whole to do, but all of my business stuff is safe and dry and nothing was ruined, so that's all that matters. Anyway, to recap, I own a small pet business where I hand make items and have re-sell items that I sell at events and vendor shows. After years in retail, I can tell you that these events bring out a different kind of crazy than good old regular brick and mortar store customers.

For the first two years I was in business, I relied heavily on dog and cat treat sales for my business, and didn't carry anything else when I first started out. I'm licensed by The Department of Agriculture to sell them, and all of my treats have been lab tested. As such, I am required to put all pertinent information on my labels, such as the ingredients, that they're all natural, to refrigerate them, the fat and protein content, etc. The labels then have to be approved by The Department of Agriculture. Since my pet treats are all natural, and therefore could only be taken to one show, where I would either sell out and people would be angry that I didn't have more, or I wouldn't hardly sell any and be stuck with tons of them and they too much for my dogs to eat, I've primarily stopped taking them to events and rely on things like my bandanas and such that can't go bad. This information is important later in the story.

A few springs ago, I was attending a dog cancer walk event. At the time, I had nothing but treats. Everything was going well, I was selling out fast, and everyone was so sweet. About halfway through the show, a woman came up to me and started a somewhat lengthy conversation with me about her dog. Her dog had just had surgery and wouldn't be able to eat anything but her restricted diet for two weeks, but she wanted some treats for her for when she felt better. She wanted my suggestion on which treats would be easiest on her stomach when she was just coming off of a restricted diet. I told her all about the different varieties I carried and which ones had what benefit for dogs. Then I explained to her that all the treats had to be refrigerated once you got them home (I brought them in cooler bags.) and would be good for six weeks in the refrigerator, however, I would be more than happy just to make fresh treats for the dog in two weeks and deliver them to her. In fact, I tried to insist upon it. I don't know what it was, but something about this lady's demeanor just told me that there was going to be some kind of issue if I didn't.

Alas, I was unable to convince her. She decided on the pumpkin treats since they are easy on a dog's stomach and promote digestion, and decided just to keep them in the refrigerator for the two weeks her dog was unable to eat them, which was fine. They would keep. I stressed the part about refrigerating them to her. I showed her on the label where it said to refrigerate them. My business partner also told her the same thing, as well as offered that we could make them fresh in two weeks and deliver them. She also had that same weird feeling about this lady.

Fast forward two and a half weeks. I get an email from any angry lady stating that she was at that specific event, and telling me that she had just opened up her treats that morning and they were all moldy. I emailed her back right away, asking her a few questions, and low and behold, it's the same lady, which I should have figured out because of how long it took her to open the treats. After a few emails back and forth, she admitted that she had kept them in her car for two weeks, in the 80+ degree weather - we were having an unusually hot spring - and that there was nothing on the label telling her to refrigerate them, nor had she been told to. I was mentally smacking her through the internet.

I was a little upset at this woman. Accidents happen, and I'm understanding of that, so had she just told me she forgot them in her car, I would not have been angry. But to blame us? No. However, her language in the email told me a lot. She kept referring to myself and my business partner as "those girls who were at your booth." I realized quite quickly that she didn't know myself and my business partner were the ones running the booth, and that we were a small business. She thought that we were just two employees that the business owner had sent out into the wild to help, and that she could throw this on them and I would believe it, even though I had handed her the business card with my name on it and told her I was the owner. This time, though, I didn't correct her.

It was my first year in business, and because I didn't want to get a bad name, I told her that I couldn't refund her because she had left the treats in the car, but I could replace them and I would also deliver them to her. She lived a half an hour away, but I felt that I had to do what I had to do to make the customer happy. Honestly, it would have been cheaper and easier to refund her, as I wouldn't have money into making a batch of treats for one jar and I could just mail the check out, but I felt something was fishy and I wanted to investigate it further, so I took this route. I told her I needed the molded treats back in their original packaging for the exchange. She asked me why and I explained to her that, like any other retail store, we need the bad items to exchange it for a new one. This is a policy I stand by today. She balked at this, and suddenly I had a feeling that something was fishy, especially considering she was very careful in her email to specify that she had just opened the treats that morning, and the email came through before 10 am. One would surmise that she either still had the treats, or if she had thrown them away, they were on top of the garbage and easy to fish out. Let me just make a side note and let you guys know they were in a Mason Jar, so it wasn't like garbage could have destroyed the packaging. I even told her I would just take the Mason Jar back if she had thrown the treats out - because those things aren't cheap - and she balked at that too.

Regardless, she and I make a date for me to bring the treats to her, and she asks me again if I'm sure I need the old treats back. I tell her yes. The date comes and I specially make the treats fresh for her that morning. I would like to note that I didn't have any other shows for a month and a half past the date we were supposed to meet, so any treats that didn't fit in the jar went to my dogs. I wasn't going to be selling them anywhere. Springtime into early summer is a horrible time for events and shows in this area, so unless they're dog related, I don't do them, and nothing dog related was coming up. Also, with the pumpkin treats, there's no way to really evenly split the can of pumpkin and keep the rest of it so it's still good for the next time I want to make treats, so I basically have to make the whole can all at one time to guarantee them fresh. This makes a ton of treats.

Well, the day of, right as I'm getting ready to walk out the door, she cancels with the excuse that she isn't feeling well and has to go to the doctor. That's cool. It happens. However, the next day she has available for me to take her the treats is almost two weeks away. I don't like to sell treats to customers that more than two days old, that way I can guarantee that they stay good in the refrigerator for six weeks. This whole batch of pumpkin treats go to my dogs, I make fresh treats for her the morning of the next time we are to meet, and she cancels again right as I was leaving.

The third time I was supposed to meet with her, she emails me that morning and tells me she can't meet with me because she has to catch a flight, as she's going on vacation. This was the point that I had just had it with her. She clearly knew ahead of time that she was going on vacation that day and had to catch a flight, and she had been the one to pick the days. I told her that she was still welcome to the treats, but she had to come get them, because I would not make another day to meet her after she canceled three times in a row, less than an hour before I was to be there.

I was very polite, but I had to put my foot down somewhere. Not only that, but my dogs couldn't eat all the treats I had made for her in those three times, and although I took them to the animal shelter down the road and they got good use out of them, it was just a lot of unnecessary work and money I had to put out.

She asked for a refund, and I again told her that I could not do that since she had been the one to leave the treats in the car when we had told her they needed refrigerated and it was on the label as well. She tried to tell me "those girls" must not have put the proper labels on and no one told her about refrigerating them all over again. That's when I very politely and professionally decided to tell her that it was actually myself and my business partner that were at the booth, and it's just the two of us running the business. In fact, I remembered her well, because she had told me her dog had just had surgery and had to eat a special diet for two weeks, so she was keeping the treats for when the dog felt better, and we had offered to make her the treats fresh in two weeks and deliver them to her, but she refused. I also expressed to her that I had made the labels and put them on myself. They were labels that were approved by The Department of Agriculture and ones that I was legally obligated to put on, and that also legally had to include the fact that they had to be refrigerated. I never heard from her again after that.

I personally believe she was trying to pull a fast one one me. Every time we set up another date, she would ask me if I really needed the old treats back. I repeatedly told her I would just take the jar if she had thrown them out, and she still tried to talk me out of it. The fact that she kept asking me about needing them back, and she kept canceling on me at the last minute, only to try for another refund just struck me funny. I was bringing them to her. She didn't have to go out of her way for any part of this, and I was doing it all on her schedule and her chosen days. Also, she spent at least an hour emailing me back and forth on the last day we talked, so she clearly wasn't too eager to catch that flight she so desperately had to cancel on me to catch.

This lady is one of the reasons that I now only sell non-perishable items.

Submitted March 06, 2016 at 02:03PM by PennyoftheNerds http://ift.tt/1YhFGqH TalesFromRetail

I will have to scan the item for the price. TalesFromRetail

Just a short story from gas station worker.

A man came in and stood in front of the beer refrigerator.

Man: Hey how much is this 12 pack? Holding up the 12 pack

Me: I'm not sure. I will have to scan the item for the price.

Man: Is it under 15?

Me: I don't know so I will have to scan the item.

Man: It can't be over 15, right?

Me: I can scan it if you bring it to the counter.

Man: Nevermind, I will just go somewhere else.

I'm very glad you did.

Submitted February 21, 2016 at 06:01AM by gkc07 http://ift.tt/1mPkLNY TalesFromRetail