Thanksgiving is upon us and that means so is Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year. It has now expanded into Thanksgiving day, meaning that many people who work in retail do not get to look forward to a shorter work week, or even get to spend a lot of time with family or relaxing. As a person who worked at a major retail store for five holiday seasons, I know how physically and emotionally draining it can be to work throughout this week and the following two months. Part of why I chose not to go back to work over the school break is because I need to take time for myself to relax and I do not think I can emotionally deal with being in retail any longer.
So, for those of you who still are working in retail, I commend you on your stamina and wish you good luck this week. For those of you who plan on going out shopping on Thursday night, early Friday morning, or any time at all during the entire holiday weekend, please remember to be patient and respectful of everyone who has sacrificed their holiday and precious time off to be there working so you can get your shopping started for the holiday season. If you have never worked in retail, then you cannot possibly understand the craziness of black Friday and the utter ridiculousness of some customers who seem to lack any humility or kindness. In order to better explain it, here are the top five annoying things that often happen on black Friday that retail workers want you to stop doing, or at least I wanted people to stop doing when I was working in retail.
1. Oh, why is this so expensive? Isn't everything on sale? It's Black Friday!
No, not everything is on sale, ever, on black Friday. Let me tell you a secret: there are actually barely any good deals offered on this day. Sure, there a few door busters at some retailers, like televisions on sale or electronics, and maybe one specific sweatshirt or pair of pants. But those go quickly, and they are usually made specifically for this event so they might not be as good of quality as the regularly priced items. Stores often do some deals, like buy one get one, but this sometimes starts on the day before Thanksgiving before the madness starts and lasts throughout the weekend, so you played yourself by waiting until today, the craziest of all days, for coming out to get a not-so-good deal.
2. What do you mean you don't have this in the size I want? My daughter needs a medium and this is exactly what she wants and needs for Christmas!
Like I said in number 1, a lot of the stuff that is sold on black Friday are items that have been in the store for at least a month now, since holiday collections come in as early as October. The most common sizes are most likely already sold out, and it is not my job to ship the correct amount of projected items that will be sold. I was just the person in the store working with no control over size distribution. Also, I'm sure your daughter will be happy with any of the other overly priced items in our store and does not "need" this exact one in order to make her Christmas special. Oh and by the way, all of the product is basically out of the floor as people are in the back frantically trying to get it out, so no, do not ask to check in the back on the craziest day of the year because even on regular days no one likes to search in the hectic back room for the one item you want that we are ninety-five percent positive is not back there.
3. You must be so tired! I can't believe how crazy it is here, all of the lines are so long!
Well of course I'm tired, I've been here for about seven hours already and still have another four hours to go. I haven't been able to get coffee at all since the line at the Starbucks in the mall has been filled with teenagers getting their Frappuccinos. Plus my break isn't long enough for me to even stand in that line, let alone take a minute to sit down and also eat something. So yes, I am tired, and it is crazy here at the mall, because people like you are contributing to the problem and are out shopping on Thanksgiving or black Friday instead of sleeping or sitting at home watching movies like I wish I was.
4. Can I order this online? Oh wait just a second to check me out, my son will be right up with some stuff.
Lines are so long because checking people out can often take forever. This is due to many reasons, more than just the obvious that people are buying a lot of items. Like people who still have not decided what they want to buy even though they stood in line and had about twenty minutes to decide between this top or the other colored one. Also, keeping place in line is just rude, the lines would go way faster if everyone got in line once they had everything they wanted to purchase, and also knew exactly the prices of their items so they would not feel the need to argue about it after everything has been rung up. Things like online orders also take a bit more time, and honestly if you wanted to order online then why didn't you just stay home and shop online? It's a great tool to use in stores for when sizes are out, but on high volume days it just slows down the lines and makes everyone angry.
5. Rudeness in general
It's the holiday season, and this holiday in particular is about being thankful for the good things in your life and being humble. So please just be nice. Everyone is tired, sweaty, and annoyed about the busy parking lot, lines at every store, and general craziness. You are the one who decided to come out into this madness, so that doesn't really give you the right to be rude about not having sizes or rude to people in small crammed spaces. If everyone were nicer, the entire shopping and working experience would be so much more enjoyable and I wouldn't have to write articles like this.
So keep in mind the retail workers who have given up their time off and their holiday to be at stores so you can do your shopping this black Friday and holiday season, and try to be a little nicer and empathetic towards the fact that not everyone gets to spend money on clothes or electronic shopping. There are far worse things in the world than not finding what is on your kids' Christmas list at a black Friday deal. If you are going to brave going out shopping black Friday this year, just try to be a little nicer and less demanding so everyone can have a stress-free enjoyable day.
