Out of all the jobs I've had, retail is by far my favorite. But, there are those customers - you know exactly the ones I'm talking about - that make you consider quitting on the spot and walking out the door. Working retail isn't easy, and sometimes, I just want to tell the customers like it is, but I have to smile and keep folding.
The customer is not always right.
Whoever came up with the phrase "the customer is always right" has clearly never worked a day of retail in their life. If a customer thinks an item is on sale when it isn't, we can't give them the sale price just because they were incorrect. Believe me, the employees know way more about the product - and what's right and wrong - than anyone who shops there.
Read the signs.
Too often customers mistake signs and sales because they simply don't take enough time to read them. If there's a clearly marked sign that says "40 percent off flannels" and there are tank tops next to them, no, the tank tops are not also 40 percent off. It would save us both a lot of time if they paid more attention.
Don't leave your unwanted items scattered throughout the store.
There's nothing worse than finding shoes for a 2-year-old in the women's section. If you really have to abandon your clothes for whatever reason, take them to the fitting room or the cash registers where we can put them in the right spot, instead of finding them strewn about.
We will put your "no"s back.
If you don't like a piece of clothing, or 5, or 10, we will put them back for you. A lot of items are folded a certain way and many of the customers either don't know how or just don't care. So, instead of putting that shirt or pair of jeans back yourself, just give them to an employee. They know what to do.
We aren't your mother - we don't want to clean up your messy dressing room.
Walking into a dressing room with clothes inside out, on the floor, on the wrong hangers, is a sure-fire way to annoy an employee. Having to pick up your mess, though it's part of our job, would be a lot better if the customers simply cleaned up after themselves instead of having us sort through your mess.
Don't come in to shop if we're closing in 10 minutes.
Not only is this rude, but we have lives too. We want to get home or go somewhere, and we can't when it's 8:50 and you're still browsing through the store with no intention of leaving anytime soon. If you really wanted to shop your leisure, pick an earlier time.
Don't be that person that messes up a neat display.
We work very hard on making sure that all of our displays are neat and tidy. Sometimes, it takes an hour just to size and fold shirts or jeans correctly and make them look presentable. Don't be that person that messes up someone's hard work, especially when it would only take a few extra seconds to grab that shirt or pair of jeans carefully.
Don't be rude to the employees.
Most of the time, we have no control over what happens in the store. We don't set the prices or the sales, we just sell the items. So, it's not our fault that you think something is too expensive, and don't yell at us when we have nothing to do with it.
