To ask retail staff your worst customer stories?

@FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper

Exactly!! I know this rule seems hugely unfair to the decent people who wouldn't ever think to leave a toilet in a state that has been described on this thread but unfortunately as you can see from all the many posts about people doing that it's not just here and there its happening regularly, in the bookies we had a rule among the staff, if you let someone into the toilets you are the one who will clean up the mess left behind unless of course its serious health and safety because it isn't fair that we have to deal with and clean up that filth especially when we already put up with constant abuse and real threats of physical harm.

I've seen toilets left in a horrific state one woman had clearly had her period and I kid you not there was a bloody sanitary towel down the toilet along with shit and there was blood and shit over the toilet seat! 🤢🤮🤮 I had to clean that up and I didn't even let the person in there she sneaked in after a customer and took advantage of an incident happening so I didn't see her and that wasn't the first time I saw that I've seen used tampons on the toilet floor too when there is a proper sanitary waste bin provided! Some people are just filthy and disgusting I bet they wouldn't ever clean that on daily basis. So I rarely let anyone including certain customers use the toilets I put up with a lot crap in the bookies I drew the line at that.

Why the FUCK would you take a shit in the changing room? We worked in a big shopping centre and there were toilets on both floors. Is it that some people don’t make it to the toilet quick enough? Do some people have fetishises and enjoy humiliation? The fact that it’s so common on this thread alone is scary.

It's utterly bizarre, isn't it? I can understand (obviously don't condone) people acting aggressively to get free/discounted stuff, but what do they gain from pooing in the changing room?

For me it's the same principle as that I understand the motivation for shoplifting - because you clearly want to get things that you want/need without having to pay for them - but I will never understand the wide appeal of vandalism, where the environment is made worse for everybody, including the vandals.

This is such a depressing thread. Post after post about disgusting behaviour. These people walk amongst us.

I've had a man put his hands around my throat when he was told by police that my manager had reported him for shoplifting.

I've had a Dyson thrown at me when I stopped someone from stealing it.

I've had beer thrown at me when I refused to sell it due to no id.

I've been threatened with a knife by someone who said they would wait for me after work.

I've had a man say keep the change and drop it down my blouse.

I've been called a bitch and a cunt by the local shoplifter because I watched him like a hawk and didn't let him get away with anything.

Dh was in a supermarket where some shoplifters set fire to a basket after clothes and aerosols to create a diversion so they could steal a tv.

People who work in retail need more support and protection from the legal system.

I’ve never had anyone swear, shout or get physical and I’m grateful for that because that probably would have been the day I received a disciplinary. There’s absolutely no way someone can spit in my face and walk out of the shop in one piece.

I left Retail during Covid when I was furloughed and I never want to go back again

I too have a had a customer do a shit in the men’s changing rooms. They put loads of clothes on top and it was one of my sales assistants who discovered it. He refused to clean it up and rightly so!

Why the FUCK would you take a shit in the changing room? We worked in a big shopping centre and there were toilets on both floors. Is it that some people don’t make it to the toilet quick enough? Do some people have fetishises and enjoy humiliation? The fact that it’s so common on this thread alone is scary.

One time when I was a Manager in a store on Oxford Street, this woman went crazy because her birkin bag had been stolen. She’d left it on the seat whilst looking in the mirror to see some shoes that she had tried on. By the time she went back to the seating area, her bag had gone.

She shouted at all the staff and said it was their fault for not watching her stuff. I had to get involved and explain to her that she’s in Oxford Street. There’s thieves everywhere and that’s why we have signs in the store saying please look after your belongings! I have no clue why anyone would be so trusting to leave a birkin bag on a seat and walk off but hey ho!

Forgotten about “pasty fart” man! I was trying desperately to hold my breath throughout the(mercifully short) transaction & handed him his receipt from as far away as possible! Never smelt anything like it!!

A lot of these comments also seem to me to be one very clear reason why a lot of businesses don't allow non-customers to use their toilets - and are much criticised whenever we have MN threads about the topic.

With so many people around like this who feel fully entitled to use your facilities and leave them all smeared with poo and honking to high heaven, you can see why firms wouldn't want to risk one of these 'incidents' when they don't even stand to make a single penny from the person. It sounds like a lot of people who don't buy anything are more entitled (and disgusting) than many people who are actual customers.

I get that it makes it difficult for decent people who get caught short and genuinely just want to use a toilet in the normal way and leave it clean, without any drama; but with so many minging skanky people around, you can well see why the companies aren't desperate to open their toilets up as a free-for-all (not that it helps with the kind of person who never feels the need to seek out a designated toilet in which to do their dirty business in the first place, mind).

Apropos the bookies, it's disgraceful how many staff are treated in them; but I can't say I'm surprised that those establishments attract a high proportion of people who 'struggle' socially, shall we say. Even people who aren't by nature rough or antisocial probably become desperate when they realise just how much money they've lost and how much (more) trouble they'll be in until they next get paid.

They definitely need beefed up security, more and better-paid staff on duty and a no-nonsense approach. Then again, the owners/managers probably realise that, if they only allowed the polite, respectful customers and banned the rest, they'd probably be ejecting 80% or more of their customers.

No criticism of the workers, but the whole industry is set up to be very exploitative of vulnerable/socially-awkward people. I know there are plenty of folk who happily gamble £10 OR £20 a month that they can easily afford to lose, in return for a bit of entertainment; but I doubt they're the source of most of the profits - especially for bricks-and-mortar bookies.

Wow, what a thread!

20 odd years ago, when Early Learning Centre’s were stand alone stores on the high street we would get parents who would try to treat us like baby sitting services.
“little Timmy is ok here for an hour or two whilst I nip into Debenhams” whilst pointing out a toddler who is creating havoc at the Thomas the Tank Engine table and then being a dick when I try to politely refuse when really I wanted to ask them if they’d taken leave of their fucking senses or were just naturally that thick.

Maybe it's just me, but I clearly remember as a teenager assuming that ELC was some kind of government or charity-led facility - kind of like sure start centres nowadays. I don't know if it was partly the name, but they always looked to me to be deliberately designed as a place to play with toys rather than a place to buy toys and take them home with you. The one in our city at least looked very unlike other toy shops.

@ohsuzannah He was a lovely guy the reason he threatened the customer was because he wanted a bet at a good price think special offer type thing but he was an hour late the offer had expired and we're not allowed to make any exceptions the terms and conditions are clear. The customer after trying to charm and flirt me into making an exception and failing then turned nasty he called me a fucking fat jobs worth on a power trip and a cheap whore then offered me a tenner for a blow job and told me he would deep throat me that should shut me up.

Before I could respond lovely customer grabbed him shoved him into the counter and told him if he carried on being a twat he was gonna punch his mouth off his face that should shut him up! I meanwhile was talking lovely customer down from doing just that and it was only because I said remember the camera's he let the guy go and told him to piss off. That arsehole ran out the shop so fast I was amazed he didn't burn a hole in the floor.

I made lovely customer a cup of tea and then called the area manager as technically the twat threatened sexual assault which area manager wouldn't tolerate. He wanted to call the police but I said no and explained what lovely customer did and I didn't want him to get in trouble as the camera's will show what he did and why should get in trouble for doing the decent thing. Thankfully area manager agreed and told him to let the customer have a free bet on the machine.

Lovely customer was a real gent when he heard another customer had spat in my face he came straight down the shop looking for him lol

I didn't do very long in retail, but I am a veteran of care and hospitality.
I've had 'interesting' days in both jobs but have seen the worst of humanity in hospitality, been called every name under the sun, groped, slapped, pushed, grabbed by the scruff of the neck, my hair grabbed, threatened with implements, threats to kill me, my family, torch my house..... not to mention talked to like shit, or like I'm stupid, patronised, belittled, humiliated and attempts to embarrass me.
Now, if people come at me with an attitude or treat me like I'm thick because of the job I do, that's exactly what they get, I act as stupid as possible, get everything wrong and if I went any slower I'd go backwards 😂 well if I'm going to be treated like shit anyway I might as well have some fun with it! And the customer is always right so if it's an idiot they want, it's an idiot they get! Gotta give the customer what they want after all!
One that sticks in my mind though is from retail, my job started 2 hours before the shop opened sorting magazines and newspapers after delivery (that I had to collect) and setting the tills up etc, one guy complained to my manager that I wouldn't let him in while doing this (I wasn't allowed to having the safe open and dealing with the tills plus having cases and stacks of stock everywhere) but his biggest issue was that it was 'deception' because the shop lights were on so we looked open despite the door being locked and a big closed sign and the security grills over the windows etc, he wouldn't accept that I needed the lights on to see and said I should be working in the dark so as not to deceive people into thinking we are open.

It has definitely got worse since covid though, people seem to have lost the ability to take responsibility for themselves and their feelings and emotions and it's simply easier and socially acceptable to take it out on customer facing staff and you're likely to get apologised to and something for free for behaving like an arsehole to boot, it's why it's got so bad.
People know they're being unreasonable and unfair but they also know they'll get away with it, and then some have the absolute brass neck to complain about poor service because of places being understaffed - people do not want to be treated the way described on this thread, and that's partly responsible for a lack of these staff - and it's partly the culture that has evolved around 'The customer is always right' it's morphed into 'The staff are always wrong'. While many including me laugh about these experiences, being in an often combative, abusive and negative atmosphere affects mental health and does cause people real problems.

Pebblesflintstoneandbambamrubble

Bloody hell, where do you live? It sounds like the 7th circle of hell!!

A man who stood there shaking his leg until a shit fell out of the bottom of his trousers

🤣🤣🤣🤣

served a premiership footballer and he left me a 1 pence piece as a tip.

Name him! What does it matter? Reveal the tight git!

Whilst bookies are mostly a male domain women do gamble and some have been quite rude but I've never had one smash the shop up. The few times women got abusive to me one was a druggie and it was very obvious she had track marks on her arms and feet (she was wearing flip flops) she came in asked to use the toilet and I said no they aren't available she then said she would bet after I repeated myself calmly and politely and she went nuts told me I was an unhelpful bitch and a fat pig and accused me of having an attitude because she was skinny I was on a power trip. In actual fact she looked like skin and bones full of scrabs and I didn't want to clean up mess left behind by drug addicts and I can't touch any drug paraphernalia left behind either.

Mostly the female customers I dealt with were ok some were really rude but not many abusive incidents with them. The ones who called me a cunt, slag, bitch and whore were all men.

@PurpleNebula84 that's good one lol

I always think of 'the worst toilet in Scotland' from Trainspotting when a bookies' loo is mentioned!

The ratio is very heavily male. Female customers are not a huge percentage of the customers.

I've had " arguments " with both male and female customers although not anywhere near as many. Most issues with a woman have probably been refusal to use the loo or to leave the customers alone because they arebt actually customers, just the hobos wanting to scrounge money or change up their coins or use the loo ( which is a no cos of drugs etc customers only)

Good for him.

Another job I did - not retail - was in a restaurant in a UK seaside resort town. One night we had a load of pissed-up businessmen from a conference in. They were so awful to the waiting staff that the duty manager threw them all out. We were all ready to back him up if the owner had come down on him. But good sense prevailed.

Working Christmas Eve in Woolworths and it was always a challenging shift but one year was off the scale. People expecting a full range of stock and incandescent because things had sold.

Store manager got so fed up he just shut the store nearly three hours early. 😀

I work in an understaffed local supermarket. I’ve had a customer throw crumpled and ripped lottery tickets at me then demand the manager check them when they weren’t winners.

Daily grumbles are people refusing to use self service checkouts when I’m the only person on the shop floor trying to deal with a frozen delivery by myself.

Customers not understanding that retail staff like myself pride ourselves on being helpful and friendly, but we have jobs to do when self service checkouts are easy to use.

I would have punched her

I worked at a tearoom when I was 15, very small place, homemade afternoon teas, linen tablecloths, flowery teapots etc.
Two women came in with a baby and sat in the window seats. One of them started to change the babys soiled nappy on the table. I went over and said quietly something along the lines of "oh you don't have to do that, we have baby change facilities in the toilets". This was signposted.
She told me to mind my own fucking business, and called me a "judgey little skank".
I didn't know what to do so apologised and went into the kitchen to tell the owner. I stayed in the back but heard her ask them to leave.
We noticed after they had gone that they had unzipped one of the cushions and stuffed the open dirty nappy inside.

Or "Yes, of course, I remember you; you taught me geography at St Stephen's school twenty years ago - how are you these days, Mrs Harris?"