To be appalled by this shopkeeper's rudeness?

[nomorecrumbs]

Okay so I'm over it now, but as I work in marketing I still think it's appallingly bad customer service

I love shopping in little independent shops on the High Street and popped into a small clothes store today. It's been raining moderately today and I had my closed umbrella in my hand. I'd taken about 4 steps inside and the manager beared down on me, saying loudly and sternly without any greeting; "Ma'am put your umbrella at the front of the shop, put it there! I don't want my floor getting wet!!" I looked at where he was pointing and there was no umbrella stand or anything, he basically wanted me to put it in the shop doorway. And considering the area, my precious umbrella may as well have had a sign on it saying "steal me" if I did that.

I just walked straight out of the shop while he was still blustering behind me, so he potentially lost a sale. I felt like a naughty child who had been told off!

I've worked in small independent businesses before and we didn't care if the browsing customers would bring in dirt from outside - we had a broom and a mop and would just go round cleaning up after them. What was more important was that we made them feel welcome and comfortable being in the store. AIBU to be appalled at him? Bad customer service grinds my gears like nothing else. But maybe it's just the crappy area - I didn't get a single smile from any of the shop assistants in New Look, either.

Being the perfect specimen that I am, I always shove my wet brolly into my shopping bag.

[smug]

Seriously, he was rude. Tell all your friends, he'll soon be out of business.

My umbrellas (I have a selection) are very posh. None of your £2.99 market stall rubbish that blows inside out as soon as you sneeze on it here.

Nah, the shop was the cheap and chavvy cheerful kind. I would have been offended by his tone even if had been Harrods, though.

I don't dare buy a really good umbrella, for the record, as I'm far too likely to lose it.

But I'd rather leave my rather sweet £10 Sainsbury's umbrella in a random doorway by choice.

*rather not!

I might do that highjinx I can be petty.

The poshness of the shop doesn't matter OP. It is, like you say, customer service.

DH has an independent shop. It?s quite posh, but it wouldn?t matter if it was a Poundshop. You don?t want your stock damaged but you don?t want to antagonise the customers either.

Before the smoking ban, if anyone walked in with a cigarette he?d just say: ?Sir, would you mind putting that here,? and hold out an ashtray with a smile and a look that showed it wasn?t a request. Then he?d put it away from the clothes on the windowsill so the shop didn?t stink.

If that didn?t work and someone was really intent on wafting their fag or wet brolly about he?d be more direct. But most people get the message the first time without bad feeling.

And I know what you mean about sweet. My mum was heartbroken when she left her umbrella with teddies on it in the pictures. She's never seen one since.

I know where she can get one - there's a shop in Piccadilly that might as well be called All Things Teddy because it just sells teddies and teddy paraphernalia, to Japanese tourists mostly.

I'm not telling her though because that fucking umbrella was beyond embarrassing.

You may have noticed that I'm a little over-invested in umbrellas and other accessories

Teddy Umbrella fuck embarrassing, I am THERE!

googles All Things Teddy

If there was a chance my brolly would be stolen then it would be staying with me.

I'd have been incredibly childish and wondered round the store picking up items. If he was still ranty, glarey and/or following me and my brolly I'd have handed everything back with a polite smile 'this is everything I would have bought if you weren't so rude, I'll let you put them back'

Wet floor signs, a mat at the front of the store and a mop would easily have solved his 'OMG there's water drops' issues