To wish supermarket staff were a bit more glamorous.

[SurferJet]

Obviously this is lighthearted - but strolling through Tesco earlier I thought how much nicer it would be if the staff had a touch of glamour about them - supermarket shopping is such a boring drudge isn't it, & I for one would be so cheered up if the staff were a bit more 'Hollywood' - obviously it doesn't have to be the full Audrey Hepburn or James Bond - but maybe a step up from dowdy overalls.

Anyone else?

That's an interesting thought, limited. Bit depressing, though.

I was on the checkouts at Tesco in the early 90s, and we had really strict rules about presentation, which were enforced with a rod of iron by the sergeant-major of a store manager. As well as our gorgeous gingham nylon overall, we had a red neckerchief with ticks on - which MUST be facing the correct way. No jewellery, no nail varnish, no make-up deemed garish, no "un-natural" hair colour, tights had to be nude and no more than 20 denier, black skirt (although covered by overall) had to be precisely on the knee. We were carefully inspected before being allowed on the floor, and I was made to polish my shoes before being allowed to start my shift on several occasions.

I do occasionally catch myself noticing cashiers with chipped nail varnish on grubby nails and inwardly shuddering about How This Country Has Gone To The Dogs and What Happened To Standards in a Daily Mail fashion. Then I get a grip.

I didn't realise Jeff Banks did the Woolies uniform. Didn't he re-design the Brownies uniform, too?
Sad to hear the Woolies re-design was so dire.

I would be good if everybody was a bit more glam. I'd also like the front of every house to be litter free, full of nice plants and tidy. It would make the country a lot more pleasant to look at and nicer to live in.

YABU. I'd rather have prices lower on food, than have the company spending on glitzy outfits for their staff.

How much do you think a practical yet attractive staff uniform costs when you are a company the size of Tesco and are factoring in the cost of stock, business rates, the cost of premises, legal costs, research and development, advertising and, of course tax.

I've singled out Tesco, which is unfair. Do you think any of them care about the cost of your food to you when they're thinking: 'For a small amount of money, we could put our staff in nicer shirts and trousers but that would risk them looking better than the customers, and that wouldn't do.'

MrsRinky Ouch!

Not seeing what MrsD has said to offend Dame? I've worked in retail and customer facing on and off for a long time and wouldn't deal with the general public at all if I didn't have to, just like a lot of other people who feel the same!

YANBU.

Someone on here tother day saying that a woman who works in their aldi looks just like Will Ferrell

It don't get more Hollywood than that

This is how the staff at the best supermarket in the UK are dressed.
www.google.co.uk/search?q=booths+staff&client=safari&rls=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj1pNaX_JDMAhXD1RQKHdiVD1UQ_AUICCgC&biw=1440&bih=861#imgrc=qCK8FLJh3FJ7BM%3A

Rinky you mustve been in a POSH tescos

A woman working in our Tesco metro about the same time had FOAD tattooed on her knuckles

When DS1 was little there was a transgender lady who worked on the checkout. She was very glamorous and great to chat to. I was very sad when she retired.

The 'bargepole' comment doesnt cone across well even in the context it was used. And when you think of how many retail workers there are in the country and how many people have done retail at some point in their life its not really true to say most of use wouldnt touch it with a barge pole.

'For a small amount of money, we could put our staff in nicer shirts and trousers but that would risk them looking better than the customers, and that wouldn't do.'

Who says they look worse than the customers? Customers and staff just look normal to me.

I used to work in the supermarket with the fruity blouse and navy skirt.
On my induction day I was asked what size I would need. I was a delicate size 8 at the time.
I was told "We only have size 14, so that will have to do."
It didn't do. It was a good job I could sit down at the till as the skirt just would not stay up. The blouse made me look pregnant. After a few months went by and it became quite clear my supervisor was never going to bother ordering me the right size I set to with my sewing machine and tailored the shit out of the blouse. I found my own skirt.
When I quit I handed the blouse back but forgot to mention how I had altered it. It's possible that it was given to someone else who was a 14 as it was 2nd hand when I was given it.
Retail is a very physical job. When you're hauling about large boxes that are covered in grime as they've clearly been stored in a damp warehouse for months, glamour is not what you want. Wipe clean is more useful.

It was so not a posh Tesco, it was a run-down small store in a depressed Northern town. We were envious of our mates who worked at the new Safeways who weren't treated like 1950s convent schoolgirls!

There's nothing wrong with working in retail, nor is there anything wrong with wanting to do something more fulfilling.

thecatfromjapan Customers don't want the staff to look better than them, and that goes for someone who is working in B&Q or someone in Alexander McQueen, who will be wearing the clothes, but just not the most eye-catching and expensive ones.

I can see the point. But some customers do abuse the privilege. Sometimes a lowly shop worker will look nicer than you. Deal with it.

But yes, people who work in retail are never expected to outshine the customer and people who work in supermarkets or other mass-market retail outlets are usually put in uniforms that are deliberately designed to make customers feel vastly superior.

A friend who was a manager in retail banking left because a cheapo uniform was introduced. He didn't expect to have a Savile Row account - his bank was a stone's throw - but he said that he couldn't convince people to invest millions when he was wearing a polyester suit with the bank's logo embroidered on the breast pocket and they were the sort of people who banked in Piccadilly And yet, the bank expected him to and asked why not... It's all changed now. No one respects bank managers and the people who visit their bank branch in Piccadilly or elsewhere are all dead...

A friend of mine works in Sainsbury's. She is not permitted to wear jewellery other than small hoop earrings, excessive make up or perfume, and although she is allowed to dye her hair only "natural colours" are acceptable. She has a special uniform (bakery)which requires daily washing, but the store only does a weekly washing drop so she either wears it dirty or pays to wash it herself. She's on minimum wage, so can't afford to glam up.

Customers and staff just look normal to me.

Oh come off it IcedTin. The staff in my local supermarket look normal to me. But they definitely don't look nicer in their magenta nylon zip up outfits with myriad badges giving their first names and invitations to report on 'How did I do today?' and instructions to ask me how wonderful my day has been?

That's a deliberate policy to make me feel better.