sales assistant sniffs clothing I returned to the store

[shethinksistink]

I have namechanged for this as I find it very embarrassing.

I went shopping end of last week, found trousers and a top I liked, wasn’t sure of the sizes and couldn’t be bothered trying them on, so took both items in 2 sizes. At home I tried the bigger sizes on first, they fitted great so didn’t even bother trying the smaller sizes. Bagged up the 2 smaller sized items and set them aside to return yesterday.

Friend arrives 9am and we drive into town and my first port of call is to bring my returns back. Shop assistant packs out the two things, looks at my receipt, starts checking the numbers off against the tags then picks up the top and sniffs at it. Not in a discreet way, the exact same way you’d sniff at the armpits to check if it needs to go in the wash, blatantly! She didn’t look happy. I hate to do the exaggerated “I was shocked to the core” mumsnet thing, but I was. I have genuinely never felt so shocked, embarrassed and dumbstruck in a shop in my life. I am hyper vigilant about personal hygiene and the thought I would return smelly items made my recoil in horror. But I hadn’t even tried them on, so I was totally confused. There was a queue a mile long behind me at the desk. Everyone could see and hear this.

In a total fluster I ask the sales assistant what the problem is, she replies in quite a disdainful tone “I just thought I smelled cigarette smoke”. I don’t smoke and neither does anyone else in my house but I was just massively relieved it wasn’t a BO smell. So I jump in and say that it can’t be smoke as I don’t smoke and my house is smoke free. And she again replies disdainfully with “well I can definitely smell it” with a kind of roll-eye facial expression. The whole exchange had a hostile kind of undertone to it. At this point it dawns on me my friend smokes in her car all the time, just not when others are in it. No doubt she’d smoked 2 or 3 on the drive down to my place. The bag with the items had been in the car for around half an hour. Yes, they no doubt had a second hand stale cigaretty smell to them.

But even at that. I was appalled that any sales assistant would sniff an item of clothing in such a blatant manner then bemoan the fact the smell wasn’t to her liking. 40-a-day smokers are actually allowed to return clothes. As are dog owners, chip pan owners, curry cooks, people who cook fish in their homes, people who don’t shower daily and so on. While I sympathise with stores who no doubt get some ponging items of clothing returned, I have never ever witnessed a sales assistant do an in-your-face sniff test in front of a long queue of onlookers. AIBU to find this an appalling lack of manners on the part of the store/sales assistant?

If things must be sniffed, shouldn’t it been done discreetly? Then again, I doubt stores can refuse to accept items of clothing that have been stored in the houses of smokers or pet owners or people who own a chip pan or fry fish or are painting the skirting boards with gloss or people who wear cheap crappy perfumes. So why the hell did the sales assistant sniff my fucking top? lol

For the record the whole thing knocked me so sideways I didn’t say a word to the sale assistant. I just left the store as quick as I could. Checked with my friend and yes she had smoked in the car that morning (and it would be fair to say she smokes daily in her car as she spends 3-4hours per working-day on average on the road, wouldn’t surprise me if she smokes 50 ciggies a week in her car). My mood was so fucked up I abandoned my shopping trip and came straight home.

Calmed down in the afternoon, and called the head office of the store. They were appalled and assured me it would be dealt with. I had the name of the sales assistant as it was on the return receipt. Asked me to put the whole event in writing and send it to the head office, which I have done and they’ll get back to me in the new year. I then called the actual store and spoke with a manager who was equally sympathetic and horrified, apologised on behalf of the sales assistant and assured me it would be dealt with and wouldn’t happen to anyone again.

So AIBU to consider having a little trip into town tomorrow morning, finding the sniffing sales assistant and just politely ask her if she meant to be so rude she meant to spoil my day and embarrass me to the core then she should be wholeheartedly congratulated as it worked a treat. And tell her that I hope after head office and the store manager are finished with her that she feels half as rotten as I felt yesterday morning. Then just wish her a happy new year and smile and leave.

Or am I just being childish and petty and should leave it at the written complaint and the 2 phone calls?

John Lewis will take anything back as long as you have the original receipt except knickers.haha

OP, how about you print this thread out and show it to her??

Head office will often act appalled and apologetic when they get complaints, it doesn't mean that they think you're right and I really doubt they think you are right at all. They just like to keep their regular customers shopping there.

Twenty I was going to post that!

lavender love that your post came up three times... Clearly mumsnet felt your reply needed emphasis

stinky op you are being so unreasonable but utterly hilarious! Thanks for posting this I needed something funny to read to cheer me up while looking after a poorly baby. You took back clothes that you admitted stunk, then changed your mind and said they didn't stink but your friend did, then changed your mind and said the clothes might have smelt but your friend will have stunk more. Hope your friend doesn't read this as if she was embarrassed by strangers comments behind her she will definitely be more embarrassed by your comments. You are really some friend!

I know perfectly well that, as you are a person who felt she deserved a black mark for doing her job, your 'thirty second' aggressive seeking out of the poor sales assistant wouldn't have been thirty seconds. I've had bitchy rude customers come to 'talk' to me about things before. Security guard is lovely and more than happy to remove idiots customers like you and turn them away at the door in future. I wonder how many rude arrogant smelly customers like you she had had to deal with that morning poor lass! Also maybe your friend was embarrassed by your behaviour not the shop assistant or other customers! I know I would have been!

For some perspective I once checked someone's twenty pound note with the checker pen. They made a formal complaint and my managers were deeply sympathetic on the phone, would have a word with me etc. Then took me out back and told me about the "fecking idiot" who thought it was worthy of a complaint. When the customer next came in (after saying they never would again) they gleefully asked me about the punishment that they were promised I was getting. I solemnly told them about our disciplinary procedure, and called over a manager (can't serve someone who has previously complained about you without a manager/supervisor present). As I'm regularly the only person serving on my department she now has to wait for a manager/supervisor nearly every time she comes in, a supervisor who always makes out like i have to be "supervised" because of a "mark" on my record as she checks every note the customer gives her. We always have a good laugh about her with our regulars and other staff members after she's gone! You are this customer! Hope you enjoy being a mockery for every manager and staff member in the store stinky!

Oh forgot have a

I keep getting a distinct whiff of armpit - must be from an under- bridge inhabitant.

I was sympathetic until I realised the thing probably reeked of fag smoke.

This is why I never wanted a career involving customer service. I would have suggested to the OP she was proper cheeky bringing it back, and refused the refund.

It's probably

Why I ended up a school teacher.

Well I'm back from my shift and we did have a gem. I was thinking about OP and her vile attitude and utter lack of self awareness all night and it did make me laugh. I'll tell the story if anyone wants me to! Don't want to jack the thread otherwise haha.

You actually advised someone on here to "Take a pill!" ?!!

That's rich coming from you!!

You are seriously over estimating how much anyone at the shop or head office gives a rat's arse about you. They have to make out they're interested and concerned and will follow through - their training "I'm so sorry about this, it's not our policy at all" kicks in as they try to soothe the Perpetually Offended. In reality they will be hooting with laughter at the utter ridiculousness of your "complaint".

This cannot be filling your day. It's not normal.

I'm imagining the OP's BFF making a couple of New Year's resolutions.

This needs to go to classics or failing that customerssuck.com

Ha ha ha

Buffoonery at it's finest!

Aww I used to love customers like you. Would give us a good laugh fro days! Head office and the manager will be laughing at you too.
What an idiot, hope you're please with yourself. At least it will be a funny story for staff parties.

I returned a silky black dress a while back.

I'd bought it, taken it home, tried on, realised it didn't fit so put it back in the large paper bag and left it in my hallway ready for my next trip into town.

It became very apparent when the sales lady in monsoon took the dress out of the bag that my cat had been using the bag/dress as a bed all week. You could have made a new cat from all the hair.

I would have never returned it knowingly in that state but to my surprise she accepted the return. I would not have blamed her if she'd laughed me out of the shop.

OP it seems you have bigger issues if one experience is giving you this much angst.

Crikey, I've just read this whole thread more or less. OP you really sound like a stuck up b. The poor shop assistant having probably worked shit hours over Christmas, not earning a huge sum and then she has you to deal with! Bloody hell, I'm kind off lost for words! When I worked in a clothes shop I'd waft the returns out of the bag to get a bit of a smell and then I'd go in for the sniff test if needs be! Surely returning anything that smells is a no go? I smoke and would never return a fag engulfed item to a shop. I remember in my shop that we had a top we had to mark as faulty and take off the shop floor as a certain nationality who don't believe in deodorant tried it on and the BO stench was unbelievable!

You've just said yourself that the clothes did smell of smoke? So I don't understand what exactly she did wrong. I wouldn't want to go into a shop and buy clothing that someone had returned and stunk of smoke.

You are majorly over reacting. Fair enough the complaint to head office ect but leave the poor girl alone. I doubt they will do anything about it anyway. All the shops I've worked in, if a customer complained about us we would be told about it but also told not to worry about it. Unless it was something serious of course.

Yabu and mean

BusterGonad what nationality is it that don't believe in deodorant?

This is so unreasonable I could hear you all the way from Baby Names.

Rocky I'm not sure and I don't want to start a whole new debate. I know if I start reeling off countries people will get on there high horse!

Please come back today OP. This thread is so funny.

DH kept asking me what I was laughing at last night "are you still on that thread?"

I work in retail and we have a family that comes in, buys but never tries on. A few days later, they trundle back in and return the items they bought - and you can smell the items through the bag! You can smell the customers as they walk around. It is almost impossible to get rid of the smell of fag smoke from clothes without washing them. So basically, that's a loss on an item that had previously been sold, then returned. A lot of places, including the store where I work, don't have much room behind the scenes, so airing out a smelly garment is difficult without making everything else stink as well.

As for wanting to go into the shop and verbally abusing the assistant - are you 10 years old? You need to spend some time working in retail and you'd soon change your tune. You sound utterly pathetic and you were unquestionably BU!

BusterGonad you said "certain nationality who don't believe in deodorant". I assumed you knew which nationality you were talking about and asked which one. I wasn't looking for a debate with you as I never debate with bams.

Rocky of course I know. Wtf is a bam?

OP needs to put on her yoga pants and throw some asanas and chill the hell out. I've never encountered someone more in need of the calming power of yoga!
🙏 namaste!