to be disappointed about luxury store customer service?

[yolofish]

My DD1 has just turned 21, so today we went to vv expensive, luxury shop to buy her possibly the 3rd cheapest thing they offer - agreed pressie, actually not too expensive in the scheme of things.

We were both reasonably dressed - possibly more so than the tourists wandering around - yet we were not treated that well. Apparently the system is you give your name at the door - no one asked us that, so we wandered around until I found a sales lady who said she would add our names to the list.

20 mins later we were then served by the most incredibly sullen youth I have ever come across. Absolutely no interest in us - slapped the chosen item on the counter, didn't bother to point out any its features or why it would be so desirable. No kind of "is this a special purchase" or any interest at all actually. The packaging was eventually lovely, and hopefully she will get beautiful emails from the store in question and maybe the odd glossy brochure in the future after we'd filled in all the inevitable details.

I feel mugged!

We still bought it, because she'd set her heart on it, but she was disappointed by the whole experience because of the way we were treated. She loves the present, but the experience was such a bloody disappointment!

Jaysus, he was a twerp. You should complain, obviously not expecting a bag as compo but the service was piss poor. I'd complain if I'd had that experience. Hopefully he can be a bit nicer for the next person that comes as a treat.

Do somewhat agree about the lesson for dd, but more useful down the line in a 'remember when we went to buy that expensive thing & the salesperson was a dick?' Rather than take more shine off the treat now

Glad your dd had a good birthday and sorry this took the shine off it OP. Personally I wouldn't touch those sort of shops with a barge pole but a you say it was her birthday present and her choice.

Its at the polar end of the scale but IMHO if you want good customer services you can't beat Benefit. I never wear makeup but DD wants to and when she got a Boots voucher for her birthday last year headed straight for the Benefit counter. She had £25 to spend and the assistant couldn't have been kinder. She spent ages going over the different options, letting DD try different bits on and showing her the best special offers. DD told her it was her birthday money and she immediately said "oh we'll have to find you something extra special then". At the end she said to me "just look round the store for 5 minutes while I get everything ready" and when we came back she'd wrapped DD's choice beautifully and produced a lovely little bag of samples with a note saying "happy birthday from Benefit" - DD was so excited

On a recent trip to London we went into Benefit on Carnaby street this time only for a lipstick and got very similar treatment (minus the bag of samples )

These SAs were seeing a young girl coming in, showing an interest in their products and were reeling her in, offering great service and making her want to go back.... guess where she's planning to spend her birthday money this year....

Sounds like LV could take some lessons

Aspinal in Covent Garden are lovely. Go against the grain OP!

Yes OP why aren't you answering the questions about the beautiful emails?

Oh, give over with the emails... Op has explained she wanted a special shopping experience for her daughter's birthday and got a patronising dickhead taking 15 minutes to ring up the sale.

I sometimes think the human race has it coming.

Billions live in poverty unable to afford basic operations and medication. People spend their whole life working in a job they don't like to be played like fiddles by marketing executives to buy something for ten times what it costs to produce to impress people that they don't even like.

@Cameblackbenzleftwhite1 -You are 100% right about people buying high end items to impress people, a lot of time people can't even afford to buy them.

I hate to throw this in here, but he was also French!!

Parisian I'd wager. Parisian customer service is an art form in being difficult and sullen

OP...... Define a 'beautiful email'

OP has done.

Expensive stores body check your outfits to see if your a 'poor mans purchaser' or someone who can afford the life. They are going to not put any effort into someone buying a key ring, it's bad but that's what it's like.

I would be talking to your daughter that these YouTube bloggers etc are making suckers out of ordinary people, they get stuff for free. Tell her to save her cash for a house or holiday.

I don't think you're being unreasonable. They should give excellent customer service to everyone, whether they're spending £150 or £15000.

I'd probably fire them an email

Poor man's purchaser? Are you expected to deck yourself out in bling like a fecking Christmas Tree to go shopping, lest you're identified as someone who is only aspiring to the good life and must be patronised accordingly??
What a load of utter wank this superior branding shit is.

Areal shit, that Saint Laurent tote is going on my Christmas wishlist!

OP...... Define a 'beautiful email'

She has done. Glossy photos and fawning messages so that you spend future wads of your hard-earned in their store.

Yes, it's funny and ridiculous that someone would actually look forward to getting such junk mail, but there you go.

If you are ever going to make a luxury purchase of handbags or jewellery, I would recommend Harrods every time rather than the individual shops. Everything is there. There is a points reward card system, so, for instance, if you buy a piece of jewellery for £14,000, you will get £700 back on your rewards card! Then you get free valet parking and invites to previews, sales and other events etc. Always fantastic customer service and often a glass of champagne. If it's jewellery, they clean all your existing jewellery by laser as you shop. Why anyone would go in the individual shops down the road with snooty doormen etc, I don't know.

Plus they are really helpful in the clothes dept, but don't follow you about.

@pasturesgreen

It's a beaut isn't it?!

@Zadig

Do they have a Chanel concession. With stock of the classic flap bags?

A poor man's purchaser?! Those "poor man's" purchases keep the doors open.

Agree with Zadig about Harrods.

I visited a Louboutin store and had the whole give your name and wait outside to be called in thing. The staff had no interest in me which was fine as I'm sure they have better things to do. I was interested in a couple of different shoes and tried both on, I went to ask for a larger size in one and the SA said 'do you plan on purchasing anything today or are you just here to see how they look on you cos we're kinda busy'

I then went to Harrods and received the loveliest service, was signed up to their emails, shown the brand new styles. They were also very busy.

Again in Harrods, I visited the Chanel counter and bought one of their cheapest items, a lip pencil, whilst the woman next to me was buying what looked like two of every item of skincare they had and her total was £££££££££££.

We both received the same friendly service, got signed up to their emails, a sample of something and a our items beautifully wrapped.

It's perfectly right to expect polite service, of course, but like many other posters I'm pretty baffled by the importance placed on the 'purchasing experience' just because the item was expensive or particularly desired. In fact I find the whole ott thing about desiring and coveting an item that much a bit weird tbh. Surely this kind of supposed exclusivity and rigmarole around the purchase is just a way for shops to make you pay exorbitant prices for their brand name (when the product itself is not necessarily of any better quality than much cheaper equivalents)?

I'm pretty baffled by the importance placed on the 'purchasing experience' just because the item was expensive or particularly desired.

Couldn't agree more. For me, a good retail experience is when they process the transaction as quickly and efficiently as possible, not wasting my time taking my name, asking stupid questions and generally slobbering over licking my boots. And certainly not their signing me up to their junk mail.

You went there for "the experience"...so you bought the cheapest thing in the shop and expected the staff to fawn over your daughter. Honestly you should probably let it go.

if you want good customer services you can't beat Benefit

Goodness no, they are so pushy. If I want something from Benefit I have to go past the counter, having a furtive look to see if I can see the thing I want. Then I have to sidle back past the counter, on no account making eye contact with the Benefit assistant, and then hope I can nab the item and get to the till before they notice I was showing an interest.

Expensive stores body check your outfits to see if your a 'poor mans purchaser' or someone who can afford the life

A bit silly to make assumptions based on what you are wearing. We used to get judged because we had an old car. People have different priorities when it comes to spending money and just because you have an old car or wear High Street clothes doesn't mean that you can't eg afford a Mulberry bag.

They would be stupid to judge based just on appearance, espically if it is guys as billionaires often look scruffy.

However I think it's easy to spot someone that can just afford a keyring.

Expensive stores body check your outfits to see if your a 'poor mans purchaser' or someone who can afford the life

^^ This isn't true! DP has been to LV plenty of times in a tracksuit and still received great customer service.

You should never judge a book by it's cover! I know a few people who don't take much pride in their appearance but have a lot of money.