To find it hilarious that shop assistants in these stores look down their noses.

[bleakmidwintering]

I’m wandering about shopping in London. I’ve been into a couple of stores where the shop assistants have been off hand; one in Chanel, one in Occitaine. I certainly don’t look like I’ve got bags of money in my rain mac and trainers but I probably earn 4 times their salary. Are they trained to be off hand or is it purely their attitude? AIBU?

😂😂😂

I think this can happen in any type of shop. Try a few more 'posh' shops. They won't all be like that.

It’s way worse in Paris! I found this when I was younger. Now, I don’t notice it.

Is this one of those "i look down on people who the biggest criticism of them is i supposedly earn more than them and i some serous unresolved issues gping on sp i put these on to others' there are more intelligent people they have to deal with than shoppers

A lot of it, for better or worse, is building a certain atmosphere and exclusivity around a brand. People who are dropping 5k or whatever in a shop are more important to these shops than someone coming in to buy the cheap(er) items. Yes, there is no reason for assistants to be rude but if they peg you as a tourist you are not going to get the same level of attention. I'm not defending it, but that's the fact of the matter.

@B1anchei don’t think it does say anything about me tbh other than im observant. I’ve been on the planet long enough to know when someone is being offhand and snooty when I’m being friendly and polite.

I think you've hit the nail on the head.

People buying Chanel, wear Chanel.

OK, perhaps some people buy expensive stuff as gifts and don't use it themselves, like make up, and they don't look like the market that buy the products, but there must be so many timewasters in shops like that.

My husband experienced surprise when buying me a luxury item. They had dialled through to being the product down and the staff member that came down tried giving it to the older and well dressed man instead of my builder-looking husband. Presumably because most men buying such goods come in from their professional jobs rather than pricing up a job.

I mean it's Christmas, and retail can be thankless and badly paid at the best of times. Quite possibly, they're just sick of humanity and potential shoplifters at this point.

@NemesisInferioreveryone is a tourist in the area of London I’m shopping in!

And some people paying 5k want to feel fawned upon as part of the experience. You're buying the attention.

Friend needed a new kitchen so she and I wandered into the local kitchen design shop. Salesman looked at us and said, 'Our kitchens are very expensive'.
We just laughed so much. My friend could have afforded his posh kitchen. Sale lost.

I do know what you mean OP, but I’ve found it better since I hit middle age obscurity and smile and chat away to anyone. I also never take the attitude of thinking I probably earn a lot more than them as though it gives me some sort of superiority.

I did meet a lady on holiday who worked part time in part of the Harrods make up department (forget which). Her husband was a very senior oil executive, so what others are saying about some assistants being wealthy may well be true. She did it for fun.

But I do often wonder how many of the restaurant and shop staff in central London afford to live within commuting distances on their level of pay.

As someone who literally had a lipstick thrown at her in Kiku on Friday, I’d say customer service is an historic concept at every level.

I've worked in luxury retail and I'll tell you my biggest customer used to come in using an old plastic bag and look like a tramp. She come in and drop minimum £10k a pop. My next best customer lived in a £100k bungalow but had about £300k worth of handbags in it.

I always taught new staff to treat everyone the same- whether that's a 12yr old buying a keyring or a Saudi princess.

Any store assistant whose been there 5 minutes will not be looking down on you because of what you're wearing. It'll be your attitude, also you can get vibes from whose just browsing or killing time.

Edited to add they also work on commission, pretty sure Chanel is still individual commission too so they've no reason to ignore you. Even a wallet sale ups their paycheck. I used to get £5-800 commission working part time ten years ago.

I was in Chanel earlier this year band the assistant was delightful.

Were you friendly to them? Usually if you’re warm and not snobby I find they are friendly as well. I was bought a Gucci belt a few years ago in the wrong size and they couldn’t have been nicer/friendlier given it’s probably one of the lowest priced items in there.

Personally I still find Zara team members the rudest!

It's rife everywhere. I've never forgotten when my XH and I went to buy a brand new car (we'd come into some money). We drove in in our battered old Renault and the guy on the forecourt was DEFINITELY NOT going to let us test drive anything or even sell us a car! We got the bum's rush out of that place. Ended up buying a two year old car with very few miles on the clock which was probably a far better move with much less depreciation than the new car would have had. But I did want a new car!

And, until recently, I worked in a local supermarket. Some of my customers were local land owners who have stately homes and squillions of pounds. They all dressed in the tattiest old clothes and drove dreadful old cars. But their upbringing meant that their manners were always impeccable and they were wonderfully friendly. Anyone looking down on them for their appearance would have been in for a very rude shock.

I always assume part of the job in those shops is to make those of us who spoil the view subtly unwelcome. And tbh I’m not even saying that critically - the entire vibe in designer shops is meant to be a tot

I agree, it's about curating the experience for other customers so that they are surrounded by as many similarly wealthy people as possible. It's the same in fine-dining restaurants. The waiters are obviously not paid bags more than waiters in other places but they will still be stern at guests who are breaking etiquette and spoiling the experience for other diners.

And it obviously doesn't boil down to looking or dressing a certain way. The shop assistants have worked in the store for long enough to instantly profile customers as soon as they come in the door. They're looking for body language, composure, language spoken, attitude towards asking for service or how they interact with the products.

Someone whose body language is just to "have a look" without the intent to buy is totally obvious. If you don't intend to buy but you are dressed beautifully and blend perfectly into the environment of the shop, then they will usually be polite and leave you alone. But if someone is clearly coming in for a browse and also dressed horribly then they need to shunt them along.

Another important factor is that luxury brands want customers to be billboards for the products. They favour those who look a certain way or will frequent certain locations so the products get seen by the right people. If a customer doesn't look visually or socially appealing, they don't want to sell you a bag even if you potentially have the money, because they don't want the product showcased on the outfit you're wearing in their store.

I don’t think it has anything to do with what you are wearing and is about a confidence (which often comes from wealth or privilege anyway).

I loved the way Elle in Legally Blond dealt with the snooty sales assistant.

I saw a tote bag I liked the look of for work online and then, just after going to the gym for a swim (so casual clothes, no makeup, carrying a gym bag), popped into my local dept store to look at it in person. It was on a high shelf and when I asked the assistant if I could look at it she looked me up and down and said 'it's very expensive you know' so I said 'I know how much it costs, I saw it on line and wanted to look at it in person before buying it' and her attitude changed immediately and she was ingratiatingly helpful. Quite pathetic.

I was looking at new kitchens, and went into the super-expensive kitchen place. I told the assistant straight away that I couldn't afford their kitchens, and was only looking. The lovely man spent an hour or more with me, giving me cheaper places to get work surfaces, talking about the important things, and generally acting like I was a valued customer.

I've found the customers ruder and more snobby than the staff I some shops, bars and hotels, they act as if they are better than everyone else.

Sounds great. We got non of that!

If you thought they were bad in London try Hermes in New York @bleakmidwintering

Such palaver 🙄

You often can't tell from looking at someone how well off they are. If fact it is often the opposite. People done up to the nines just to go shopping! It isn't always the case that staff are snooty - DH and I bought an expensive car and to look at us you'd think we didn't have a penny to our name. The staff couldn't have been more helpful.