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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To punch the next eejit customer who asks why we dont have this toy in stock!!!

62 replies

Ashantai · 22/12/2008 11:20

OH DEAR GOD!! You've had months to buy the "must have" present for your kids, why the hell do you wait till the last weekend before xmas and then give me a hard time because we dont have it in stock!!

I had some stupid bint who told me i had ruined her sons christmas because we dont have the stupid dancing teletubby anymore!! I dont give a flying f* that Archibalds christmas is ruined because you didnt have the sense to buy it earlier!!!!!!!!

When she told me she was off to Woolies to buy it, i nearly wet myself laughing

OP posts:
hippopotamouse · 22/12/2008 22:16

it was most therapeutic and I don't even swear normally

scrooged · 22/12/2008 22:18

It did sound therapeutic. I used to work in shops. What a nightmare!

mawbroon · 23/12/2008 09:47

LOL, this thread is reminding me of when some of my colleagues in a department store decided to play a game to see who could swear at the customer so that they didn't notice.

The clear winner was:

"That's £450 being charged to you're a cunt" (say it quickly enough, it sounds like "your account")

My how we chuckled for weeks about that one.

girlylala0807 · 23/12/2008 09:53

I also love when you lock the door a couple of minutes before closing on xmas eve and people start banging on it shouting not very nice things at you.

If you have not got everything by 4.58 on xmas eve, its really not our fault!! We want to enjoy xmas to!!!

starbear · 23/12/2008 09:57

mawbroon LOL! I'm going to buy a turkey today. But if they haven't got one I'LL EAT LAMD,BEEF OR CHICKEN! One year our turkey turned out to be off and we have sausages with all the trimmings! Now my Mum tells everyone that story every year ha bloody ha!

nickytinseltimes · 23/12/2008 10:00

Am enjoying this thread.
I worked in retail for years, before getting out of it by breeding.
Nothing destroys your festive spirit more than horrible customers.
Have to say thought that most were nice to us on CHristmas Eve. BOxing Day they were bastards though.

ComeWhineWithMe · 23/12/2008 10:01

My DP works in retail and looks quite haggard each night this time of year ...he can't stay awake after 10.00pm .

I can't wait to till him about the you're a cunt line .

stleger · 23/12/2008 10:10

Nicky I had time off for good behaviour and babies too. But I missed it and got sucked back in! I work in bookselling. We had a customer on Christmas Eve who bought a book on fancy plasterwork ceilings for his wife who did cake decorating and could copy the designs. We never decided if it was the best idea ever or the worst...

nickytinseltimes · 23/12/2008 10:11

Yes, I weirdly miss it at times too.
Must be a masochist.

bollockbrainASSofBETHLEHEM · 23/12/2008 10:16

what was the present she wanted to get out of interest Ashanti?

BONKERZ · 23/12/2008 10:46

my husband works for pets at home and yesterday had a customer on the phone moaning that the thing she wanted online said out of stock and asking if he had it in his store, he said yes and then she said she couldnt get to his store! she was very annoyed but DH being the manager and being terrified of bad complaints (he has had a few made against his store even when he hasnt been working that day and has a verbal warning for things he had no control over ie queues at till despite all staff on tills!) Dh ended up driving this item to the womans house last night (it was 45 miles away and he did not get home till 9.45 and started work yesterday at 6am!) The woman did not say thankyou infact dh says she was quite rude. Dh manages a store, he does not do home deliveries and has no dealings with the online store!!!!!!! Dh will not recieve any extra pay for doing the delivery nor will he get petrol allowance for it. he did it purely because he did not want another complaint! I would not work in retail!

purplemunkey · 23/12/2008 11:08

It's not all bad bonkerz but some idiot customers do drive you mad.

I used to work in a Virgin Megastore when I was at college and the last minute Christmas shoppers were always a nightmare. Loads were in a panic and would ask you what they should buy their son/daughter/grandson/niece etc but when asked what kind of music they liked they'd have no idea which didn't really help!

Also, we used to have one Cash Only till to help one queue move quicker. I'm not sure what it's like now but back when I was in retail the PDQ card machines were always soooo slow when it was busy. You'd scream CASH ONLY! at the top of your voice after every customer and ALWAYS, without fail, get people moaning that they didn't realise it was cash only when it came to payment, grrr!

sunnygirl1412 · 23/12/2008 11:13

Last year I decided to get a Nintendo Wii for ds2 and ds3 to share. There were some good deals around in October/November, but I decided to wait and see what deals came around in December. Sadly when December came, there was not a Nintendo Wii to be had anywhere for love nor money.

Did I give someone a hard time about this - yes I did - myself!!! I'm an adult, I made a decision about when to buy a present and it backfired - who else's fault was it??

That said, my heart does go out to the mumsnetter who is waiting to get her turkey until she's paid - her circumstances are very different, and I truly hope that she does get a turkey for Christmas.

stleger · 23/12/2008 11:20

I 'enjoy' customers who decide a book is a lovely present for a child they don't know, who might like to read, who might be interested in any subject... If it is for an adult we are supposed to flog stuff we need rid of, but I am more careful for children!

starbear · 23/12/2008 11:39

When I was a 14 year old Saturday girl in my Uncle's boutique, long time ago, in Peckham Rye I used to love the shop girls who would come in last minute for a party dress for that night. They were lovely, fun and naughty.Oh! and the men who came in for a size 18-20 pencil skirt and blouse for a Vicar & tarts party. Those men were gorgeous and have effected my taste in men!!

lou031205 · 23/12/2008 13:16

MNHQ HAVE REQUESTED THAT WE ALL RESUME DISCUSSIONS ON THIS THREAD:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/site_stuff/671434-If-you-still-feel-the-need-to-discuss-Moldies-please

Just in case anyone hasn't seen it.

lou031205 · 23/12/2008 13:17

wrong thread, lol, as you were. Sorry

pamelat · 23/12/2008 19:37

My DH never does his shopping until the day before Christmas Eve and then wonders why its busy, stressful and he can't "think" of anything to buy for people.

I love the "call yourself a supermarket, no I call myself John" brilliant!

nancy75 · 23/12/2008 20:12

i hate to say it but the last minute men are a shop managers dream, you just tell them that the only thing their wife/girlfriend/mum will be happy with is the most expensive thing in the shop - at 3 pm xmas eve who are they to argue!
women however are the biggest nightmare, the last xmas i worked in a shop we had 2 women come in 10 mins before closing and decide to try on nearly every bloody thing in the shop, 10 min after closing i politely asked them to make purchase as we were closed ect, only to be told i was there to serve them and they would take as long as they liked. i gave them another 10 minutes and turned off all the lights in the shop, set the alarm and told them they had 2 mins to get dressed and leave or security would remove them even if they werent dressed!
i got an earful, but it was worth it

pamelat · 23/12/2008 20:26

yep nancy thats my DH. However, I make him return it all (once I find out the cost!). Bad wife, me.

compo · 23/12/2008 20:34

nancy - that is shocking how rude they were

in my student days I worked in a tourist attraction shop as a volunteer
we used to hoover at 4.50pm when we were closing at 5pm to get rid of everyone and get out on time

nametaken · 23/12/2008 22:38

"Your a cunt" v.v. funny.

We used to say to customers "fuck you very much" - say that quickly and if sounds like thank you very much

scrooged · 23/12/2008 22:46

Thanks sunnygirl. You nearly made me cry . Only a few hours to go, ds and I are going to go shopping at 9am. At least it will tire him out so he may go to bed early.

laweaselmys · 23/12/2008 23:20

If you can't get a turkey there's loads of other great meats you could have, a lovely bit of lamb maybe?

scrooged · 23/12/2008 23:26

The last time I had lamb I threw up. It put me off a bit. I can't have christmas without a turkey. ds wants to buy me a present as I have nothing aswell so I've got to let a 9 year old loose with money. I'm nervous!