To expect an appology and not be made out to be a liar?

[ginormoboobs]

Am I being unreasonable to expect an apology?

I was in Smiths in Edinburgh waverly. I was trying to buy a book. 2 members of staff had blocked the aisle with boxes and were standing in the tiny space that was left. They were gossiping about another member of staff.
I said "excuse me , please" They both looked directly at me and didn't even move. I said it 5 times in total and each time said "Excuse me , can I get past you" Ignored again.
Then I said "Will you just move" They stepped aside and as I walked past them the boy shoulder barged me.
I then said that it is a shop that people come in to buy things , not a place for them to gossip and said how dare he push me as I walked past. I realise that I was quite rude and did appologise for this in my email.
I said I was going to complain to the manager. They told me that the boy was the manager and there was nothing I could do about it! I shouldn't have been so rude, they didn't hear me as they were talking about work and certainly did not look at me whne I spoke to them
Boy then scuttles off. I find my husband and we put back all of the things we were going to buy. Boy was pointing me out to all of his colleagues so I pointed him out to my DH. We then walked out of the store.
We met my Mum who had the kids and got on the train.

I complained to their head office and they sent me an email back saying that :
we returned to the store after the incident. The boy realises that he should have dealt with us then but he felt threatened , (he watched us put our stuff back and walk out.)
I swung my handbag and hit him with it as I walked past him, (I did not have a bag with me)
They did not hear me until I raised my voice and was rude to them, (they looked at me each time I sopke to them)
I could have stepped over the boxes (erm.. not unless I could stretch my legs 8 feet!)
The boy was not the manager,
I was informed that he had recieved further training.
No apology but they do hope that I continue to shop at Smiths
I really feel that the manager should have sent me an appology. Am I being unreasonable to expect that?

[emsyj]

Actually I DO have a ranting tale about Smiths - at Manchester airport I was in there buying magazines and several books (they had that offer thing on so bought more than one) and at the end the boy on the till just handed me my receipt. I said, 'could I have a bag please' (thought he must be a bit dim, frankly, as there were too many things to carry without a bag) and he said, 'oh we haven't got any left - but you can go and get one from the other branch'. Oh really??? I can??? Then, pray, why can you not go to the other branch yourself and pick up a box of carrier bags to put under your own till you moron? Eh? I didn't say that of course, but I did tell him that it was ridiculous to have run out of bags so early in the day and have done nothing about it, and that he had been very unhelpful. He just sort of stared at me as if I were very strange.

[Winibaghoul]

I agree with others who say Smiths is crap. I also don't count it as a bookshop anymore either. TBH, this is a chain that I think could well go the way of Woolies (and there's no way I'd miss it) Last time I shopped at Smiths was last Christmas - I tried to buy a Wii game, they took forever to come back then said 'we don't have thatin stock' - well why was the cover on the shelf then??

BTW op - the way they treated you - yanbu to want an apology.

[Monty100]

I never shop in WHS one reason because of their extortionate prices, another reason is the playboy stationery and following this thread I have another reason!

Shame on them.

I would insist on an apology.

[ginormoboobs]

I am glad to hear that I am not unreasonable to expect an appology

[ginormoboobs]

I won't be emailing this thread to them. I am not even sure if I am allowed to basically slag them off online

I have no proof that he barged me. I don't know if me accusing him of doing it and telling people about it on mn without proof would get me into any trouble IYSWIM

An elderly lady saw him do it and sort of gasped and glared at him but that's it
It's all over and done with now and happened over a month ago. They obviously couldn't care less about what their staff get up to

[diddl]

So, the guy lied about you going back & about being a manager?

And they don´t seem to care?

Good grief, they could replace him 10 times over!

Are they so desperate for staff?

I am sofor you, and at Smiths.

[purlcity]

YANBU

It really winds me up that staff in shops seem to be getting ruder and less helpful every day!

Last year I was in one of the WHSmiths at Manchester Airport with OH and DD.

It was early morning and the only girl who was working the till stopped serving us half way through to take a mobile phone call and proceeded to eff and jeff really loudly about her boyfriend, how he was 'so dumped', how some girl called Tara was an 'effing slag' down the phone to her mate.

I would usually give someone a dressing down for such behaviour but I was gobsmacked!

As she did finally finish her phone call she said 'anyway, I'm at work, got to go' and glared at me and rest of the now rather long queue as if we had interupted her private time!

She eventually rang up the rest of my items and then just scowled and held a hand out for the money without telling me how much I owed nevermind a 'please'.

My OH paid up quickly and practically threw me out of the shop as he could see I was about to kick off at her.

I was going to complain about it but was fly off to Italy for three weeks and forgot about it until now.

I used to work in retail and if I had acted like that I would have been sacked, if not for the taking of personal calls while on the till (I wasn't allowed even to chat to other staff during quiet times), then definitely for the swearing and lack of manners.

[ginormoboobs]

No I have not been back to the store.
I also did not go back after I left. They seem to think that I went back in but I didn't because I went straight to the train platform

[diddl]

OP,did you return to the store?

[Fabster]

Months ago I was in ELC when a box fell off the shelf and hit me on the head. I went to tell them so that they would move them as it could have really hurt a baby if it had fallen on them. They weren't bothered. Put it in the accident book in bad grace, I felt off all day. I was told I would hear back from them. I didn't. I emailed. They said we will get back to you when we have investigated. Nothing. I emailed twice since. Nothing. And the boxes are still where they were.

Yet, when I complained that a staff member was very rude to me I got a £10 voucher.

[victoriascrumptious]

The old line "x member of staff has been given extra training" is bollocks IMHO

[JustAnotherManicMummy]

OP, are you a very famous Olympic Pole-vaulter? Perhaps they thought you could have leapt the boxes with just the aid of a poster tube?

Or maybe they just have no concept of health and safety or customer service.

[victoriascrumptious]

Kat, Tesco online are great at dealing with complaints arnt they? I had a simular experience (albeit with them failing to deliver something i'd ordered).

Their response was fantastic

[ImSoNotTelling]

I dunno morris I worked in smiths for 2 years when I was 16 and would never have dreamt about behaving like that, and nor would anyone I worked with.

[ImSoNotTelling]

I have had similar in smiths as well. I wonder if the young men there go on a special training course.

I rang and complained as not only was he carrying on his conversation with the bloke on the till, so the bloke on the till had his back to it, and he kept glaring at me rather than telling his mate he had a customer, he was also shouting down the shop to his mate with "fucking" this and "bastard" that.

I thought he was totally out of order. You just don't repeatedly shout fuck in the the middle of a shop when you are working, do you? Unless you work in the sort of place that is full of men in overalls, with topless calendars on the wall.

Anyway I rang up and the woman was very helpful and said they had had some other complaints. He is still there though and still exudes a very aggressive air somehow.

I shouldn't go in there should I. But then they did move the star (or whichever one has women in their underwear all over the front) to a higher shelf after I said something.

[victoriascrumptious]

YANBU! I will not shop there again.
I remember when I was 17 I had gone into Smiths in Swansea and bought a copy of Private Eye (yeah I was that kid of saddo). The cashier loudly announced that she wouldnt sell it to me as I was clearly underage . I politely explained that it wasnt an age-restricted magazine and she started berating me loudly about how it was filthy and if my mum knew she would be ashamed. She as also trying to get the other customers waiting in line involved (they were pointedly looking the other way). Doh!

I didn't know they stocked playboy stationary for kids! One more reason not to shop there.

[Purplebuns]

The police might be a little OTT but it certainly would make smiths buck their ideas up! And it is a physical violation.

[MorrisZapp]

Sounds a nightmare, but to be fair, I've only ever had friendly, smiley service in there myself.

There's limited space in these station shops and they do need to stock their chelves.

I'd have been as annoyed as you with the rude attitude you encountered, but tbh wouldn't have bothered sending an email as I would expect minimal people skills from young employees on minimum wage who probably get no training whatsoever in actually dealing with the public.

The service we get in this country is so often absolutely shite, but it's pointless imo to boycott a national chain becuase of rudeness from one or two employees. Would be like me refusing to go to York again because somebody stepped on my toe the last time I was there.

Station shopping is hell. Pleasant shopping can be found elsewhere.

[ginormoboobs]

I also had a sneaking suspision that they were standing in a CCTV blind spot to have their little gossip. They were pretty intent on not moving from that spot.
When I was a teenager working in a shop we used stand in a blind spot to skive

[ginormoboobs]

I have also had the same problem as many of you have mentioned ; staff yapping instead of serving. Completely unhelpful. Treated like an inconvience.
All in that particular store
I think that I did not have a handbag with me but I can't be 100% sure about that. I certainly had no luggage. I always put my arm over my bag if I have to squeeze past anyone (to make sure that I don't hit anyone with it!)so there is no way that I bloody swung it at him.
I actually don't think that they have it on CCTV. If they did then they would see that the boxes had blocked the aisle but they were under the impression that I could have stepped over them. Impossible as the boxes were lined up against the book shelves for at least 8 feet and blocking the other end of the aisle.
No point in going to the police. If it was the other way around then I'm sure that I would have been marched out of there by security guards ...

[SerendipitousHarlot]

Seriously Purplebuns..... go to the police?

OP, YANBU. Not in any way. I have worked in the customer service sector for all of my working life, and feel really strongly about rude/dismissive staff. There's just no need, and I wouldn't be letting it drop either.

[Australopithecine]

YANBU

I had a problem with a shop assistant in Smiths last week (different branch).
It was a young boy who decided to shove past me and mutter obscenities under his breath because I had the audacity to be stood choosing something from a display!

It's not a shop I normally frequent, and I'll not be returning.

[thumbwitch]

wouldn't it be handy if the DM bothered to print something about this sort of thing - it might give Smiths and co a decent kick up the arse to try and remember that CUSTOMERS are what makes their business tick!

Years ago 2 friends of mine worked for Smiths - the training they underwent was far more intensive than any I got at the shops I worked for; obviously their standards have gone to the dogs along with most other retailers.

I absolutely can't be doing with this kind of crap - "our staff are sacrosanct and you are just a whinging customer" - boycott them, I would! OP, YANBU at all.

[Purplebuns]

If he shoulder barged you would it not be appropiate to go to the police? That sort of behaviour is disgusting in itself!