Crap service in shops gets on my nerves - most retailers don't deserve to make a profit this Christmas but it's their own stupid fault

[HRHWickedwaterwitch]

A small rant really. We went shopping this morning and in 6 out of 8 shops we went into:

• The shop assistants (who were children, I mean under 20 in most cases) were more interested in arranging their displays than serving us or asking if we needed any help. Has it not occurred to them that without CUSTOMERS it doesn't fking matter what the fking displays look like?
• One said "oh we don't have that suit (for dp) in that leg measurement" and walked off! Not "but would you like to try any others? Or "what is it you're looking for?" We had some money, were prepared to spend said money and were in their bloody shops, what is wrong with these retailers? WHY do they employ disinterested children? Am I the only person who gets really irritated by poor customer service? I was on a course with someone last week who said she asked someone on the cheese counter at Tesco to help her because she wanted to buy fish and their reply was (imagine bored monotone) "nah, I only do cheese" - no offer of getting someone else, absolutely shit service. AAAAAAAAAAGGGH. I am going to do all my Christmas shopping online for the sake of my blood pressure and so I don't slap any shop assistants. I'm getting old, aren't I?

I have noticed this, but from all shop assistants, not just the young ones. If they havent got specific product they cant be arsed to suggest, let alone look for an alternative.

No, I agree! It is because it is cheaper to employ kids even if they dont know what the hell they are talking about!

I dont ask staff in Tescos or Sains where things are. I usually ask a customer as the chances are they know more than the staff!!

In PC World the other day DH got cross because the kids didnt know one end of a wire from the other.Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

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totally agree, just got a new digi camera, and it was very expensive, the sales assistant who sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo disinterested it was almost funny. when I asked so what does it do that this other one doesnt? he kinda shrugged and said 'not alot' brilliant. he offered no advice, no help, no if you buy this you get this kinda sales talk at all. I knew about the camera before going in which was a very good job otherwise I'd have not even bothered........and I was his biggest sale that day I can bet.
tescos the other day, -GOD I HATE TESCOS!- had to move a green crate of yellowed brocolli to get to the stuff I might actually eat.......I'm eight months pg but heyho, I'll just shift this bloody great tray of rotting veg.....moments later a stock person/sales whatever, comes up and says very loudly 'if people dont put these back, someone could get hurt... and then they'll sue tescos' as she was obviously directing her comments at me, I replied equally as loudly, 'well if you did your job and the veg wasnt yellow I wouldnt have to move it.....' I was so mad, WHEN did it change form the customer is always right and cant do enough for a money spending customer?
oh I can feel my blood pressure rising.....

Yes I went shopping last night after the kids went to bed and two things annoyed me.

1. All the people with tired,grumpy kids out at that time of night - I've got my kids to bed before I've come why can't you do that?
2. In two shops I went up to an assistant stood behind a till with items to purchase and was told "sorry my till's not on". "Well why are you standing there then?"

Although have to agree minimum wage for under 18s is less, isn't it?

Actually delete that sorry - they didn't apologise at all.

dss works in Sainsbury's and tells me that not only do the staff have to know where things are, they have to take you there, rather than just telling you.

I've had a bad experience with John Lewis this week. They left a message on my answerphone, asking me to phone them about a problem with my curtain order, so I rang the number they gave me. I was answered by a girl, who listened, and then, without putting me on hold, started to confer in whispers with a colleague. I was then transferred to another department without any further discussion. I was livid, so phoned back the switchboard, and asked to be put through to the workroom again. When the telephonist gave the workroom my name, they refused to talk to me, and said that I had to speak to this other dept. I was ringing the extension they gave me FFS! Eventually I was put through to a manager, who, although she sorted out the query, failed to apologise for the inexplicably rude behaviour of her staff.

I rang a phoneline the other day to order something...dear Lord. Girl by her own admission had "left her brain at 'ome today" - er yep!

First, she got the date wrong (kept saying, "It's the nineteenf, right, the nineteenf?" - no, was the 18th), then made me hold while she changed it on the other orders she'd taken that day. Then she asked for my address, repeated the first line back wrong, then got halfway through and said, "OK, your phone number?" before she'd asked for the postcode. I gave her the postcode, she repeated it back wrong. I gave her my phone number, she repeated it back right, then asked me for a contact telephone number. When I said I'd just given it to her, she said, "Oh yeah! Sorry, I was typing it in just now, now I'm writing it!"

And shops...yes, why employ a 16-year-old who doesn't give a shit about anything other than who she's shagging later?

It's quite fun to ask shop assistants in big supermarkets where the more unusual ingredients are though.

DH tried it with...wait for it...pudding rice. "Is this it?" - a tin of Ambrosia. No, the raw stuff that you cook yourself. Wasn't with the rice, do you know where it is? Oh. No.

Er Bozza, the reason I don't leave my kids at home while I go shopping, is because if harm came to them a) I would be sent to prison and vilified by the general public and b) I'd be very sad that my children were dead or injured.

I was in ASDA the other day and asked 2 young shop assistants for something. No luck, so I found a menopausal-looking woman who looked like she knew what she was about. Funnily enough, she found the item instantly. I said to her "you know, as soon as I saw you I said to myself "there's a woman who looks like she knows what she's doing"". And she laughed her head off and said - "always ask us oldies - the young'uns haven't got a clue!"

Id rather have it the way it is here than how it is in the States - with someone pretending to be helpful b/c their crap job depends on fake sentiment. Or shadowing you all over the shop like a puppy till you give up trying to have a browse and leave.

Gawd This really gets on my tits.
I hate shopping and as for my local Sainsburys....

Shelves half empty, selling green bananas or old manky bananas in polyuthene bags.
Seen over ripe tomatoes on the shelf. Over priced and the staff always seem to be slagging off someone else that they work within full hearing of in the aisles.Then get to the tills and it's like, hello is anyone in!
And the meat is utter rubbish too.
Jamie Oliver - I really don't know why you promote them mate!?

I add I do the bulk of my shopping online now!
Far less stressful!

France is good. They just snarl at you.

When I came back to England from Germany recently for the first time in two years I was very impressed by the nice and friendly service in shops - especially Sainsbury's!
Over here a small proportion are lovely and a large proportion put you in your place for daring to impose on their time...

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Two recent experiences : 1 in a small gift shop in the high street that I had never been in to in the 6 years I have lived here. Just struggled in the door with dd2 in the buggy and dd1 (3) behind picking at a dry bread roll, when the shop assistant asked if she could help me I asked her for X and she said no we don't have that so I said I would just look around and she - glaring at dd1 - said "actually, food is not allowed in this shop". FFS it was a dry bread roll not Mcdonalds or anything gungy or stinky. Should have said to her "have you seen the film Pretty Woman ... big mistake". Not surprising small towns are failing when that is the attitude of their staff, give me Bluewater any day.

2nd. Whilst in Sainsburys asked a spotty yoof for some Polenta. Well good game eh Not only did he not have a clue what Polenta was, but neither did the half a dozen other staff who were roped into this little charade running up and down the aisles like headless chickens. The lady (yes she was middle-aged) who did know what it was couldn't find it. I gave up.

I was just going to say similar LIT. Shop assistants are so much more polite than I remember from 4 years ago. I loathe Tesco and similar supermarkets though and avoid so perhaps I'm just a bit more discerning where I take my custom these days or my expectations have changed! Vote with your feet and go elsewhere.

btw some shop assistants would be part-time temps at this time of year and not all are till trained so all they can do is shelf stack. No excuse for not finding someone who could help though.

Sorry should be FIT !

In the toy shop in Battle recently I was served by the rudest woman ever. Would have told her where to stick her stuff if dd hadn't been with me. Told my very bright 9 year old not to touch or damage the books very rudely. I got the last laugh - she had an apostrophe in the wrong place on her shopping bags. Her precious books didn't help her - at least my dd can punctuate! If you're passing please go in, snarl at the old bag and mess up her precious displays.

I think most people in shops are dead dead helpful, can't remember the last time I got bad service.

My boyfriend works at the dreaded PC world, and some of the stuff he says about customers does shock me! Some of them seem to be right t*ats, but the crap some of the staff give them is appalling!

(don't write everyone in shops off because they are young, i've worked in shops aged 16 and people were so shockingly rude to me just because I was young)

Im afraid Ive got to agree with fit - you aint seen NOTHING til youve been to Germany, where the annoyance of customers is brought to an art form.

The usual conversation I have at least once a week in V Markt is,
shop asst: Can I look in your bag please?
me: Nein. Das ist meine Tasche. Es ist nicht Ihre Tasche.
her: string of offended German, culminating in instructions that next time I should leave my bag in a locker before entering the store.
me: What am I going to put my groceries in if I have to leave my bag in a locker. Am I supposed to buy a carrier bag, so that I can take my groceries back to the locker, and get my bag that I brought here expressly for the purpose of carrying my shopping home in it?
her: why dont you want me to look in your bag? What have you got in there?
me: Call the police if you think Im a thief. PLease, do call the police. I would love to talk to the police about this. But I am afraid I have no more time to talk to you about it.
her: Repeats ad nauseam that bags should be left in lockers.
me : Auf Wiederschauen.

at least English supermarkets wait until they think theyve seen you nicking something!

And the customer is always wrong, I find.

Sainsburys is always great for us.
And I like Gap too.
And John Lewis most of the time.

My best shops though are the small independent shops in the town where I live. If they ever performed badly you'd never go back and they'd be out of business pretty quickly. My dh has his own shop and his customers love him and are (mostly) really loyal. Even with supermarket competition.

Little shops are the best (where the people who own them are generally behind the counter.)

Also for fripperies,mail order companies.
I have had brill service from

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