To start off with, I must state I am a very quiet, unassuming person - no honest.
A charity shop opened up around here a few months ago (see! you're shouting at me already...)
It claims to be a community charity shop, and they preach this to customers all the time.
I go in charity shops a lot mainly to buy books, lots and lots of them.
They soon learned I would be a regular.
They had a sign up by the books - hardbacks 50p paperbacks 25p and childrens books 10p. Simple enough, so I would go in, knowing I had a pound in my pocket and choose 10 childrens books - only to be told at the counter "that will be £5 please" - very embarrassing as I wouldn't have the extra money and I feel awful complaining in a charity shop.
This went on each and everytime I went in. |I saw it happen to others too.
Now, apart from this issue, I was getting wound up by the fact that although they claim to be for the community and state if a person is cold they will give them a coat of the rails...they refused to reduce the price of some PJs that an elderly lady I do errends for, pleaded week after week if she could have them cheaper. They were tatty and far too expensive. On two occasion I picked up DVDs only to find there was no disc inside and all too often curtains and duvets etc are measured wrongly. The main thing though was their attitude to customers. They are simply rude and ignorant. They would sit at the door (blocking it) smoking, which just isn't good when you have children with you.
One particular member of staff - I'm leading up to the incident now, is extremely rude, ignorant and quite nasty. She's elderly, but hey, since when does being elderly give you the right to have no manners or respect for people?
One the day in question (M'lud) I bought some books. I worked out that they totalled £1.15. That's £2.80 elderly lady hissed.
"Oh for goodness sake" I sighed " How on earth have you got to that price?"
"That's how much it is!"
I put the books into piles and pointed out the costs.
"Yeah, but that's in good condition so I'm charging 80p" she wittered on.
"You do this everytime I come in. You have a sign there with the prices on. You can't just make it up as you go along. Do you realise how embarrassing it is for me everytime you do this?"
At this point the manageress came through from the back. She was interested in what I was saying.
But elderley lady..."Well, you're not going to buy cheaper anywhere else!!"
"That's not the point I'm making, but as a matter of fact I do go somewhere regularly that is cheaper."
"Oh really!! she snapped menacingly.
"Really" I said, AND, you cannot talk to your customers like that!"
Manageress walked towards the books and said to me "Customers expect to pay 10p for this (she picked up a small childrens book) and 10p for this (she picked up a bigger, shinier childrens book)
"I'll tell you why your customers expect to pay 10p for that. It's NOT because your customers want to rip off a charity, It's NOT because your customers are tight-fisted scum, It's because YOU have a sign there that tells them it's 10p!"
She took the sign down, she emptied the shelves of books and over the next few days they priced each book individually.
Word was going going around the area...who was it? people asked. hehe
I have since had an apology from head office and the manageress has asked me how else the shop could be improved
am I a bad person?