Today, during lunch time, I ended up at The Bay downtown and after browsing and farting around aimlessly, I decided to go in the “Pharmacy” part of the store to buy some afternoon snacks. I chose some gum and some mints and made my way to the cashier.
After scanning my items making sure not to make any eye contact with me but continuing a conversation with her co-worker, she then loudly exclaimed:
Cashier: $5.07
Me: (handing out a $10 bill)
Cashier: Bay card?
Me: (silence)
Cashier: Points?
Me: (silence)
Cashier: 7 cents?
Me: I’m politely ignoring you as I’m not sure if you’re talking to me and then again you can’t seem to form a full sentence.
Cashier: (silently give me back my change, the receipt and the goodies in a bag… never looking at me)
Good lord, I deal with angry people all day long, but I still managed to always say: Can I see your ticket please? or Please fill out the form and wait for this number to be called at the counter behind you… Not that difficult to complete a sentence… but at The Bay it’s not required of their staff. She’ll be the first to cry injustice when lining up a the Employment Insurance office.
Hardly surprising isn’t it? It would seem that customer service has been dying off rapidly in the retail sector in recent years. Probably why I prefer to stick to the smaller retail stores, where they still give two shits about their customers and treating you well and with respect.
I still can recall eons ago when starting out my life on Bay Street and I was in desperate need of a new work wardrobe. Mother and I toddled off one weekend to Moore’s in Mississauga, to pick up a new overcoat to wear to work (instead of the beat up old parka from years gone by). We entered the store and it was fairly busy, and this salesman breezed by and without even so much as a “how are you today?” he muttered, “look over there I’ll be right back,” and went off to serve another customer. After waiting around for a while, I was doing a slow boil (I have a low tolerance for assholes, even back then), and was ready to go somewhere else, when this older gentleman, looking extremely distinguished in a smartly tailored three-piece suit and shoes shined to the point they were like mirrors (screams ex-military, the older gents always looked like they stepped out of a display) came up and inquired if he could be of any assistance. Well, the service he provided was so beyond anything we had seen that I ended up buying 8 suits, an overcoat, a dozen shirts and multiple ties. During the time he spent with us, we learned that his brother was a senior executive on Bay Street and he knew exactly what I would need to “dress for success” working on Bay Street. When we went back a week later to pick up the suits after the alterations were done, he mentioned to Mom that the other salesman had bitched to the store manager that he had “stolen his customer.” Well, I couldn’t let that one go, so after we were finished with this gentleman, we asked the cashier for the store manager, and gave him a few home truths about the other salesman, and how I had come in to pick up an overcoat originally, but the level of service ended up with me dropping about three grand in the store, and how disgusted we were with the attitude displayed by the other salesman. I’m sure that the other salesman got an earful by the time we were done, as I was up on my soapbox in full rant form. While Moore’s these days may not be known for quality clothing as they were back then, I continued to shop there until that gent retired. Not only did I get great advice on a work wardrobe, but, he gave me a few leads for future jobs via his brother.
These days, when shopping for business wear, I prefer one gentleman at Harry Rosen in Sherway Gardens. Same level of service. Same attention to detail. And while there might be hard times in the retail sector these days, they keep that store spotless and well-stocked. On a recent trip to Sherway Gardens, we were disappointed at how some stores in the mall have slid down so obviously. Hell, Sears still had Christmas trees and decorations out, their shelves were filthy dirty, and the stock just seemed to be chucked anywhere it would fit It looked more like a run-down old BiWay store. Other stores that hadn’t closed had a similar appearance. Yet, when I dropped into the Apple Store, and then into Harry Rosen, both stores were spotless, well stocked, and the sales staff were attentive and helpful. Boy, what a difference!
And some people wonder why they are getting laid off. Sheesh. They just cannot get it through their stoner brains that if you treat customers like shit, they will never darken your doors again.
Go easy on Bay employees, dear. They’re upset because of the US buyout AND the layoffs.
Uh. Vanyel needs a blog…
There’s something wrong with the service industry in Toronto in general. There’s too much of the “I’m just doing this temporarily but I really want to be a (fill in the blank)” attitude around where sales people, waiters, etc, don’t put the effort in being courteous or polite. In the last month or so I had to tell a couple of people that they had a bad attitude and because of that I wouldn’t be returning to their store. I am glad that you told her what she needed to hear!
It’s not just Toronto. The whole “I’m just doing (blank) temporarily until I can find a “real” job doing (blank).” is everywhere. When I shop for clothes, especially, I usually go to Nordstrom’s. They have the best service of any store I’ve ever been to. The sales staff is the best.
you want service? Go to the Apple store. Those people are masters of service.