By 
Poor customer service is the norm rather than the exception and it doesn’t matter whether one visits the Marriot, mall or market from my experience. One can forget and move on to the next coarse vendor, bad customer service experience or leave a fitting review if this option is available. Sometimes though, the service crosses the line from poor to atrocious and leaves a bitter aftertaste for days; this was my experience at Sally’s Boutique in the City Mall.
I entered the small store and walked across to the shelves displaying shoes, soon after a salesperson asked me what I wanted. I told her that if I saw anything I wanted to purchase I’d let her know. Although I was still browsing and didn’t ask for help, after five minutes she asked, ‘Heel or no heel?’ So, I moved on to the next little section which sold shirts and immediately another salesperson declared, ‘Yuh come back for the shirt!’ After stating that he’d mistaken my identity and repeating my line about requesting help only when needed I moved on to the dresses.
Two minutes into my browsing the cashier loudly asked me if I needed something. I mumbled that if I saw something I particularly liked she’d informed. My answer apparently irked her and in a loud tone from the cashier booth she said, ‘Me nah know wha this gyal want, she nah talk. Allyuh come see wha happen to she.’ I told the woman in a polite but firm tone that she cannot speak to me in that manner. My comment seemed to irritate her more since she began to rant. I was quite shocked at her behaviour, so I informed her that the service was atrocious. I couldn’t help stating the obvious, I can’t recall the last time I was subjected to such appalling customer service. She shot back that I was atrocious!
The woman’s behaviour was crude and obnoxious especially given the fact that I was a customer visiting the store and on previous occasions had purchased items. When I entered, I was apparently the only customer and maybe ‘desperate for a sale’ the tactic employed was to badger the customer into making a purchase. This most of the time, is a turn off and has the opposite effect. Additionally, there is no excuse for her behaviour and given the level of audacity displayed I can only surmise that she is the owner/part owner of the store. One wonders how the poor employees are being treated.
The customer is under no obligation to purchase from every store he/she visits and to just look at items already displayed does not require assistance. Many small businesses engage in crass practices that discourage customers. If they don’t up their game where customer service is concerned, they’re going to be crushed by online shopping and bigger entities with quality service in the highly competitive business environment.
