Out Shopping. In for a Shocker!

‘It’s ok if they at least buy something’.

These are the words I overheard while out on a shopping stint with my sister and a friend at a prominent shopping mall in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

I am not particularly attached to this retail chain of ‘apparel plus so many other things’. We had received some vouchers and had to figure out a way of busting them up. As would be the case with all female shoppers, we were traipsing around the outlet, chatting, picking random pieces up, checking price tags and sizes and placing some back on their racks when I heard two sales girls say the above in Sinhala (the most widely spoken language in Sri Lanka). They probably thought that I would not hear it as I was in a deep discussion with my friend, but my radar usually catches these things.

I was amused – I had noticed how they would come running when we picked something up from a shelf and almost whisk it out of our hands if we were replacing it instead of taking it for a fit on. They would then quickly refold and place them neatly. I understand that folding the same item hundreds of times a day is not fun. Yet, I and everyone else who walks in to a store wishes to hold the item up, keep it against our shoulders or hips, try it on or return to the shelf. Refolding is essentially in their job description – so they need not fuss.

We ended up buying stuff for about Rs. 15,000 – I hope that was enough to appease them. Maybe they also lost some sleep when they realized that my friend works in a company that belongs to the same group of companies. Maybe they felt that they should not have been pinching items off our hands as we were about to return them to the shelves. Maybe they felt that they should not have looked so disgruntled at our sight. Maybe they felt that they should have spoken in more hushed tones. Or maybe not. In all probability, they did not realize or care about the consequences of their behavior.

Here is how they could have improved in their etiquette and customer service-

01. Never discuss about customers while the store is open. Even after the particular customer leaves, keep quiet. If you really must vent or gossip, do so after hours, when there is no one else in the store and its doors are firmly closed.

02. Look and behave as though you want to help. If the same sales girl who kept grabbing things as I was returning them  the shelf changed her approach, I would have appreciated her presence. She could have easily asked me ‘Can I help you to find your size?’ I would have happily moved away and let her fetch out my size from the heap. Then she could have unfolded it and held it out for me to see. If I refused the item, she could then refold and return the item without looking like an angry wolf grabbing candy from a kid.

03. Come up to at least one of us and say that they would happily assist and to please feel free to ask if we need anything, instead of looking at us as though we kicked their puppy on our way in to the store.

As a country we have a long way to go. As communities we still have to develop cohesiveness and as individuals we need to brush up on our service levels if we want any of the above to happen. So let’s work towards it. Let’s start by practicing some of these things ourselves and guiding our teams.