Hello “Bill”! I presume this is your wife leaving the review. Men don’t use words like “delightful” and “male staff” when they leave reviews.
Your story is total make-believe.
When you arrived, I cheerfully asked you what I could do for you. I did not say, “what do you want?”.
You showed interest in the bread and asked me if it was sourdough, just like you did last time you came. I told you it was. You said skeptically, “Really?” Saying yes again seemed weird, so I said humorously, “Would I lie to you about something like that?” I asked if you wanted a loaf. You said that you did. You were very specific about exactly which loaf you wanted out of the cabinet, boasting about how fussy you are.
I resisted rolling my eyes, and bagged the loaf and brought it to the counter. This caused some confusion, because it gave the impression that you could start collecting your items on the counter one by one.
When I asked your husband to use a cart, I asked him very nicely and even said it was my fault for putting the bread on the counter. I also explained that using the cart helps my wife and daughter know when people are done shopping. It’s hard when people put one item at a time on the counter. We think you’re done shopping every time you approach the counter. This makes it chaotic to get any work done while the customer is shopping.
Your husband was friendly with me and grabbed a cart. There was nothing abrupt or harsh about my interaction with him. I literally said, “Sorry, it’s my fault.” I seldom help in the grocery store. I should have started a cart for you and put the loaf in there.
After this, you started asking me questions about Berkey filters. You noticed we were out of fluoride filters and asked when we would get them in. I said that I didn’t know, but maybe in a few months. You asked me to call you when they came in. I said that I couldn’t do that, because we would have way too many people to call, and that you’d have to call in and check. You weren’t happy with that response. Decent customers always respond with, “That makes sense. I’ll check in with you in a month or two.” They get that we’re busy people, and can’t do everyone’s work.
You took some regular filters and placed them on the checked out side of our counter, where purchased items go. My daughter asked you to put them in your cart until you were done shopping. Again, you were unimpressed.
We have rules about customers not leaving items on the counter. We’ve tried just going with the flow over the years, letting people do whatever, and trying to work with it. It was chaos. Some customers put their stuff on one side of the counter. Some put it on the other… at the same time. Some customers put their stuff on both sides. Then they keep shopping while other customers show up. It just doesn’t work. We don’t want to charge you twice for something, and we don’t want to miss any items. We want order and fairness for everyone.
We’ve committed ourselves to being consistent with our rule, and training ourselves and our customers to use carts and baskets, not the counter. JUST LIKE EVERY OTHER GROCERY STORE!
You wouldn’t believe how many people get offended and refuse to cooperate. We have a sign on the checkout counter saying to use a cart. People still push it to the side, stack their stuff there, and walk away. We’ve had people literally declare in rebellion, “At this point, I just don’t like being told what to do!”
You openly declare that you’re fussy about your bread preferences, but we’re forbidden to be fussy about how we run our checkout counter, even if we’re nice about it?
Then you finished shopping and came to the till, where you said, “Did we catch you on a bad day? You all seem very grumpy! I send my friends to shop here. I hope you’re not grumpy with all of them.”
Of course, you’ve “perfected” your sing-songy sweet voice for manipulating people, so you can tell people later that you were nice and calm about it. The people who know what I’m talking about are groaning. Retail customers can test the patience. I’ve learned to speak my mind in the moment. Why risk that customer returning? It’s not worth it.
I said, “That’s really rude. Don’t talk to us that way.”
You said to me, “I’ve been here several times before, and you were always really lovely.”
I said, “I’m not doing this,” and then turned around. I’ve wasted my time arguing with people like you. I don’t bother anymore.
Look, we’ve been in business for 30 years, and we’ve interacted with many thousands of customers. People like you aren’t just here for what we’re selling. You’re here to take what isn’t for sale. You’re here for a piece of us. You want attention and control. Power. You don’t just want service. You want servants. You want worship.
That’s why you call me “male staff.” You don’t see me as the owner/operator of a local business that provides a rare and essential service. You see me as your manservant. That’s why you’re upset. You expected me to be your servant, and I didn’t play along.
I talked to you about the sourdough bread last time you came here. Normally on a customer’s first visit, I try to give them some of my time and introduce our business to them. But when people come back again with all the same questions, hoping for another performance out of me, I’ve learned to shut things down. My time has become more and more valuable to me and others, so I’ve learned to tell the difference between people who are interested in the answer to their questions and people who like to make me answer their questions.
When I confirmed the bread was sourdough by saying, “Yes, it is,” you had to say, “Really?” in a skeptical tone. You wanted me answering to you. You didn’t care about the answer, or you would have been satisfied with my confirmation. You wanted a repeat of the explanation I gave you last time. You wanted me to take the time to serve you with my undivided attention. When I left you in the hands of my capable daughter and sat down with my wife to discuss business matters, you were noticeably put off.
How did you make it through nearly seven decades without learning that life isn’t about getting everything exactly your way? How much longer will it take? How much longer do you have?
I want to finish by sharing something with everyone reading this. We’ve noticed a very established pattern. Almost every customer that tells us that they’ve sent many of their friends to shop with us is trying to make us feel like we’ll be losing more than just their business if we don’t serve them according to their preferences. It’s blackmail. “If you don’t give me my way, you’re gonna lose money!!!”
People are always threatening us when they don’t get their way. We’ve made it clear with many of them, and it’s worth repeating —The Lord is the one who provides for us.
We’ve noticed over and over again that every time we take a stand against selfish behaviour and risk loss, the Lord sends multiple new and better customers. We’ve also learned to go without.
He has taught us to put our trust in Him for our provision and not in people or their money. Our job is to do the right thing regardless of potential loss.
If we mind His business, He has promised to mind ours.
Martin VanPopta