Dollar Store

Last week I was shopping in a dollar store, which is known for its bargains. I selected some valentine cards and made my way to the checkout counter. A young white woman, about 35, moderately dressed and nice looking, was checking out. She informed the cashier that she just used the bathroom, and had to put her winter coat on the floor because there was no coat hook mounted on the door. She asked if one could be installed so in the future she did not have to place her coat on the floor. The cashier demurred, so the woman insisted on talking to the store manager. The cashier called out to the manager to come and respond, so she did, looking put out to be bothered. The customer repeated her request, and the manager said she did not know if anything could be done, because the landlord may disallow any change without prior approval--which may have been so. Her advice to the customer was, in the future, just to drape her coat over the garbage can in the bathroom. The customer was irritated, and told the manager that if they could not take better care of her in the future than this, she, the customer, would not shop there anymore. The manager just shrugged in silence and turned around and walked away. The customer left the store. I paid for my purchase. I approached the manager and told her that I worked as a maintenance technician. I said I had tools in my truck, and for $5 I would go to the hardware store a block away and purchase the hook and install it for another $5. The manager turned her back on me too and dismissed me. I left in silence. I realize that shopping at a discount store implies that the accommodations are not going to be the same as those at Nordstroms. I realize that the landlord may have written a very strict lease contract, but the customer should not have been brusquely pushed away like that. The manager should have said that she would confer with the landlord to see what could be done. I would have helped her out for very little compensation. I recorded this incidence because it is a classic example of what not to do, and how not to treat customers. Many business people still do not grasp the fundamentals of customer service. I am pro-capitalism, but that does not prevent me from recognizing rude entrepreneurs showing discourtesy, worst practices, under compensating workers, gouging, dishonesty etc. The store is close and some of there discount items there are worth buying, so I will continue to go there. I am just mildly disappointed to see a good customer mistreated for no reason; this was an opportunity to win customer loyalty, and the manager flubbed it about as badly as can be conceived.