being ignored (in local shops)

[Penguin68]

Surely a significant problem lies in the customers themselves, in that some wish to retain personal space and be allowed to get on with their shopping in peace, others look to an interaction with staff and none (first time in), carry their preferences writ large on their shoulders. That doesn't excuse till staff talking to each other and ignoring queuing customers (that's just bad business practice), nor does it excuse straight rudeness of any sort, but it may explain why individual customers feel dissatisfied with their treatment, because their preferred level of intimacy, or lack of it, isn't being spontaneously proffered.

And as for France, well at least LL isn't "ferm? le mois d'ao?t" - or on Mondays, or Wednesday and Saturday afternoons, or for lunch - (save the excellent, and one man, Libretto's - not on LL anyway).

[JohnL]

spark67 Wrote:

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> what an odd post, never felt i have been

> mistreated by staff anywhere i've been in ed, in

> fact over the years we in our house have become

> friends with a good few of the staff and owners of

> local businesses .... if i walked into a shop and

> someone yawned, i wouldn't think straight away it

> was me... amazingly people yawn unpredictably and

> its not always personal😏 .... the only

> rudeness i've encountered on the lane has been by

> other fellow customers on the rare occasion to the

> staff.

> please excuse the lack of capitals in this post...

> my friggin shift keys broken 😂

If you put a hand over your mouth whilst doing so it's OK. If I can see tonsils YUCK.

[Crystal Matt]

Robert Poste's Child Wrote:

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> To be fair to the M&S food hall staff, they're

> probably freezing.

Indeed, Most M&Ss are next to Antarctica on the comfort scale.

They were probably huddling to keep warm

[bil]

Maybe it was just a bad day. I usually receive good service in local shops from independent and larger retail shops such as M&S.

[siousxiesue]

I've seen customers hand a loyalty card or paper money that's been held in their mouth straight to a till operator. Turned my stomach and I told the cashier when I had the chance!

[Robert Poste's Child]

Yuck! I sometimes think the library staff get the worst of that kind of thing, but then I'm a bit obsessed about the state people leave the loos in, along with all the cold and cough germs incubating on keyboards, self-service screens and books. If I worked there I'd be washing my hands every five minutes.

[JohnL]

siousxiesue Wrote:

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> I've seen customers hand a loyalty card or paper

> money that's been held in their mouth straight to

> a till operator. Turned my stomach and I told the

> cashier when I had the chance!

Don't go to Egypt (outside the hotels). The place to keep money was down the trousers - and the money looked like it (this was 10 years ago mind).

[Elphinstone's Army]

Robert Poste's Child Wrote:

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> Oh, come on everyone - Moondancer is usually a

> considered and thoughtful poster and I don't think

> s/he deserves all the vitriol.

witty sarcasm is always funny, but put downs, the traducing of anothers

character, speculation and downright nastiness can be quite shocking.

Invalidating a resident/customer?s experience thoughts and feelings is unkind,

unconsidered and rude, ill mannered, and completely negates the point and value

of the post.

I am on my phone and its so hot in here my sweaty fingers are sliding off the screen

I love your moniker, btw : I just reread the book with the image of Fresdie Jones gleefully

brandishing his little twig brush

[Elphinstone's Army]

Would like to point out something which should not be necessary -

that Paris does not represent France any more than ?that London? represents England,

[heartblock]

A few friends of mine and myself conducted a little unofficial study on being ignored by staff in a local wine shop/ eatery that has now changed hands three times. The time taken to be acknowledged seemed to be related to gender and age in the main...there were other factors. There was also a marked difference to attitudes to retuning wine that we said was ?off? or ?corked?, not part of the study, but three of us used the place to buy wine and we all had returned a bad bottle.

[rendelharris]

Elphinstone's Army Wrote:

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> Would like to point out something which should not

> be necessary -

> that Paris does not represent France any more than

> ?that London? represents England,

I know - I've lived elsewhere in France. However, as the OP is complaining about service in "that London" a comparison of capitals seems fair.

[robbin]

Elphinstone's Army Wrote:

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> Would like to point out something which should not

> be necessary -

> that Paris does not represent France any more than

> ?that London? represents England,

Fair enough, but why do you think it is 'necessary' to point that out?

Unless I've missed something there is nothing whatsoever on this thread where anyone suggests otherwise, so I'm struggling to see why it might be 'necessary' or even relevant to point it out.

[singalto]

I like the sort of service given in the card shop in NXR. They leave you alone while you wander around but are really lovely and friendly when you take your cards to the till. I didn?t like the service I got from the newsagent near the shoe shop where the man continued his phone conversation while ?serving? me, handed over the change saying ?sorry, 1p short, I don?t have 1p coins? and returned to his conversation.

[firekat2]

Not as bad as the co-op it is Siberia in there!

[rcmacf]

Just back from 2 weeks in France. I have 2 cafes in London. Service in France was laughably slow to laughably rude, so much that good service was noticed when it happened - which it did (typically from younger staff). I've been visiting France for 40 years, and lived there, also. Service there was ever thus.

The OP is perhaps butthurt that their ego has not been massaged suitably by the proles in the shops.

[Robert Poste's Child]

'Butthurt'? Tell me that's a typo.

[ianr]

The folk at Oxford believe in it. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/butthurt

"US informal

An excessive or unjustifiable feeling of personal offence or resentment.

?it's time to get over the butthurt from last year's playoffs?

?the butthurt just oozes out of this comment?"

[Robert Poste's Child]

Dear God, that's horrible.

[JohnL]

rcmacf Wrote:

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> Just back from 2 weeks in France. I have 2 cafes

> in London. Service in France was laughably slow

> to laughably rude, so much that good service was

> noticed when it happened - which it did (typically

> from younger staff). I've been visiting France

> for 40 years, and lived there, also. Service

> there was ever thus.

>

> The OP is perhaps butthurt that their ego has not

> been massaged suitably by the proles in the shops.

Mind you - if someone is the type that wants their ego massaged, to do so is easy brownie points.

Other people are much more difficult (those that have a genuine grievance for instance)

[rcmacf]

JohnL,

Agreed, regarding the massage (to a point). What I've discovered, though, is those with a genuine grievance are far more often than not quite straight forward to deal with - as they have a particular "thing" that can be addressed. I've encountered many less than genuine grievances; these can be nebulous, and can even be morphed by the aggrieved as you try to deal with them. Often the real grievance in these cases lies outwith the reach of mere cafe staff.

But hey ho, that's the business.

[Heva]

I?ve had my shop in East Dulwich now for 23years, many customers have become really good friends, I always try to greet people unless I?m serving someone else.Sometimes I think I talk to much! But everyone?s different. It?s been very hot and everyone?s tired so I?m not surprised shop staff are yawning. I?ve never noticed unfriendly staff in East Dulwich. And I always remember a woman in a pharmacie on the Ile de Re saying may I perfume you before spraying me with scent, which I thought was lovely, and you are lucky to be able to go there, spare a thought for low paid shop workers who can?t get a holiday. I?m sorry you feel this way but believe me the stories I could tell about rude customers .....

[Bagpipes]

I generally find staff in ED pretty nice, just spare me the bantz in Flock & Herd

[Asset]

"A few friends of mine and myself conducted a little unofficial study on being ignored by staff in a local wine shop/ eatery that has now changed hands three times. The time taken to be acknowledged seemed to be related to gender and age in the main...there were other factors. There was also a marked difference to attitudes to retuning wine that we said was ?off? or ?corked?, not part of the study, but three of us used the place to buy wine and we all had returned a bad bottle."

I've been drinking wine for many, many years and don't think I've ever come across a corked bottle...

[JohnL]

Asset Wrote:

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> "A few friends of mine and myself conducted a

> little unofficial study on being ignored by staff

> in a local wine shop/ eatery that has now changed

> hands three times. The time taken to be

> acknowledged seemed to be related to gender and

> age in the main...there were other factors. There

> was also a marked difference to attitudes to

> retuning wine that we said was ?off? or ?corked?,

> not part of the study, but three of us used the

> place to buy wine and we all had returned a bad

> bottle."

>

>

>

> I've been drinking wine for many, many years and

> don't think I've ever come across a corked

> bottle...

I have corked many a bottle ... but most people don't notice - anyway it's mostly screw top now :)

(this assumes corked means you've screwed the corkscrew in so far it goes right through the cork and as such some cork might end up in the wine)

[Asset]

Corked wine is wine that has been tainted by a chemical in the cork, apparently smells like a damp cloth or damp cardboard or similar mouldy dampness. quite distinctive and not something I've ever come across.

I too have ended up with cork in my wine from corkscrew fails but fish out the bits and carry on drinking.