Uniquely and Unmistakably Annoying
Go to the RW & Co. website and you'll find them billing themselves as "unique and unmistakable". After shopping at one of their stores this week, I would make the rewording that I have done in the heading of this entry.
I visited the RW & Co. in Toronto's Yorkdale Plaza and it was not a great experience. I chose the items I wanted to purchase, taking a little bit of time to do so. Not once did anyone approach me with the helpful salesclerk's usual, "Can I help you?" No problem, I took care of it myself, and then headed for the cashier. This is where the RW & Co. experience really started to fall apart. I arrived there with wanted purchases in hand, looking obviously like someone who had some money she wanted to spend. Not to be bothered by such petty annoyances as a waiting customer, the salesgirl made eye contact with me and went right on with her conversation with another girl behind the counter. They were discussing a phone call someone had made to one of them at some time. It must have been an incredibly important call since it was more important than me and my wallet. I waited a while and was just getting ready to drop the items on the counter and walk away when Little Miss finally decided taking my money and doing her job was something she could allow to interrupt her chat.
I took my purchases in the bag she had placed them and left the store feeling that I would think twice before making another trip there. I didn't realize at that point that the repeat trip would not be left up to my choice. When I got home and took the items out of the bag to look at them again, I discovered that Miss Super Salesclerk had neglected to remove the "exploding ink" tag from the shirt I bought. A call to the store confirmed that whether I want to go back there or not, I am forced to return for them to remove the tag, or the money I spent will be wasted.
Someone needs to take Little Miss there and sit her down for a refresher course about how to do her job. The name of the salesclerk game is company profit. She needs to understand that making people happy enough to become repeat customers is important to her paycheque. Making someone happy enough to return to the store to take out their wallet again also leads to good word-of-mouth advertising, another concept someone needs to explain to Miss Bubble-Brain.
She is a lousy representative of RW & Co. but if she is truly indicative of the treatment shoppers can expect there, I have no trouble with letting people know.
I visited the RW & Co. in Toronto's Yorkdale Plaza and it was not a great experience. I chose the items I wanted to purchase, taking a little bit of time to do so. Not once did anyone approach me with the helpful salesclerk's usual, "Can I help you?" No problem, I took care of it myself, and then headed for the cashier. This is where the RW & Co. experience really started to fall apart. I arrived there with wanted purchases in hand, looking obviously like someone who had some money she wanted to spend. Not to be bothered by such petty annoyances as a waiting customer, the salesgirl made eye contact with me and went right on with her conversation with another girl behind the counter. They were discussing a phone call someone had made to one of them at some time. It must have been an incredibly important call since it was more important than me and my wallet. I waited a while and was just getting ready to drop the items on the counter and walk away when Little Miss finally decided taking my money and doing her job was something she could allow to interrupt her chat.
I took my purchases in the bag she had placed them and left the store feeling that I would think twice before making another trip there. I didn't realize at that point that the repeat trip would not be left up to my choice. When I got home and took the items out of the bag to look at them again, I discovered that Miss Super Salesclerk had neglected to remove the "exploding ink" tag from the shirt I bought. A call to the store confirmed that whether I want to go back there or not, I am forced to return for them to remove the tag, or the money I spent will be wasted.
Someone needs to take Little Miss there and sit her down for a refresher course about how to do her job. The name of the salesclerk game is company profit. She needs to understand that making people happy enough to become repeat customers is important to her paycheque. Making someone happy enough to return to the store to take out their wallet again also leads to good word-of-mouth advertising, another concept someone needs to explain to Miss Bubble-Brain.
She is a lousy representative of RW & Co. but if she is truly indicative of the treatment shoppers can expect there, I have no trouble with letting people know.
2 Comments:
Good customer service is hard to find these days ... so when people really do find it, they go out of their way to experience it again and again, even willing to spend a little more for the experience. Retailers haven't all learned this lesson.
Addendum: I should let you know -upon forwarding this entry to the chain's website, I was contacted immediately by a PR rep who assured me the matter would "be addressed" and also presented me with a gift certificate to the store.
Thank you, RW & Co.
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