Life of a Sales Associate

Working in retail, there are many things that customers do that just piss you off to the extreme. Since I have been in contact with many of these customers in the last few days, I am going to write a little something something to express how annoyed they all have made me.

1) Sales associate is not a nickname for personal maid.
When you go into the dressing room, do not leave your clothes on the floor, thrown over the door, or any other place that's not the hanger. I'm sure you are old enough to clean up after yourself.

2) If you really have to sift through the table shirts to find your shirt, please have some care because more than likely an associate had just tidied up that table to look presentable and then there you go unfolding and scattering all of the shirts and other clothing items all over the table, and I know that when you are done sabotaging the merchandise you know that it now looks a mess...if you think someone is giving you the death glare then they probably are. ( At least I do)

3) It is the sales associates job to help you find what you are looking for.....that does not mean that you can sit down and direct us on where to find your clothes or bring you the items that we think you might like. More than likely you are not the only one in the store and that means that there are other people that we have to attend to. I really don't care for the story of your bum leg, I am not your personal shopper.

4) Just because you have money to spend on whatever knick knacks you want does not give you the right to treat the sales associate like trash. Manners are for all types of people including snooty ones who talk down to people they feel are beneath them. A please and a thank you never hurt anyone.

5) When you look at the door and see that the store is closing at 8:30 pm and currently it is 8:20 pm that should not spark the "oooh I just made it" thought. If you know you have 10 minutes to shop then you better know what you want and where to find it because it is rude and really annoying to make the people working stay an extra 30-45 minutes for you. In case you didn't know, there are things that the sales people need to do that can only be done once the store is closed and the customers gone. So with you staying your extra 30 minutes pushes them back on all of the stuff they need to do before going home.

6) This one goes with #5 and really #1 also. If you know the store is closed then please please please don't go around the store putting things out of order, trying on multitudes of clothing, disorganizing the accessories, or anything of that sort. Because more than likely a sales person had already started straightening and cleaning the store for closing. This is another instance where if you feel heat on the back of your head then that's the sales person staring a hole through it and wishing you bodily harm.

7) Don't tell a sales associate how to do their job. I don't care if it's your favorite store and you shop there every week and they know you by name. Don't do it. When at the cash register don't tell me what button I need to push or what paper I need to sign. I am here everyday and understand what it is I need to do. With you blubbering and talking nonsense, you are making what would have been a short process into a long drawn out deal simply because I will have to sit there and listen to you jabber on and not tell you to go _____ yourself.

8) Here is a tip for you. If you are a nice amiable customer and we have coupons stashed behind the counter, you will get one. But if you are a demanding customer that only wants to complain and cause a fuss then no I am withholding the coupon for someone who has earned it.


Working in retail is harder than it looks especially for people lacking in the people skills but hopefully this will help some would be customers on the things that they shouldn't do so that they are not at the receiving end of a death glare.

And of course there are countless more Don'ts but with me having to relive all of these it has given me a headache and a bad temper.