I am just wondering why people wait until the last 10 minutes before the store I work at closes to do their business or even worse bang on the door after I close and expect me to open up for them!!! We as sales representatives have lives too! I am asking that when you enter a store that you please take a quick look at the hours and have a little respect! Enough Said!
—A Sales Rep with a life
This article appears in Jun 25 – Jul 1, 2009.
I try so hard not to do that to people it sucks!!!
its alright fi your just in and out but the browser’s i tell them the register closes in 2 mins therefore after that i cant help them
OP – your company doesn’t care if you have a life and neither does the customer that keeps you in business. If there are 10 minutes left until the store closes, then tough titty said das kitty, you are obligated to remain open those last 10 minutes.
Most employees are aware that the work day does not come to a direct end when the store closes. Most folks understand that there is closing-out, paper work and clean up to be done. If you think you’re above all that, find yourself a new job.
You probably close with 7 minutes left so you can go play dress-up sooner with other “CSRs with lives”. Welcome to the real world where people put in the full hours and even more.
From one sales rep to another – I too have spent much time pondering this exact same thing. Why? Because those same people that come in your store in the last ten minutes you’re open ALSO have lives, and chances are, this was the only time they had to conduct said business, or they probably wouldn’t have chosen closing time to come in and do so. I would like to believe that no one sits around going “Oh shit, it’s 10 to 6 – I’d better go annoy the crap out salesperson X while I try on shoes” or whatever.
That said – the few people out there who seem to believe that just because they can SEE an employee in the now-locked-up store that they are entitled to service outside of business hours – no, no you are not. What I’m doing is trying to close up my store for the day, which is something most every retail employee who works until close will have to do. After closing time. Fact. Of. Life. No amount of banging/knocking/pulling on the door is going to change that.
Stick it out the last ten minutes. At closing
time, remind them you’re closing and get
them out. They will keep you waiting for
a half an hour after closing time if you don’t,
then they’ll likely leave without buying anything.
They do it to be pricks, so don’t let them
walk over you.
Is the store open for YOUR convenience?
Because the hours posted are the hours the store is OPEN FOR BUSINESS.
If I owned the store I would expect all staff to cheerfully and professionally serve customers during the posted business hours. At closing time, they can PROFESSIONALLY ask the customers to conclude their business or move along.
That is what they are there to do, and I would expect nothing less. If they didn’t like it, they could get a job with different hours. None of this has anything to do with how you feel about it.
So smile, sweetie, and be very, very glad to see those customers.
I’m on both sides of the fence on this one. I work as a rep. and I have no beef with people coming in in the last ten minutes. I do have a problem with people coming in with ten minutes left thinking that once they are in the door they can take all the time they want to doing their shopping for a month. Yes the store is open until *** pm and since I have to be there to clean up I don’t mind. After business hours I am NOT there for your convenience, and after a certain amount of time I will not be paid. See what I mean? Both sides of the fence at once. Ahhhh!
When I retire, my plan is to work at every shitty retail outlet I can, just to teach some of these fucking brain-dead customers a thing or two about being dicks. I’ll have nothing to lose and would like to strike a blow for all the poor dragged out, abused minimum wagers who have to sell their soul to serve the patrons of Hades.
TTFN apply at the NSLC. The best is having last-second shoppers come in at 9:58 in a mad dash to get their pint of bacardi or 8pack of wildcat. However, most aren’t arrogant and will actually thank the CSR for “letting in last minute”.
Staff can be non-chalant and start closing the doors up and customers will get the hints. Yet, most aren’t such dopes and expect you to remain open forever to accomodate them. Some places I worked at would have the manager begin locking the doors and if there were several doors – only one entrance in/out to make things run smoother.
Having worked at the NSLC, we’d get the biggest rush of customers b/w 9:55 and 10:00 closing time. It never bugged us – we expected it. Ironically, we’d be all off cash by 10:02 and in the office to do final counts. All of us would be out the door before 10:15 and on our way home or out with our friends also.
Everybody has a life, but nobody cares if ‘you’ do.
My first target will be the Z store, Bayers Lake. There’s some customers there that need a verbal slap upside the head. You just have to make sure you have a crocodile smile pasted on your mug before delivering the verbal shrapnal.
Good idea OP. Next time my off time comes and I’m still driving the bus because I was late, I’ll park it there and go home. That’ll teach ’em!
Having worked retail at night, I can sympathize, but if you’re professional about it, things will go a lot quicker than if you’re pouty.
I was the one who had posted this bitch and I would just like to clarify one thing. It is not that I mind someone coming in the last 10 minutes before closing, it is the ones that do it and have something that takes a half hour to do. If you can be in and out before closing time I have no problem just please be out on time.
I say that to my husband all the time
Pfft..the OP is probably one of the same bitches who starts vacumning at 9:30 and doing the cash off at 9:50 so she can get out exactly at 10. Don’t like it? Get an education and a better job.
LOL kay. Good one.
Dear Bobby33,
Sounds like you might be one of the assholes that does this to us!! You think you are so much better than everyone else!! I just so happen to have an education and I also probably get paid more than you!
mmmmmmmmm…having though about it….as the customer I try to be mindful of the time and if I am in last 15 minutes I do the maddash around..I also apologize to the guy washing the floor…man I hate when folks walk over my nice newly washed floor….
I think when you are polite about it and show that you know that it was unavoidable there are no issues….
Having worked CSR once upon a time… if you come in the door with your Sunday walk on…..yeah I gots issues with that…however I will wait for you…I am a very patient person and with a smile…. close the door behind you.. and wish you a good and safe night…..
Customer service is just that…but … if for one minute you come thru that door with tude……
I will break out into a falsetto Sound of Music and bid you …good bye…farewell…adieu …….to you and you and you
McGale you sound like me 100%!! You got it! I will be very patient and kind with the people that are kind; however, the second they act like I am their servant it’s time to go 🙂
LOL….I just think it less work to be nice as a customer or CSR … you do not get paid enuff to take any ‘guff or goat’…
For me…I forget what Superstores are open til 10:00 and some are 11:00..so it is honest on my part….(blushing) 😉
Yes the ole you gots to go… so here’s the heave …you ho… LOL….nah I never said that ever…. honest
jaynie i doubt retail pays that much because you have a high school diploma or a business administration diploma from island career academy.
Whatever, most places don’t close until a while after the store hours end. It’s called closing time. If you’re not getting paid for it, that’s your problem to sort out with your boss. It doesn’t concern these “inconsiderate” customers at all.