1 /5 D: I worked in retail for over a decade, and I can confidently say I would have never treated a customer the way I was treated here.
I came into the store with a package I had originally shipped through them, which had been returned to me. I calmly explained that, had I known the shipment would be handed off to USPS, I would have used a different address... USPS only delivers to PO boxes on that street, whereas UPS delivers to the house. The employee in training initially misspoke, saying it was UPS, but the screen would have shown the handoff to USPS. So, realistically, it was a mistake on both sides. An easy, understandable oversight.
What should have been a simple correction turned into an uncomfortable and unnecessary display. The female manager proceeded to deliver the kind of fake friendly but cold, tight-lipped “customer service” that’s become all too common. She loudly made it clear that it was actually my fault, despite admitting the error was plausible. She insisted she would “honor it this one time,” as if I were someone trying to exploit some loophole... when I had already acknowledged my part in the mistake and was simply trying to resolve the issue.
For the record, I was calm and even-toned the entire time. I said very little beyond explaining the situation.
Thankfully, the bearded gentleman who ultimately helped me was the complete opposite. He was courteous, professional, and seemed equally aware of how unnecessary the manager’s behavior was. He handled the situation exactly how I would have during my years in retail: treating the customer like a person, not a problem.
