what would you have done in this situation?

[Dorothy Wood]

I'm at work and this lady just walked in with one of our old gift bags that we haven't used in over a year. it was full of frame samples. she said that she was returning them and had put down a deposit of $10.

the thing is, we don't take deposits. we take down their credit card info and give them a receipt and keep a copy taped to the side of our check out area.

I couldn't find her receipt and she had no receipt, and she said that she had borrowed them in october. but it was probably longer ago than that. I told her that we don't take deposits, and she said, "I'm sure that you did".

so I gave her ten bucks, begrudgingly. but now I feel like I shouldn't have given that bitch anything. she had the samples for almost a year! maybe longer even. and she was acting so entitled! ugh. I also think that she was mistaken about the deposit, like she went around to a bunch of shops and got samples and then got them mixed up. stupid. I feel duped.


what do you think I should've done?

[hpdrifter]

I think you were right. Yeah, its bullshit but she might be senile and really doesn't know what's going on. Or she's a scam artist. Either way, its not worth it to quibble over $10.

Did you ever hear the story of the tire that a man returned to Nordstrom? Yes, they took it back.

[TurdBerglar]

punched her in her throat

[Dorothy Wood]

well, she wasn't old, she was probably in her 30's. nouveau riche. bad taste, expendable income. out shopping while the husband's at work downtown and the nanny's with the baby.

[hpdrifter]

Ah, maybe she has the Winona Ryder thing. Can afford it but likes the thrill of shoplifting.

Either way, she probably warrants pity if her life is so empty that her amusement is scamming $10 from the local art store.

[Nuzzolese]

Those sense-of-entitlement nouveau riche types need to be put in their places whenever possible. She thinks she can push people around with her attitude and rudeness and credit cards. It should NOT stand. Retail returns are one of the great equalizers of our society, to a lesser extent, like child abduction and house fires.

[abcdefz]

I wouldn't have given the money. I would've said "We need a receipt so that we can see which clerk charged you a deposit" (let her save face a little). If that didn't work, I would've said, "If you'd like, you may speak to my manager" or whatever.

But if I were the manager, I'd say, "If you'd like, I can give you corporate contact information."

Obviously, you guys weren't missing the samples or anything.

[Dorothy Wood]

ha, clerks...corporate. heh. two other girls and I basically run the store. the people who own it are partners and one does the design and his own art and has created the idea and look of the company, but he's rarely around. and almost never at the store where I work. the other partner does the accounting side of the business. we're very small and casual.

I basically gave that chick the money because I didn't want her to go bad-mouthing the store around town. I was just surprised that she had no shame about taking so long to return the samples. maybe she did and her entitled attitude was just a defense mechanism. She was acting like she was angry with me for her still having the samples or something...uhh.

I wanted to tell her that I couldn't return the money without a receipt...but our receipts are hand written and not very official. meh. I hope she gets a sunburn.

[Dorothy Wood]

Obviously, you guys weren't missing the samples or anything.

yeah, well. we have like a thousand but it doesn't mean they couldn't have been useful. out of sight, out of mind.

[abcdefz]

I was just surprised that she had no shame about taking so long to return the samples. maybe she did and her entitled attitude was just a defense mechanism. She was acting like she was angry with me for her still having the samples or something...uhh.




Yeah -- this weekend a cashier was all pissed off at me because the STORE (the whole store) was out of any bags larger than 8" x 10".

Real good for an art store. :rolleyes:

We wound up using a trash bag from the back.

[Dorothy Wood]

ah, she was probably just pissed that somebody forgot to keep up with the ordering and it was annoying.

but the garbage bag solution should always be plan B. no drama necessary.