Sales assistants that pounce on you

This is one reason why online shopping is so popular as you can delete the ensuing emails etc.
What annoys me is the "would you like any special offers?" at the till. The cashier has to sell a certain amount of these or face action.

The reverse of assistants seeking out male customers is those customers that assume the male colleague in our store must be the manager. Good fun when they bypass the females with "oh I want to deal with the manager" or "the manager will do me a deal I'll speak to him". and the male colleague has to point them in the direction of the female they've just rebuffed. In our store we tend to say "hello, good morning /afternoon if you need any help just ask" then leave the customer to browse. Often we work alone so some people do get cross if cant get served straight away but that's cuts for you ? Retail work is shit now, longer hours, more days of the week to cover, no extra for working bank holidays/sundays and most on minimum pay. Add to that pressure from senior management to meet unattainable goals and threat to losing jobs it's no wonder many shop workers are miserable. I love my job despite all that but do hate how badly we get spoken to when things go wrong. We understand how frustrating it is but remember we don't make that faulty tv you received, or knit that sweater that has a hole in it, or produce that chair with a wobbly leg. We will do our best to put things right but coming in with a ready to fight attitude does not help and will not make things happen any quicker. Also expecting "discount for cash" is another that makes us want to scream. No discount the items are priced accordingly and cash is far more work for us than a cc sale! My main gripes when shopping are standing in queues to pay for my lunch (because the quick tills are not manned) while the cashier and customer carry on a conversation then the customer (who had been standing in the queue) spends 5 mins routing in her bag for her purse, then another 5 trying to find the correct money. Do it while waiting in the queue, I only get 20mins unpaid break! And breathe ?

From the other point of view - my friend worked for many years in a small branch of a building society where many local customers came in regularly, had all their questions answered, and the atmosphere was friendly. Over the years this changed when they were trained to 'pounce' on customers and ask if they needed any other service and had they considered insurance? They then had to explain what the insurance was for. She said she hated asking, no-one wanted it, and longstanding customers were becoming very annoyed. So she stopped asking and immediately was taken to task by the manager. She explained why she had stopped and said she was standing up for customers' rights not to be hassled! She didn't last very long after that but she said the job had changed so much she didn't enjoy it any more.

In general, I find shop assistants helpful and happy to leave you to browse if you say you don't need any help. Maybe I'm lucky with the shops I go to!
My worst experience was probably years ago popping in to an electrical shop after dropping my 3 kids at school to see what they had in the way of table lamps as I liked supporting small local businesses. I was just wearing whatever casual clothes had come to hand in the usual morning chaos. The female assistant/owner looked me up and down when I asked to see one of the lamps in the window and said "You won't want that one, it's quite expensive". Needless to say they didn't get a sale and I never went bsck. Totally unacceptable behaviour towards any customer - she probably wouldn't have spoken that way if she'd known my husband was a GP and I was a lecturer.

Was in a very well known chemists after having been quite ill. Was pounced on by an assistant. Assistant “ would you like to try our serum madam, it can make you look up to five years younger?” Me: could it?” Assistant: Oh yes, it could definitely take ( actually looks at me ) it could....well , it would make a difference! “ Best laugh I’ve had in weeks!

Nowadays it seems to be more a case of find a shop assistant when you want to pay for something, particularly department stores.
If I am asked I say 'no thank you I am just looking', with a pleasant smile, and it seems to work.

Don't disagree, but I'm equally irritated when you can't find an assistant when you need one

i think i am invisible to car sales assistants ,conservatory salesmen and anyone to do with technology.my husband on the other hand is their best friend even though i am the one buying.[

I don’t think that WH Smith is doing very well. I went in before Christmas looking for a particular game. I looked around for ages and couldn’t see what I wanted so I looked for someone to help. Two assistants were busily walking up and down, doing something or other. I asked a man about the game and he huffed and puffed and said he couldn’t believe it, there had been no one in all morning and then two people needed help at once! I left and ordered online, job done.

Shopping for a washing machine in John Lewis, I couldn't find anyone to take my order. I took the details, went home and ordered it on line. I made my opinion known to the management.

I was shopping to buy a new kitchen. Went to B & Q and completely ignored by all 6 assistants there. Eventually I went over and asked about getting a kitchen designed and priced. The assistant said quite bluntly that they did not offer that service. I spent my £7000 elsewhere

However, sometimes the flip side is an assistant cannot be found for love nor money!

My local Boots is well known for this.

I also hate going into Lush, glad it's not just me they pounce on. I go in there to buy the Sleepy lotion and never look at anything else as I know they will start talking to me again.

I also have the same issues with JL and the technology department, can never find anyone to talk to.

However if I go to the footwear or jewellery section I am inundated with being asked if they can help me. One time the same woman that had been hounding me in the footwear department promptly started doing the same in the jewellery department too as they were next to each other!

When you say the first scripted line and the customer gives you "dont want to chat" signals, you cant stop there! You have to keep going and get the other 4 script sentances in as you are being monitored.

Its soul destroying because its not "real" conversation. And you have to do it all day.

As a customer you are only there for a short time. The floor staff have to go through the scripted routine for the whole duration of their shift or else . Be kind to them

Hate it, so much so, I won’t go in a shop if I see an assistant hovering.

When I was in the US a while ago many of the stores had small baskets of badges which said ‘I’m just browsing’. This stopped the constant badgering by staff.

My late sister was very outspoken. If they pounced on her with a “can I help you” she would reply “ to do what?”.

John Lewis employees do not get direct commission so they have less incentive to sell. I once stood for ages in the jewellery dept while 3 assistants discussed their weekend. My next stop was the store manager's office. He thanked me profusely for taking the time to complain and then stormed off in the direction of the jewellery dept!
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Your post made me smile Milly

Years ago, I was looking for an outfit for a wedding. On a friend’s recommendation, I went to a ‘posh’ ladies clothes section in a department store. The assistant looked me up and down, could tell it was not where I usually shopped obviously. On hearing the outfit was for a wedding, I was asked what sort of wedding it was, the implication being was it a society type nuptial. I responded with dignity that it was a relative’s wedding, that it would be a ‘nice’ one, but I could see that nothing there was what I was looking for. She had the grace to then be embarrassed, and try to rectify things, but I flounced off and bought an outfit at M&S or similar.
Just because she worked in a ‘posh’ shop, she was a shop assistant like anyone else, and earned no commission off me.

I think one of the problems with pouncing shop assistants is the fear that you may be a Mystery Shopper. I worked in a high street Opticians for nearly 20 years and the mystery shop held us all to ransom. One of the criteria was to approach the customer within x minutes of their arriving in store. Heaven help anyone who got the mystery shopper and was marked down for not pouncing on them quickly enough. Worse still, this was usually secretly filmed and staff members who failed to get a good mystery shop score would get quite a stern talking to. Of course, the powers that be would have us believe mystery shoppers were a good thing and helped improve customer service - and I guess in a way they did.
These days this particular Opticians has a designated meeter and greeter in most of their stores so the customer approaches the staff member and not the other way round. But there are still Mystery shoppers out there! If you wear a brooch on your coat you may well get a lot of attention - it could be concealing a hidden camera.

Yes I hate that expression too Nannyknee

It’s not even a proper sentence is it?

What happened to “Good morning/afternoon “ ?

Years ago I did a 4 month stint (Oct to Jan) in a shoe shop once. Not only did you have to ask if you could help as soon as a customer arrived, but you had a daily sales target and part of the amount had to be made up of sales of slippers and accessories like insoles, shoe sprays.
For the persistent ones I usually say “Give me your name and I’ll find you if I need anything.”
Technology depts make me laugh though. They always look round to see if my DH is there and address themselves to him if he is. He always says-“Ask her, she’s the technical one.”

Body Shop is bad for this.
And Oliver Bonas - not that I go in there often at all.
I never go in Lush - just the stink when you walk past is quite enough!

I was once pounced on in John Lewis children’s clothes dept. by a male staff member, asking in very crisp tones whether he could ‘help’.
I was holding a cardigan against the little dress I’d already bought in Joules for Gdd, in order to see whether the colours matched.
I swear he thought I was about to slip it in my bag! It’s a mite disconcerting to be taken for a shoplifter, but I suppose there’s a first time for everything.