When Size Matters
Published July 18th, 2007
I love scanning through Safat for the latest blog entries of the day. A few days ago I came across The Chirp Stories, a delightful little blog, but what caught my eye was her post about shopping in Kuwait.
In her post, Excuse Me Are You Calling Me Fat?, Chirp discusses several incidents that she’s encountered in trying to find her size dress.
I think customer service is an important and essential tool in any retail based company and was shocked to read about saleswomen laughing at her when she told them her size!
Her first story is:
A couple of years ago I was shopping for a pair of jeans, so my first stop for jeans was Diesel in Marina Mall. I tell the sales lady that I wanted a size 27 jeans, she looks me up and down and says “Nooo habibtiiiiiiiii you are not size 27″ she looks at my thighs then taps them and says “these are too big too fit into size 27, here you should try the unisex size 29″ I got so offended that I just walked out of the store with out trying anything on.
Her second story is:
So that incident was over and NOT forgotten, I went to BCBG in Al-Rayah last summer to buy some stuff that I needed. I tell the lady to give me a size “0″ (Zero), she looks at me and giggles then shes like “Size zero? I think you fit better in a two or a four”
She pissed me off! Who is she to tell me my size? Its not the first time I had shopped at that store so I think I would know my size. So I tell her “No I want a size Zero”
I tried on the clothes and they fit perfectly, I think the lady was shocked, she needs to go get her eyes checked.
Have any of you been through a similar experience while shopping? Fortunately I haven’t but I’m now curious as to how many people have encountered this problem either in Kuwait or abroad.
Salespeople, when a customer tells you her size and you have to be professional enough to know that it doesn’t pay to embarrass her! Give customers the size they requested. If you have some doubt they know their true size, keep the size you think they fit into nearby to hand to them when they request it.
You have to remember the phrase, “The Customer is Always Right.”
OMG! I had a similar incident at People R People in Manila. I was browsing through the shirts when this saleslady came up to me and said “I’m sorry ma’am we don’t have any shirts your size”. I was flabbergasted. I know PrP are made for women with negative one sizes but it was so uncalled for. First I did not ask for her assisstance much more for her comment. Second how dare she assume what my size is. She’s so rude I told her, “It’s ok nothing looks good in here anyway” ,and walked out.
I have tons and tons of stories. Once at Saks and while shopping for an evening dress, a lady came to me and was like don’t waste your time we don’t have your size. Those designers make dresses for little women ( she meant skinny women). I was upset and left to NM, where I got a dress that was available at Saks. Ofcourse, I went back and showed it to the lady and was like “I guess they have my size after all”.
It’s very easy to demonize salesmen and women because what you know they dont do blogs ! After working/standing for so many hours , giving away that brilliant smile , hands held in respect even when his/her mother is in death bead , Salesmen are the rufus of the earth , the lowest step on the ladder of society so why not ” Customer is always right” ! Even to the point where arrogance is dripping through the nose asking ” MAKO GEDDI?” … if you ask me there should be a training for customers [ specially for some younger boys]how to behave at the shops ! With all due respect to all of you , some of you are certainly are well behaved and well mannerd . it’s a sad incident Chirp was offended unintentionally [ may be not] …
“Customer is not always right ! specilly in Kuwait “
Oh yeah, i got the same crap too.. i put on weight a bit lately and where i used to go shop they would say it to my face although I turn red infront of them and just change subject mafi fayda… they would also tell me “no this won’t fit” “try a bigger size”. I really find it offending. That’s why now, i walk in a shop and do not make eye contact with the sales person or simply say “I can help myself thanks!”
Bayya welcome to my blog and thank you for your comment.
I beg to differ with many of your statements. I read several blogs that belong to salesmen and women, along with waiters, bank tellers, and other people who work in service-oriented industries. No one is demonizing anyone here. Those are meant as tips for salespeople to prevent losing customers, as you can see has happened in other incidents from the comments of Mackay and shopa.
I disagree with your references to salesmen as “lowest step on the ladder of society”. There is no shame in being a salesman or woman. Quite the opposite! It takes a tremendous amount of skill to be one and that’s why not everyone is suited for the job.
When someone laughs at you, it is not unintentional offence. It is a rude thing to do.
When it comes down to it, the customer is always right even when the customer is wrong. Having worked in a service-oriented industry I understand that because that’s the nature of the business. There is a reason customer service is called just that.
Zahra I agree with you totally ! I am in the fashion industry as well , ‘i am the lowest step’ … i have all the qualities you mentioned but that ‘doesn’t matter’ in Kuwait…. If i was in Dubai or eleswhere i wouldn’t be making this statement …. Only in Kuwait … I say this because i endure it every day ….. Customers [ i say again , not all ] lack the decency to treat the sales people ,[for ex : Snapping fingers to get attention of salesperson is not decency , people snap fingers to call dogs NOT HUMANS ] i am not surprised if some of them should retaliate [ which is totally not acceptable ]. Since you have mentioned the name of Diesel [ shouldn’t have ] it goes back to ‘Blue & Navy Co’ how much customer training they are giving to the salesladies .
Customer is always right agreed … …. but customers in Kuwait can be pain in the you know what !
Bayya thank you for returning. Again I don’t agree with your comments but that is healthy
Yes Diesel was mentioned because that was the store Chirp was in. There is no reason to hide that. One salesperson does not mean ALL of their salespeople are bad. In the same measure, you cannot blame the customer training for the behavior of that salesperson. It may be that salesperson was having a bad day and forgot they were representing the store, or a number of other factors.
I understand that some people are rude in Kuwait as I have seen people snap their fingers at storekeepers, waiters and an air flight attendant. Some people believe that just because you are in the service industry then you are at their beck and call. I believe it is wrong but also think you are mistaken if you think the same thing would not happen to you in Dubai or elsewhere.
Again, look at Mackay and Shopa’s comments. They endured bad customer service in Philippines and the United States of America. There are good and bad customers, employees, and employers everywhere in the world.
I am sorry that you seem to have only encountered negative experiences. If your company isn’t appreciating your efforts, it is a shame.
it’s the other way around for me i always ask for bigger sizes i ask for meduim they give me small because they see it better or i ask for 10 when i’m actually 8 :Pp
it happened to me here in kuwait, in sal7ya, im a little chubby but im tall and the weight distributes well o not thaaaaaaat faaaaaaat … i could easily fit into a 14-16 UK or 10-12 USA… anywasy, i was shopping in May 2006 for my sisters melcha dress.. .nothing fancy since it was a home melcha and there is a wedding afterwards … i went to george hobeika place in sal7iya, i ask the stupid sales person every so nicely (yes bayya im always nice to sales persons and never ever a snob) that if a certain dress is available (i was thinking for my younger sister aslan i didnt specify a size) fa she eyes me up and down o replies so rudely “ma fee” so i though ok mafee ymkin mo mawjood, i look over the catalouge of the run way, again i find one i like and ask “do you have this one now in store?” fa she makes sure this time i get the msg right ” Ma fee ay shee honee la eleeek wala 3la ma2aseek” !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My god he is a designer he makes dresses im not that fat!!!!!! she was so rude that i was to retaliate but my mother hates it when i make scenes so a look from her made me shut up. i found the number of george hobeika in lebanon and was inclined to call but my friends suggested instead of wasting my breath on that stupid woman i should search for a dress and let her go to hell! I found the most amazin Mathew Williamson Dress black o short o embellished in way that when i saw the video it was making a statement with every swish and every move… i still want to go to that bad woman and show her my mathew and tell her not a in a million years would you break me down and if mathew can make a dress in my size so would your employer. By the way she wasnt even thin she was old and plump and very sour…
Worse - I live in an orientally dominated society where the size 2/4 in USA equals to medium or large. It can be depressing to have any sales person tell you please try size “L”
Any where else in Asia where the women are superbly petite sales people tend to have that view. Then again - it takes all sorts to make this world - bad customers, lousy employees
Plus it depends on society where you live - up to size 6 in USA is pretty decent but in oriental Asia - they would not hesitate to tell you to go on a diet and look like a toothpick/lampost!
Very well said Zahra