One thing I have learned volunteering at a thrift store is that … er … salepeople are there to … surprise … sell.
It’s not that salespeople lie exactly. But nowadays if I try something on in a store I NEVER ask a salesperson’s opinion. Because they are rarely going to say, “That looks like crap on you.” If it’s a so-so fit they might offer a different size, but they might also say, “It’s a lovely color on you.” (Don’t ask me how I know this.)
A woman bought a couch at the store today. She was gushing about the fact that it was … the perfect size and color for her living room … that it was an old-fashioned style which she liked a lot … and that it was in such nice condition.
I heartily agreed with her about the condition and style and didn’t mention I’d never seen her living room and thus had no clue about fit or color. I think it’s hard sometimes to spend a couple of hundred dollars on an item without having someone else there to be encouraging about the purchase.
A few years ago I was at the cash register along with a saleswoman “who could sell ice to an Eskimo”. A customer came in, tried on a coat, looked in the mirror, and asked us what we thought of the fit. Ms. Sells-Ice-to-Eskimos was honest and said it was a bit big, but perhaps she’d like to try on this other coat that was hanging on the rack.
Alas this was not what the customer wanted to hear. She immediately declared that the advantage to a large coat was that one could fit a sweater under it easily. Tactics from behind the cash register quickly changed to, “Of course you are absolutely right.” We never mentioned that she could have fit three sweaters under it. She’d already made up her mind so who were we to disagree? I guess it’s human nature to make a decision and then want others to confirm that decision.
And what’s the point of this post? I dunno. Not all posts have points 🙂
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