Unbelievably Rude Customer!

[Audrey Levins]

Hey Grumblers!

Today was one of those days where you wonder if you've wandered into the circus...I had a customer do the rudest thing I've ever seen today.

I had a young guy I was helping at the framing table today--I had his poster, which was 40X26, laid out on the counter with weights on all four sides, and we were looking at samples. It was a limited edition poster that one of his friends had brought him from Italy.

This WOMAN walks up with four very old, barnwood ready-mades and lays all of them out ON TOP OF THE POSTER! Right on top of it, in the middle, even though the other side of the counter was absolutely barren!

We both just stared at her for a second, before I asked the guy if by some chance he knew her. (I didn't want to assume it wasn't his slightly crazy aunt or something.) He said no...and meanwhile she's spreading out her frames and beginning to look at mat samples.

"Excuse me," I said, trying not to scream, "but do you mind getting your frames OFF this gentleman's poster before they DAMAGE IT?"

She looks up at me as if I'm the crazy one, and says, "Oh, okay," like I'm over-reacting.

"You can lay them out over THERE on the other counter," I tell her.

"Oh, I'm fine right here," she says obstinately, with her frames still right up next to the poster.

I went to the back to get one of my co-workers to come out and help her, i.e., drag her to the other counter before I strangle her....and she refuses to move her stuff until my co-worker says that she will not help her until she does.

By some miracle, her ancient frames didn't scratch/tear the poster, and the guy and I laughed about it eventually, but I've never seen anyone so blatantly rude in my life....

And she was just the first in a long line of unbelievable customers today.

WHAT IS IT WITH SATURDAYS?

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I don't care what color your sofa is.

[Dermot]

Audrey

Some days you just get people like that they are out there whether you like it or not, you also have the great people like the guy who was your customer who can just laugh and takes it as it comes.

A tip I was given once is to concentrate my mind on nice things and not to rent out space in my mind on rude people, you know what it works.

Take care.

Dermot

[LBFOOTE]

Hi Audrey,
That was quick thinking on your part to ask your good customer with the poster if the rude one was with him. I would probably have just gathered up her frames and moved them away myself, all the while, telling her how she should not have put them on top of another customer's art. And, going to get another salesperson to get the rude one away from the scene was smart. http://www.thegrumble.com/framer/ubbs/wink.gif
Hang on to that poster customer. He sounds like a good one!

Dermot, nice to see you back. We missed you. Hope you and your family had a great vacation (holiday).
I like that saying, "Concentrate my mind on nice things and not rent space in my mind on rude people." You know, the world would be a more pleasant place if we all listened to that advice. I can just see Merpsmom stitching this one up to be framed!!

Linda

[Jana]

Is it a full moon, or close to it? That always seems to explain a lot.

[ArtLady]

I always make it habit when I see someone coming in to direct them to available space, before situations like this happen. It is my gallery and when someone comes in with four frames, also known as having their hands full, I feel it is up to me to direct them where to put pieces.

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Timberwoman
AL
I cut the mat, I pet the =^..^= cat.

[This message has been edited by ArtLady (edited September 02, 2001).]

[RonEggers]

I've had people set a wet umbrella on top of a customer's artwork and I've had people boost their kids up onto my design counter so "they can see better." I've gotten so that, when someone new walks through my door, I try to imagine what the worst thing is they could do with what they come in with, and head off disaster. It's a lot like driving defensively. Just because you have the green light doesn't mean the other driver's going to stop.

[Framar]

One of the GOOD things about being a slob, er, I mean, utilizing every square inch of horizontal space, I usually have to "clear off" a space for customer's work and the design process. I only have two 4x8 tables, and my Seal press, mat cutter, vise and tools take up space as well as works in progress.

I did have a UPS man try to set a package on top of a freshly spray-glued board once, but I headed him off with a yell. Scared the heck out of him! http://www.thegrumble.com/framer/ubbs/smile.gif

I can clear a space in the blink of an eye and I am always way ahead of the speediest customer.

[Framing Stitcher]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Jana:
Is it a full moon, or close to it? That always seems to explain a lot.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Not only is it a Full Moon but it is a Harvest Moon too! You know the time when it is closest to the earth. It must be having an effect on these folks!

Joyce
Beveled Edge

[Janet L]

Don't know what's up with the moon, but I sure hope it continues! We have been absolutely swamped with orders for the past couple of weeks. We started on a 30 piece order for a new restaurant opening in town and the orders from typical customers began flooding in. My figures for August were almost as good as last November.

Also, I haven't noticed any rude customers. Maybe our happiness over how busy we are is obvious to our customers and they can tell we appreciate their business. So......SHINE ON, SHINE ON HARVEST MOON!

[JRB]

Audrey, when your at the design table it is your responsibility to control not only the sale but every thing that is related to it.

That was probably one of the worst things that could happen during a sale, you should have seen it coming and stopped it before it happened.

It is your job to be constantly aware of what is going on in the design room of your shop.

If your out front you not only have to control the sale, you have to direct traffic, call for help when you need it, etc.

Customers carrying large loads should be intercepted near the door with an offer to take it off their hands. I have to do that all the time, just say excuse me to the customer your helping, walk around the counter, take the load out of the new customers hands and set it in an appropriate area. Tell the new customer to brows around and you will get to them when you can.
It will show you care to everyone in the area.

John

[Jana]

Janet, how are you going to get all those orders done if it's just you, Charles, and a high school helper? I just was wondering how you manage without collapsing. What's your secret?

[Janet L]

Jana,
I stay late, go in early. My high school helper graduated and is now in college so she's not with us until Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. We've really done a good job of organizing and splitting up responsibilities. Charles gets the orders together by Friday of each week, he keeps the inventory and checks on what we need and shops our suppliers for the best prices. He keeps all the glass cut, mounting boards cut and matboards trimmed to size (when I'm not using the matcutter. We both assemble frames (we order all chops). Charles closes and wires all the jobs after I finish the mounting and matcutting. We both work together on the shadowboxes. Our turnaround time can vary from 10 days to a month occasionally, but we tell all customers (upfront) when they can expect their work to be completed. This month our business has been 60% repeat and 40% new customers.

[Audrey Levins]

John--

While I do agree with you that perhaps I could have told this woman where she could put her frames before she laid them on top of someone else's artwork, they were four small frames, none of them over an 8x10, so it's not as if she struggled in the door and set them down the very first place she could put them. http://www.thegrumble.com/framer/ubbs/wink.gif She had all four of them stashed under one arm...and the kind of person who would do that is not the kind of person who was merely confused as to where she could place her artwork while she waited. And again, I cannot stress the completely barren nature of the counter to the RIGHT of me. She had at least six feet of space to put her artwork and spread it out--we encourage customers to feel free to browse until someone can help them--and she chose to step in front of a customer and put them directly on top of his artwork.

So while I do agree with you that a busy frame shop is somewhat like a traffic light, in need of direction, a woman who walks in with four small frames and chooses to ignore ALL the other counterspace and immediately assault someone's artwork is not mentally all there. *chuckle* I don't consider her misbehavior all my fault. http://www.thegrumble.com/framer/ubbs/wink.gif

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I don't care what color your sofa is.

[JRB]

Audrey, No matter how crazy or passive aggressive a customer is, when your at the counter, YOUR the captain of the ship.

It is up to you to protect the customers and their artwork. Whatever goes on in the design room has to be controlled by you.

Should something happen that is totally beyond your control, it is still ALL your fault. If you want to collect the commissions, you have to be willing to take the responsibility. If you don't want responsibility, ask your boss if you can be transferred to fitting where you can control your mistakes.

I tell all my people, if you believe in God, now you have two Gods, Yours and the customers artwork. If you don't believe in God, now you have one.

As custom picture framers, the worst thing we can do is destroy a customers artwork or whatever they have brought in for framing.

It's all not just about conservation, it's about everything. When a customer brings anything into our stores, they should not leave with their anything in worse shape than it was when they came in. There are absolutely NO excuses. If we screw up artwork, it is our fault, nobody else's. Once it is inside our front door, we are responsible.

It is easy to find excuses, it is not easy to accept responsibility.

John

[ArtLady]

Hi Audrey,

Did you get a new email address??

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Timberwoman
AL
I cut the mat, I pet the =^..^= cat.

[Audrey Levins]

John--

I see we will have to agree to disagree here. http://www.thegrumble.com/framer/ubbs/wink.gif I do not think that this woman's behavior was my fault, anymore than if she had walked in the door with a pair of scissors and seized his artwork to slash it to pieces. Nor do I think that "if a situation is totally beyond my control, it is still ALL my fault." This is like saying that when I was waitressing in college, the man who shoved his hands down my shirt to play a joke and "give me my tip" was somehow in my control as well, and that his behavior was my fault. I do not predict, nor can I ever completely control, any given person or situation, and anyone who thinks they can is lying to themselves.

This woman was very rude, very thoughtless, and totally unexpected; she removed her artwork from the poster as soon as I told her to, and with the help of a co-worker, she moved to another counter. (After some argument, for reasons I have yet to figure out.)

And no, I do not make commissions on what I sell, and no, I will not ask my boss to move me to the back where "my mistakes" will be more preventable, or less evident. My boss was not in the store when this incident occurred, but when he was told about it, he said I had acted correctly.

And Artlady--

My e-mail is incorrect? Now I am curious; I will have to investigate my profile....

My e-mail is AudreyHitchcock@yahoo.com; feel free to use it. http://www.thegrumble.com/framer/ubbs/smile.gif

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I don't care what color your sofa is.

[Audrey Levins]

Artlady--

You are correct; that e-mail address is invalid. Does anyone know how to update my profile so that I can correct that? I didn't see an "edit" button.....

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I don't care what color your sofa is.

[RonEggers]

Audrey,

To update your profile, including you email address, just click on profile toward the top right of this screen. After you have confirmed your identity, you can update your profile from there.

I will be re-sending you a note I sent some time ago, as I used the old address and I'm not sure if you ever receieved it.

Ron