broms2 Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I don't like to moan about stuff but need to get this off my chest. I have spent many years visiting and spending money in the fish shops in Auckland, I decided to stop spending my money at the big "A" stores this year due to knowledgeable staff all leaving and the fact they don't seem to even bother keeping their tanks clean anymore! this left the other one in Mt Roskill that I also visit alot, normally I don't spend much as the staff usually totally ignore me and don't seem to understand basic sales. today a staff member actually greeted me and asked if they could help, this took me aback a bit as it hasn't happened before, so I decided to spend some money. I found a nice plec that I hadn't seen before and asked about it, they told me it was the same as the others in the tank just older, I actually checked again and got the same answer so asked if they could hold it for me until I finished work and I would come back, I offered to pay and they said no need. So I finish work and race through the traffic to pick it up, they remember me and I start to think maybe they aren't so bad after all, as they go to get the fish they decide to ask someone else to make sure, they say no its something else and its double the price, the result oh well to bad... THANKS FOR WASTING MY TIME AND PETROL!!!! Result-I am no longer a customer :evil: I hope some of these people read this it might make you think about how you treat your customers. If I ran my company in this manner I would have no customers and my competition would love me. You are lucky your competition are even worse. You sell fish, try to learn about your product!!!! Now I feel better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supasi Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 You work in retail too? I do, and i find when i go into any shop,i always pick up on the mistakes of retail. Had a similar experiance yesterday at one of the big A stores, Asked the price of some fish that had no price tag, when i came back before my drive home to buy them they tried to tell me that they got it wrong and they were more expensive. I immediately put everything i had in my hands back on shelf and proceeded to leave when they called out and said they will honour that price. :evil: So i bought the fish only and left :lol: :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broms2 Posted July 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I don't actually work in retail, I work in a highly competitive industrial market where we have to go and get the customer, with retail the hard part is done, they are in your shop!! I do have experience in the retail sector as well and your'e right you do pick up on things, these things are bread and butter though and should not happen if people are serious about providing good service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supasi Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I manage an appliance retail store. we have , in my opinion, one of the most competitive markets at present. I cant help while im on holiday (out of town as all the local stores know who i am and ignore me anyway) going into competetors store to check out what happening. Usually walk out feeling much better about the service in my store Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HaNs Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 Broms go buy the book "How to grow your business without spending a cent" by Justin Herald and give it to the manager and say you will be back in a 2 weeks and i hope all staff have read it. Should turn them around abit Its such a good book. Good read for anyone involved in customer service even if its at wholesale level! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron-Betta Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 What "Blows my Mo" is that the owners/managers of a "Large petshop franchise" believe that the fish area of their stores dont turn over much money, (but look at what they are comparing it too - hundreds of dollars worth of live animals and food etc.) therefore hire staff on minimal wage who dont know much about what they are trying to sell. I can only imagine the amount of customers who come in and ask questions about their sick fish etc and get the wrong diagnosis purely because the salesperson didn't know, or haven't had any experiences with fish or fish products. I believe that if they changed their approach by hiring decent staff and paying them a respectable wage, they have more regular customers due to the customers trust in the people they deal with. I know of a few people who were very knowledgable, yet left their jobs at these stores due to poor wages and lack of respect. Changing the workers outlook on their job (from a minimal wage drag day-in-day-out to someone who is happy to come to work) will change the look of their shops for sure. I bet that those tanks would be kept clean. My other rant is the quality of the fish they are trying to put through the stores. I went into a store just yesterday to find some very obviously disfigured fish, yet they were selling it at full price, with that I left the shop without spending a cent. Any self-respecting petstore wouldn't sell rubbish! :evil: :evil: :evil: I find it a lot better to deal with private breeders and try not to spend much at petshops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broms2 Posted July 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 the funny thing is the shop in Albany that goes by the same name as the one in Mt Roskill is really good, everytime I walk in the door I am greeted with a smile and hello and while I am there every 5 mins or so one of them asks me if I need help with anything, they have also been really good helping me with information that I need even if it means no sale for them. they are a bit far from my home but I always visit when I am working in the area, I will visit them more often now despite the petrol costs of going further, maybe they could show their sister shop staff how to treat a customer they want repeat business from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 with retail the hard part is done, they are in your shop!! What an ignorant statement. How do you think the customer ends up in that shop, just by chance? Retailers work hard at getting new customers into their store along with retaining current customers, pouring thousands of dollars and hours into advertising, promotions, and trying to provide a good service so customers return and the word-of-mouth advertising is positive. From the sounds of it the staff made an honest mistake, it happens once in a while with humans. And under the fair trading act I'm pretty certain if it is an honest mistake then they are not obliged [legally] to honour the price. It would be pretty hard for a person at a shop like this one to keep track of every fish they have in stock, and one slip up once in a while is perfectly excusable IMO. That said, I can understand your frustration, especially with the current price of petrol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 broms2, it sounds like what happened to you was a combination of human error and lack of knowledge. This shouldn't really be news to anyone, but the franchise in question are not "big" on fish. Having been recently employed by said franchise, I was surprised to find out just how little the staff know about the fish they are selling - and this is not their fault either; during the training there is only a very small amount of time dedicated to the fish in store - they are taught the basics, that's all, and because fish isn't exactly everyone's passion they don't feel the need to do more research. (Training guidelines are set by Head Office btw) While the Head Office is slowly realizing the large gap in it's knowledge, I'm lucky in that my manager is already taking steps to improve the 'fish knowledge' of her staff. It's already noticeable how the quality of service in the fish department is improving and I, for one, am most pleased. It's a shame that other stores around the country are lagging behind, but hopefully they'll pick up soon and everyone, fish included, will benefit. Also, if anyone happens to drop past the store in Palmy, feel free to come brag to me about your fish. *Nudge nudge Rozski* I want to learn as much as possible so I don't end up rubbish! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 That said, I can understand your frustration, especially with the current price of petrol! probably cost 1/2 a clown loach to get there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron-Betta Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 clown loaches are around $30 up here, and that doesn't get you far these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zabman Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 Visited the Mt Roskill store today and bought a jager heater. 3 staff in the store and I was the only customer, actually had to tap a staff member on the shoulder to get some assistance, if you can call it assistance. I was treated like a minor inconvenience as opposed to a paying customer which I found very odd. I have never had any problems here before but felt exceptionally out of place today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yarimochi Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 BLABLABLA BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH!!!!!! I REALLY DISLIKE CUSTOMERS LIKE YOU!!! I work at an 'A' class lfs and Im only human. Get of your holier than thou high horse. People arent going to learn anything if you dont give them a chance. We dont have degrees, we have a part time job. I love customers that are patient, understanding and couldnt care if you make a mistake. GAH!!! customers these days...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yarimochi Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 Visited the Mt Roskill store today and bought a jager heater. 3 staff in the store and I was the only customer, actually had to tap a staff member on the shoulder to get some assistance, if you can call it assistance. I was treated like a minor inconvenience as opposed to a paying customer which I found very odd. I have never had any problems here before but felt exceptionally out of place today. poor baby, you actually had to make an effort. get a butler if you want to be waited on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zabman Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 BLABLABLA BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH!!!!!! I REALLY DISLIKE CUSTOMERS LIKE YOU!!! I work at an 'A' class lfs and Im only human. Get of your holier than thou high horse. People arent going to learn anything if you dont give them a chance. We dont have degrees, we have a part time job. I love customers that are patient, understanding and couldnt care if you make a mistake. GAH!!! customers these days...... I accept that knowledge must be learnt and everyone must start somewhere, but ignorance is no excuse. I can be exceptionally patient if I feel I am valued, but its a two way street. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 We dont have degrees, we have a part time job. Well said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 Keep this thread clean and nice or it will be locked Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broms2 Posted July 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 broms2 wrote: with retail the hard part is done, they are in your shop!! What an ignorant statement. How do you think the customer ends up in that shop, just by chance? Retailers work hard at getting new customers into their store along with retaining current customers, pouring thousands of dollars and hours into advertising, promotions, and trying to provide a good service so customers return and the word-of-mouth advertising is positive. And your point is.... As I say the hard work is done, they have come into your shop, why ruin it by ignoring them and giving bad service. In my line of work we spend many thousands on advertising, weekends and nights at conferences and weeks around the country, if my staff treated the customers we got to contact us that wanted to buy something like I have experienced they would no longer work for me, and trust me we have many product lines with thousands of possible combinations, this is why you train people. There is no excuses apart from staff shortages due to sickness as far as I am concerned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casper Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 poor baby, you actually had to make an effort. get a butler if you want to be waited on. And exactly who do you think ends up paying your wages? those "stupid customers" with out us, the LFS would not exist and you woulnt have your job would you? if someone asks you a question and you dont know the answer, DONT ANSWER. dont just give the wrong information... try looking it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 poor baby, you actually had to make an effort. get a butler if you want to be waited on. yarimochi, I think you're missing the point that many of the people commenting on the poor service either work or have worked in retail themselves. They/we have been at the receiving end of grumpy customers and they/we know what is acceptable behaviour and what is not. Personally, I worked in retail for many years. I worked up from being a part-time shop assistant to branch manager. If I go into a retail store and I am not even acknowledged by the staff, I consider them to be quite rude. It's not about being waited on. It is about common courtesy. If I am waiting at the counter to ask a question or buy an item, even if the staff member is busy I expect them to acknowledge me with a nod and a smile and maybe even a statement like "I will be with you shortly." In this case I am prepared to wait for a considerable amount of time because I feel at least I have been acknowledged. If I am ignored, I will only wait a short time before leaving the store. If I am ignored because the staff are apparently chatting amongst themselves or making personal phone calls or too busy filing their nails, then I consider that to be very rude. I will leave after a very short time and if it happens repeatedly I will not return to that shop again. I know it is possible to be polite and courteous and friendly to customers because I did it every day for years. Even when I was working part time and earning poor wages. That is no excuse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 if someone asks you a question and you dont know the answer, DONT ANSWER. dont just give the wrong information... try looking it up. I thought that kind of stuff was common sense? I hope no one's given you false information before. I, for one, admittedly don't know everything and I'm sure as heck not scared to tell a customer "I'm sorry, I don't actually know, I'll just go ask my manager.". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zabman Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I havent been given incorrect information, theres nothing wrong with asking a colleague if you don't know something. being ignored is a completely different kettle of... fish? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I thought that kind of stuff was common sense? I hope no one's given you false information before. I, for one, admittedly don't know everything and I'm sure as heck not scared to tell a customer "I'm sorry, I don't actually know, I'll just go ask my manager.". You would hope it would be common sense. I have been given some very wrong information about aquatic plants by a staff member at one of the chain stores. Virtually any question I asked her about plants, she pretty much made up a random answer. Another staff member at the same store would often say, "hmm... I think the answer is this but I'm not 100% sure. Let me look it up." And he would look in one of the plant books and we would both learn some new stuff. Needless to say, the one who said "I don't know" got a lot more respect from me and made a lot more sales to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 poor baby, you actually had to make an effort. get a butler if you want to be waited on. part of the job you are employed for is to wait on customers in todays economic climate it is important to your pay and the survival of the shop that the customer comes back to the shop if i was your employer and saw/read the tone of your post it might be grounds for a dismissal maybe you should apologise before your employer sees it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antwan Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 poor baby, you actually had to make an effort. get a butler if you want to be waited on. What a great attitude, I hope I can get that kind of service locally. :roll: You realise it is your job to look after the customer and make them feel happy about their decision to come to your store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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