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View Full Version : The Baby's Room, Bala Cynwyd PA is concerned only with how you look!



ohbaby
05-09-2003, 08:38 AM
I was shopping for baby furniture and bedding and decided to drive to Bala Cynwyd where there are two store, USA Baby and the Baby's Room. I went into the Baby's room first. I could not believe the sales people! I walked into the store, and all of the sales people ignored me completely. I had on gym shorts and a tee shirt because I had the day off. I watched a woman walk in with designer shoes and handbag, and two sales people (out of three) rushed over to help her. I walked once around the store and walked out with no one saying so much as hello to me. I walked across the street into USA Baby, and they instantly greeted me and showed me all about the various cribs and bedding. And they were not pushy or following me around or anything! My friend had told me to go there, because she had a good experience with them, but I just could not believe the difference. Any one else had this experience with the Baby's Room?
Thanks, Kim

mama2be
05-09-2003, 08:59 AM
I find that so amusing...and so believe you!!!

One of my co-workers once said she gets all dressed up just to go shopping because she cares what these store clerks think...I couldn't be any further from that I swear. In fact I find I remove my engagement ring if I'm buying furniture or something where prices are negotiable.

brubeck
05-09-2003, 04:12 PM
This reminded me of a Cosby Show episode I saw long ago. Bill Cosby wants to buy a car and he gets all dressed up in his scruffiest clothes to pretend like he has no money. He is just about to negotiate a good deal with the salesman (who thinks he's getting as much $$$ as he can out of him) when another customer comes running up, "How are you Dr. Huxtable? And your wife? I hear she was just made partner in her law firm!" etc. etc. It was really funny to see the look on everyone's faces. :-)

Of course what makes this so funny is that it is totally true. You really don't want to look like you have lots of cash on anything negotiable. Of course my brother used to do the opposite. When he was in undergrad he and his friends would get dressed in their one set of preppy designer clothes and go test drive Porsches. :-)

jojo2324
05-10-2003, 01:13 AM
It's such a pity that sales clerks do that. You never know who's about to drop the big bucks. I know several wealthier people who ONLY wear work boots and flannel shirts! I used to work in retail, and you never knew who was going to buy what.

But I am the type of person who would rather not be hounded by salespeople...One store in particular I have trouble with is the Body Shop. I can't even browse without some woman following me around, even AFTER I've told her I'm just looking! It's gotten to the point where I just don't go there anymore. I tend to look around at everything, and if there are questions, or a need for help, I march right on up to someone and request it. Hey, I don't have time to dilly dally...I've got a baby! :D

mama2be
05-10-2003, 01:41 PM
ME too...I can't stand commision places!!! I swear I hate to shop NOrdstrom in The DC area because of that. They all ask "how are you????" Every corner you take...that is all I do the whole time is say "Fine thank you how are you" (when I relly could give a rats derrierre )...I feel like I have to entertain them...and they obviously feel like they need to entertain me.

brubeck
05-10-2003, 05:09 PM
I have a policy: if a salesclerk jumps on me before I have taken 2 steps into the store I just turn around and leave. This is especially effective in malls where the 'door' is an open wall. Picture it:

Cross threshold of store
One step
Two steps
"Anything I can help you with today?"
Swivel 180 degrees on one foot
One step
Two steps
Out the door.

The looks on some of the salespeoples' faces are priceless! :-)

gremlin44
05-10-2003, 10:32 PM
Some things to keep in mind:

When I was going back to school to get a second degree, I took a job in a chain bookstore in a mall.

According to the company's policies for sales clerks, we were to make sure to greet/acknowledge customers within 10 seconds of their arrival in our store whenever possible.

Luckily, they didn't mandate any specific phrases to be said. I tried to keep it short and simple--a smile and a "Hi" or "Hello."

However, at least once a week our district manager would come in the store and stay for 8 hours. A smile and a simple greeting were not enough for her. She required you to immediately ask "Is there anything I can help you find today?" If sales numbers were slow that week and the store was empty, she expected you to keep engaging the customer in conversation.

It didn't matter how much we didn't like doing it or how rude it was to a customer who wanted to browse. If the DM was there in the store you did it or you got fired. Period. I needed my crappy $5.85 an hour job, so I did it.

Another reason that I always made sure to acknowledge a customer's presence quickly (whether just with a smile or phrase) was Secret Shoppers. You know, the folks who go into stores and secretly rate the store's level of service? One of their criterion is whether or not and how quickly a customer was greeted upon entering the store.

And a third reason is that studies have shown that simply letting a customer know that you are aware of them entering the store cuts down on shoplifting by a huge percent. And customers who are greeted tend to respect the store and its merchandise more--not leave food court trash on the shelves, drop clothing on the floor, not put items back, etc.

Obviously some sales clerks are annoying. Many clerks on commission are going to hound you to death. However, try to cut the average sales clerk some slack--they are usually working hard for crappy pay in a job that tends to be dehumanizing. And when you come up to the register to have them ring up your purchase, at least look them in the eye once or say "Hi" when they say "Hi" to you. Acknowledge them as a human being. Nothing used to piss me off more after standing on my feet for 7 hours than ringing up a customer who refused to acknowledge that I even existed. I wasn't looking for a conversation--just common courtesy.

jojo2324
05-11-2003, 11:47 AM
You are so right.

I do not mind at all if people greet me. Actually, I get a bit annoyed when I am in a store for a good amount of time and NOBODY even looks my way...They could all be standing around talking, chewing gum, on the phone, whatever. But the incessant trailing is what gets on my nerves. And really the ONLY store I have had trouble with is the Body Shop. But I do try to say, "Hello, how do you do?" and I don't get annoyed by the "Would you like to open up a credit card account and save 10% and earn points?" etc, etc. I know that people are only doing their job.

I work in the service industry (I am a waitress.) and it is the WORST to stand in front of a table and ask, "How is everyone this evening?" and have nobody look up from the conversation or respond. Or worse yet, I ask the question, and I get, "Yeah, gimme a rare Swiss burger." I want to wear a sign on my forehead that says "HUMAN TOO!!!"

Okay, my rant is over. Remember the Golden Rule! :D

sntm
05-11-2003, 06:50 PM
my husband loves to tell the story of when he went into tiffany's with his friend to buy my engagement ring in a t-shirt and flip-flops. he was mostly ignored, except by one saleslady who was mostly humoring him, until he gave them a price range and the specific ring style he wanted. she instantly brightened and by the end was trying to convince him to buy a necklace too.

makes you want to go back to the store and do the "pretty woman" thing -- "remember me? you wouldn't help me? you work on commission don't you. BIG mistake."

shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03

redhairedgirl
05-12-2003, 04:27 AM
I can't stand it when I'm looking for help, and no one wants to help me. One day, I was trying to buy a shirt, and the cash register I was at had a line of about 4 people in front of me. I noticed there was another girl across from the aisle just taking her good old time, just playing around. Finally, after I was next in line, she says, "Ma'am, I can help you over here." x(

There are a lot of times that I go into places and I'm not even greeted. Sometimes, I admit, I'm in a mood where I don't want to talk to anyone, but if they atleast said "Hi" I wouldn't feel like I'm intruding on their space.
I realize we all have feelings,and that the person at the job may not be making a lot of money. But, on the same token, I'm providing some form of job security, and I would atleast like to be acknowledged.

lukkykatt
05-13-2003, 02:25 PM
I had to laugh when I read this, because I was born and raised in Phila, so I know JUST what you are talking about! It can be a full time job to pull off the right appearance on the Main Line!

Now that I have 2 kiddos, I so often dash out of the house without giving my appearance a second thought. Hey, I am dwelling in poo poo and spit up all day! So I know sometimes people are surprised when I actually buy something!

Thanks! You made me homesick...

dotgirl
05-13-2003, 04:17 PM
I detest places that treat you differently if you're dressed differently, and I have to admit that I work for one of them. *shame*

I work for Nordstrom (hopefully everyone knows what store that is, or we need better advertising), but I'm a creative developer, so I just build things for the website.

So I went to a local Nordie's this weekend (about 4 times a year, employees get double their usual discount on any 'store' brands, and I wanted to buy some layette stuf). I'm at that "inbetween" stage, where I'm too big for my normal clothes, but too small to fill out maternity clothes (plus I haven't bought any yet!), so I was wearing a pair jeans which are way to big for me, but comfy.

So yeah, I looked like a slob. But goodness, the saleslady acted like I was some sort of vagrant, and actually avoided me until I cornered her to ask her a question about a sleeper. And then she actually wrinkled her nose at me!

I asked her for her name, and told her that I would be filing an internal complaint when I got back to my office at Nordstrom corporate. Boy did she try to make amends fast! I went to a different Nordstrom later in the day, got excellent service, and was happy to give *that* sales person her commission. *grin*

momathome
05-13-2003, 09:47 PM
I'm kind of surprised about all of the Nordstroms' negativity. My local Nordstroms (King Of Prussia, PA) is terrific. Any sales person I've encountered has been very helpful and friendly without being obnoxious, including calling several other stores for me to try to find a particular dress for my dd that was on a clearnce rack but not in her size. I also am not one of those people who dresses up to go to the mall - I usually am wearing jeans and a comfy shirt and sneakers, certainly nothing that says I'm hear to blow a thousand bucks! I usually head right for the sale racks and the sales people are still quite friendly. Also, if you had bad luck at the Baby's Room in Bala Cynwood, try their other location on Rte.30 in Frazer - I stopped there yesterday just to browse and the woman who was working there was very friendly and I definitely was not dressed in my Sunday best! Good luck!
-Lauren

josephsmom
05-15-2003, 01:29 PM
I hate to say it, but that's pretty much what I'd expect on the Main Line. The Baby's Room is a pretty snooty store on a pretty snooty street in a pretty snooty neighborhood.......

Helene
mommy to Joseph 12/29/01

aggie202
06-03-2003, 02:17 PM
I had to give a little laugh when I read this b/c although I live on the Main Line, I swear I'm not ONE OF THOSE!!!!

I too, have been the victim of this snooty snubbing in a variety of retail establishments up and down Lancaster Pike. When it happens now (I usually shop in a baseball hat so it happens a lot), it seriously makes me laugh. Fools!!!! Don't they know that the customers pay their salaries?!?!?

I second the Baby's Room in Frazer--I go there on my lunch breaks a lot and have always been treated very nicely. Still on the pricey side, IMHO but they run sales quite a bit. . .

Jeanmick
06-03-2003, 11:29 PM
It's interesting that I came across this topic today. My DH and I had an interesting experience yesterday. He decided to take the day off and together w/ our 2 year old and 3 month old, we ran some errands. After we were through, we thought that it might be fun to check out some new housing developments close to where we live. We weren't seriously looking at moving, but hey, if something floated our boat significantly, we may be swayed into buying. We were in our very casual wear. You're talking t-shirt, shorts for DH and blouse and (a tad bit wrinkled because who has time to iron?) capri pants for me. When we drove up in our mini-van, walked in the door and asked the saleslady to see the model homes, the lady sized us up and said, "I don't know if you're looking for a house this big..." How does SHE know what we're looking for? Then after we looked at the homes (they were nice and ones we wouldn't mind moving into), we came back into the office. The lady was a bit condesending, saying, "You're back so soon! Were there any homes that tempted you?" I responded that they were all tempting and then when she "humored" us and asked, "Well, would you be interested in moving in?" My DH said, "Possibly." I also responded immediately with "Oh yes, it's certainly possible." Her eyes kind of widened and seemed surprised by our response. Then she changed her tone of voice to us and began to make "nice" to us. Ick! :( One should not judge a book by its cover!

blissful mom
06-04-2003, 10:49 AM
Since I started showing, I have problems in our local grocery stores. Once, I had been waiting in line for 15 minutes. I go through the same line every time, and I only make big trips--no express lanes for me! Anyway, everyone in this line ahead of me had bunches of stuff, too. Then, just when it was my turn, this snotty 20-something in a strapless dress walked in an huffed, "Where's the short line?" The cashier made me leave the line, after I'd stood there for 20 minutes, just so she could buy her six-pack quickly. He pointed to a sign that said "10 items or less" that was half-way obscured from view by advertisements and was nowhere near eye-level. I don't mind following rules, but the same cashier has never told me that and I always go through that line. It's just that a pregnant woman isn't going to be treated as well as some little hot thing.

At the other grocery store, mostly teenage girls work in the evenings when I shop, and when they bother to look at me, they look as if I'm some sort of scandalously disgusting specimen. They never ask for my discount card before they start ringing me up. They keep talking to each other while they're supposed to be helping me. Last week a girl employee wanted to go through the line I was in and she squeezed past me, shoving my very large belly into the counter. They're supposed to take your groceries out for you, but I always have to ask for help. Since dh isn't usually with me, I have a hard time managing all those groceries alone. It bugs me because they're different with other customers.

It's bad enough that people judge you for your appearance. Since I've been pregnant, though, people seem to judge me for being pregnant. Not all people, but enough to really make me upset and self-conscious. And when people act as if I'm either a thief trying to steal something, by trailing me incessantly, or as if I'm invisible or disgusting because of my belly, I really feel crappy.

But, on the upside, I was in a Dairy Queen Tuesday, and these two old women tried to break in front of me, and the lady at the register winked at me and made them get back. I felt like hugging her. I don't want to dehumanize clerks, etc. But I'd like for them not to dehumanize me.

Donna

Lori in NJ
06-05-2003, 03:13 PM
What is with people??? Who in their right mind would try to cut in front of a pregnant woman at DQ???????!!!!!

I have been on very limited activity w/my pregnancy so I haven't had the opportunity to see how the public reacts to pregnancy too well, but from what I have seen, it's been UTTERLY disappointing. I had to jockey for position on the edge of a bench while a couple & their small child took up the whole thing and SMILED at me!!! I've had people cut in line in front of me and women my mom's age (mid 50's) RUN to a seat/bench in a restaurant before I could sit down!!!! I guess being pregnant has become 'SO chic' that no one notices anymore...