Dressing the part?! Answers Needed Please....

#16
Honestly, I think its so stupid to dress up and look 'rich' to get service but hey thats how it works. Really you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Some people dress very casually and they have big $$$. They just don't care about their apperance as much. My dad is super casual he's a jeans, t-shirt, and tennis shoes guy and he gets judged big time as a 'bum' by the way he looks it seems like he doesn't have much $$. They don't give him service and he always has to go find someone and after they find out he has $$ they are all of a sudden super chatty and all this crap and its like you should have given him that service in the way beginning!!!! It's like you have to buy something to get good service when it should be the other way around.

I would prob. say I am the prime example of this. I dress casually jeans, shorts or dresses with flip flops and sometimes I do look bummy no makeup and nappy bedhead lol (but then everyone thinks I look 18-20 range even when I'm way not so that may be a factor). Usually I NEVER get any service. It frustrates me. They seriously will go after someone who looks rich and follow them around. I don't get acknowledged just bc I don't dress up and/or brand/bling myself out. :cursing: it makes me angry and I seriously don't go back to that store. I usually have these types of experiences esp. NM and Nords. I have my few SAs that are super helpful but thats stupid to coordinate your shopping with their schedule just so you know you can get service. Seriously how do some of them make their $$$ for commission if they are so rude! I will NEVER buy from a rude SA. I have gone out of my way to buy from the ones that always help me. I was in the mood to buy jeans and was at NM and as usual nobody helped me except for the one that always does when she's working and I needed new sizes and some of the SAs were like we don't have the size but then J always finds them for me so what the hell? Well I decided to buy a pair of trues which were like $319.00 and this one SA that wouldn't help me and told me there were no sizes saw she was all nice and was like I can ring you up but I was like no I'm waiting for J. I guess she went on a break or something and I waited til she got back and checked out with her. I have also had to tell an SA off before at NM bc she was a pure b****. So my experience with NM most of the time would be a 4 on a scale from 1 for good and 5 for bad.

I seriously can go on with all my experiences unfortunately I have that many but I need to go eat some breakfast right now :upsidedown:
 
#17
Since I'm a student, my dress-down clothes can be as casual as casual gets... I'm talking free city sweats (even though i don't think a lot of people in Toronto know or even care what they are) and v-neck tees from AA. I like my casual outfits, but I wouldn't go shopping at Holts in it. I've had good and bad experiences there, dressed well or casually. Some of the SAs are super sweet, and others have egos and attitude problems that are too much for Dr Phil. Personally, I think these rude SAs will be rude no matter how people are dressed, and same with the kind ones. If an SA is nice to you JUST because of your appearance, they're still not a good SA.

I like to go in dressed nicely because I feel more comfortable doing so, but that still just mean trouser jeans, flats, cute top and of course, a Bal :smile: Not exactly a traffic stopping look, but neat tidy and comfortable.
 
#18
I do get better service when I dress up more. SAs make snap decisions on who can afford to buy and who will not. You know, first impressions, they're humans too, and can make wrong decisions too.

I will not bother walking into my local LV when I'm wearing floppies and my tees/shorts combo. I will be ignored. When I wear my nicer clothes and look put together, the LV SA normally rush forward to open the door for me and I get super fawned on by at least three SAs. It's quite hilarious, but that's how it works. Surprisingly, my local Bal store visit was a pleasant experience, I was wearing my normal dingy wear and the SA was friendly and supernice.

When I visited the States, in my comfy tourist clothes, I did find NM SAs a little snotty at first, but they do warm up, but I must Nordstrom is the Best!
 
#19
I dont dress up but I have to say I would choose an outfit that would definitly include my best handbag/shoes etc if I was out high end shopping

Whereas if I was just out and about I wouldnt think about it..... so maybe I should be saying I am aware of how I dress then!
 
#20
i don't really dress up - at least not more than i usually dress - and i shop on madison avenue. however, i DON'T like getting harrassed by SAs - i prefer browsing on my own, and maybe i kinda figure dressing low-key is the way to fly under the radar. when you know what you want, you flag down one of the SAs, and they'll help you right away. plus, as soon as you demonstrate your knowledge and interest in their brand, they'll reciprocate with interest in you.

the only time i've ever had an issue was at Hermes, where one of the SAs was super rude to my mom and me. everywhere else i've had wonderful experiences, and i'm at Bottega Veneta all the time (not necessarily buying). AND, when the Hermes SA was super rude to us, one of my mom's friends made a nasty phone call to the Hermes store manager, yelling at them for being rude to us. The store manager apologized profusely and mailed my mom the most gorgeous scarf for free.

In the end they just want your patronage, whether you're in Target clothes or a designer suit.
 
#21
I don't "dress up" to shop, however, I don't leave the house/hotel looking like I just got out of bed either. I have been treated decent everywhere but Nordstrom is the best. NM is a bit "ritzy-titzy" for my liking but I just hold my head up and look at what I want to. I don't work so I don't have an excuse to buy alot of nice clothes (except for church) so most of my money goes for bags. I don't care what the SA thinks about me but if they are rude or ignore me, they won't get a dime from me. I am particular when I'm parting with my DH's hard-earned cash. LOL

**I think you should definitely do some research by dressing up/down and see what service/attitudes you get. Sounds like fun. Good luck with your paper.
 
#22
I am the same as oogiewoogie :yes: I don´t dress to impress....I go to shops to spend:P although lately I have done most of my shopping online at net-a-porter etc. I also like to be left alone when initially browsing the store...greeted with a nice hello first of course! I hate SAs who follow you around picking one object after another telling you how fab they would look on you etc etc......that can put me off big time, and make me take my business else where:graucho:. I am always acting polite and expect to be treated the same way...should anyone ever disrespect me I´d leave after having told them off (in a super polite way of course;) ).......I have never had any bad shopping experience (yet):smile:

Kat:heart:

oogiewoogie said:
I'd dress the same if I were going to any mall, whether it's upscale or not. I don't dress to impress, nor do I care what other people think... I'm simply there to spend $$$.. :graucho:.

I also don't walk in with an attitude of being expected to be waited on right away. I actually prefer lurking around then asking for help when I'm ready to be helped. ;) If a SA were to judge who he/she helped by someones appearance.. then it's there loss on a potential sale.

But to answer your question, I certainly don't dress myself any better or nicer in a sense if I were shopping in Beverly Hills to South Coast or Fashion Island. But, I don't wear my PJ's out either....kwim? I also haven't had any negative experiences either.
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#23
I would say it depends on where I am. I live in LA, so no, I never dress up to go shopping here and not many locals do. I think I was wearing flip flops last time I was in BalLA and the SAs greeted me and were super friendly.

But when I'm in Dallas or New York (and most places in Europe) I dress a little better because that's the culture. I'm not saying I get dressed up just to shop, but in general people don't dress as casually in other places as they do in LA. In some cases, it's easier to look nice than get no customer service, which can happen.
 
#24
This is a really great thread... I have had more than several occasions where I have gone into a local COACH store where I have left from work all nice and dressed up and have received GREAT customer service... then there were a few times that I have gone to a COACH store w/no makeup and dressed down clothes and the SA that normally helps me didn't even recognize me and I didn't even get approached until about 20 minutes later... they DO stare you down and check you out to see what type of apparel you are wearing, what bag you are carrying and how you look, I think its really stereotypical TBH... I don't dress up or down when I go into COACH because it depends on if I go there after work or during the weekends, but I do notice that there is a HUGE difference on how you get treated because of the way you look... really, really sad...
 
#26
I've gotten great service and crappy service at high-end stores, and I don't think there's a correlation with what I was wearing. I dress the part for work (usually wear pant suits, nice accessories etc), but on my days off I'm usually in capris or jeans with flip flops or flats. I shop on weekends or on the way home from work and I haven't really noticed any difference. But then again, if I get poor service I'm happy to take my business elsewhere and I don't overthink it.
 
#28
I once went into a high-end store carrying a Chanel Reporter. I got much more attention than I would have had I been carrying, say, a Bliss Lau or a Shih. The sales staff noticed, and I noticed them noticing.
 
#29
ahertz said:
I would say it depends on where I am. I live in LA, so no, I never dress up to go shopping here and not many locals do. I think I was wearing flip flops last time I was in BalLA and the SAs greeted me and were super friendly. But when I'm in Dallas or New York (and most places in Europe) I dress a little better because that's the culture. I'm not saying I get dressed up just to shop, but in general people don't dress as casually in other places as they do in LA. In some cases, it's easier to look nice than get no customer service, which can happen.
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I agree with this comment. I'm not "dressing the part" for the SA's. But I do dress slightly differently for the location of the store(s). For example, I live in Chicago and if I'm going to the mall with the craft center and no department stores, I dress my most casual, sometimes I even go without makeup! If I go to the large mall that has several high-end stores, I still dress casually, but kick it up a notch, maybe adding some casual jewelry. If I'm shopping on Michigan Avenue, I dress up more. But let me stress that it's not for the SA's or to impress anyone else. It's to feel more comfortable in the "culture" of the area. My casual dress in Europe is different than at home. Again, it's not to impress, but more to be dressed "appropriately" and comfortably for where I am. I see it the same as matching one's business attire to their employment.
 
#30
Sometimes, I just feel inspired to get dressed up. I think that it's half the fun of going shopping sometimes. I also look very young for my age, so I try to look put together. At the worst, I wear cute flats, a nice shirt and dark jeans.
I've noticed that here in Philly some of the SAs (even at places even like Banana Republic) will ignore me if I'm not wearing makeup. I kind of figured it was because they thought I was just some annoying kid that wasn't going to buy anything. Obviously, if I get crappy service somewhere I will not shop there -- even if it is something that I deemed to be must have. I refuse to give my hard earned money over to jerks.
I don't make a habit of running out of the house in sweats, unless I'm sick and running to Walgreens.
 
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