"eliteness" in stores?

#76
ame said:
But in Santa Monica...I was just some grotesque joke of a human not worthy of anything but mockery. I know I am chubby so having salespeople remind me in the cruelest ways was hard to accept...and what I learned there is unless I shopped for handbags, shoes, makeup, chocolates or jewelry, I get not only "avoided", I get made fun of, and the worst experience I had for that was in shops in Santa Monica, along Montana and at Fred Segal (actually both this and the Melrose location...) being the worst. Kitson on Robertson wasn't pleasant really either. At the SM Fred Segal, I was ready to buy a $500 handbag and some items in the beauty dept, as well as tiny little necklace for my friend's bday gift...I was walking through the jeans dept to pay for my items, wallet in hand, and heard laughing and turned around to see two sales women literally pointing and laughing at me to another male salesperson, and since I was the only person in the freaking store that didn't work there..I figured it had to be me. I knew nothing clothingwise in the entire store could possibly fit me, which is why I didn't actually look at any. I asked if there was a problem, and they kind of whispered like "oh sh!t she heard us" and I looked aroundto see if maybe I had something on my butt or back...and then they literally cracked up. I dropped all the items in my hand onto the floor like an angry child and walked out. Someone who I assume was a manager stopped me as I walked towards the exit to see if there was anything she could help me with since I guess she saw tears on my cheeks and I said apparently I don't belong in this store, and my money isn't worth having. She apologized, and seemed sincere, but it was done. I walked to the car outside in tears, and my husband knew it was just a bad day. I wanted to just go back to our hotel and be left alone.
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Horrifying! :shocked:

I'm so sorry that happened to you. :sad:
 
#77
Thank you.

For those of you who convinced me to fight back:

My husband is in the process of writing a letter to send to the "owner" if he can figure out where to send it.
 
#78
vintagelove said:
oddly enough, sometimes i purposely "slum it" a little bit, because i hate pushy salespeople when i'm shopping. i'm the kind of shopper who prefers to peacefully browse, and i find that i'm able to best shop my way when in jeans and a tee, and therefore not seen as "easy money."
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I agree! :yes:

I like to be ignored, too! :biggrin:
 
#81
sassytina said:
I went to the LV store in Milan, dressed like every other Milanesa, wearing a fur-hooded parka because it was winter. I think I was brushed off and ignored by about 3-4 different SAs, but I actually stayed and bought something after I finally got service. I think I waited for almost half an hour!
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Now I went into the Milan Prada store last month, not looking particularly dressed up (although I was less scruffy than usual) and although nobody pounced on me on arrival they were more than helpful to both me and my friend when we specifically asked to see things...so head in there next time!! ;)
 
#83
melvel said:
Because I live in a third-world country, "eliteness" in high-end boutiques here is quite common. Sometimes, when I enter these stores, I feel like they're judging me based on my clothes, my shoes, my jewelry, my watch, my bag...everything. The funny thing is, the really rich people here don't really flaunt their wealth...it's those social climbers and not-so-rich people who flaunt their designer clothes and bags.
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TBH, I think that's true everywhere. :yes:

People who look very dressed-up all the time and wear a lot of logos are generally middle, not upper, class.

I suppose most shop assistants don't realise this?

Not that the upper classes, necessarily, have more money in this country, of course!

My family were lower upper class and would have never dreamed of wearing obvious logos; they would have considered it 'vulgar'.

Despite this, I have, very occasionally, bought items with obvious logos, when I have really liked them, but I find I do feel uncomfortable and slightly embarrased when I use them. :sweatdrop:
 
#85
WOW! Thank you for posting this!!!!

Ill pass the names on to my husband and we'll see how it goes!



bellafleur said:
Hey, ame, I found these contact people on the Santa Monica Chamber of Commermce Website. You could copy the letter to all of them, maybe someone will respond!

Fred Segal Couture
500 Broadway
Santa Monica CA 90401
(310)458-8100
Joe Tagliaferro, President
Other Contacts: Yunnie Kim, COO, Wonnie Tagliaferro, CEO

Fred Segal Santa Monica
500 Broadway
Santa Monica CA 90401
(310)394-8989
Mr Michael Segal
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#86
wow these stories are scary!! sorry to everyone who has been treated unfairly or rudely.

my worst experience was here at the nyc saks. while my sa was bringing my bag up, i was still fiddling about trying on bags (it never ends haha) when a young women sa came up to me and said, "please put that down and do not touch the bags." i almost laughed out loud- besides the fact that the saks on fifth is full or people and tourist just browsing and touching things everywhere... i didn't think i looked that bad. so i ask the sa, "what do i smell? do i look that dirty that i'm not even allowed to touch the bags???!" haha. she gave me a look and walked away. finally my sa(who is as sweet as a pea) comes back up with my bag and i'm about to leave, when he calls me back to show me the new topaz stam that another sa had just brought up. while we're all drooling over the color the sa who had originally told me not to touch anything comes over and says " isn't it to die for? the best part is that you can detach this chain and wear it like necklace when youre in paris or london." and takes the chain strap off and puts it around my neck. :roflmfao::roflmfao::roflmfao: i nearly died... this women who didn't think i was good enough to even touch or try on a bag was now talking about jetsetting with me, because i had made a expensive purchase. when i finally did leave she came over and tried to give me her card saying something like " i know your sa is timothy but sometimes it's nice to have a womens point of view". i told her I definately didnt need her card or services and that i would surely let timothy know how she was trying to steal his customer though.

now that was a crazy experience!!
 
#89
bellafleur said:
Wow, what a bunch or worthless idiots work in these stores... ame, I seriously had to choke back tears when I read your first post. And I think we are missing the point- SA's shouldn't treat people well because they might be hiding a fat wallet, they should treat people well because they are PEOPLE, whether they have money or not!! Whatever happened to human dignity and respect??

I used to manage an upscale mall store, and the only reason I would treat someone differently is if they had an attitude or were rude to me first. Now that I've moved into my second career as an attorney, I totally see what everyone is talking about. I tend not to dress up on weekends because I'm stuck in a suit all week, and I frequently go out shopping in sweats. SA's who don't give me the time of day certainly don't get my business. Obviously, the reason SA's are working at all is to make their comissions, but wouldn't you rather come home at the end of the day and remember all the interesting conversations you had with a variety of customers rather than walk around looking down on people??
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Well said! :yes:
 
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