I'd just like to chime in for a second.
I've been buying H for quite some time now but it was the recent year that I started to REALLY get into the game. Over the course of the year I had two SA's. The first SA is from my local store, and there's only one store here, very small and competitive. I was referred to this SA by a friend and so I was upfront during my first visit that I'd really like to get BKC. She took down my wishlist right away and that got me really excited. But after a few visits, I just feel like something isn't right. Although she took down my wishlist and wrote down in her notebook what I wanted, I always feel like she's very, very sales driven. As in, she doesn't really listen to my interests, rather, she likes to suggest items that I am just simply not interested in. I understand that people needs to make a living - I totally get that - but there are times when you overdo it and you're just not comfortable. At my local store, inventory is very limited, so shopping becomes a challenge. I often find myself having to LOOK for things to buy around the store and the "actual" items on my wishlist are never being checked off. She offers doing worldwide searches for me, but that I would have to pay upfront and the timeline of receiving the item is unknown. What really pushed me over the edge was that although I'm very respectful of her time, but she doesn't seem so. I always e-mail and let her know ahead of time that I will be dropping by, and exactly at what time. Everytime I walk into my appointment, she's always helping another customer. Again, I understand that sometimes your previous client takes a bit longer than usual but I'm also in the sales/customer service industry and I feel that you should know how to manage your client's time and at a certain point you should know to tell your client that your next appointment is here. If it's once or twice I am fine, but I almost always end up waiting for an hour and it just upsets me because I am also very busy, yet I always accommodate her schedule. What's the point of making an appointment if I have to wait over an hour? I also have to pay parking and drive 30-40 minutes down. The other thing that really got me angry is that she's become relatively close to my friend, and I know they send texts to each other. She tells my friend that she's really wanting to offer me something but that I still have to improve my purchase history. But she doesn't know how to tell me or hint to me. She wants me to look at watches, or homeware or whatever. At that point I think I've just had it and I've decided that I'm just going to maybe stop visiting for a while.
During that time, hubby and I travelled to the states and there is an H boutique there. I randomly walked in, without any intention of wanting help from any SA. Then, a really nice gentleman approached me in which I've declined assistance. I kept browsing and he came back as if he was very eager to help without being pushy. Next thing you know, we ended up talking for two hours and all of a sudden I felt like I've found the one. Sure, he's a few hours drive away but I feel like it's worth it and I'm way happier spending money there. So far, we're 6 months into our relationship and he's hinted to offer me multiple BKC but in colors that I was not interested in. He also does keep my wishlist in mind, BKC or not, and he emails me every so often or actually takes the time to call me. He's also super efficient. During my last visit, he said he wants to try to make something work for me before the end of the year. And just last week, he made it happen and it was an offering in the exact specifications I wanted. Just 6 months.
Honestly, it's kind of funny but I feel like maintaining a relationship with your SA from H and finding that perfect SA is really just fate and luck. It almost feels like you're dating that person and both sides has to show commitment. You're helping them by always going back to them no matter what you're looking for, and hopefully you appreciate more than just H's bags or leather goods (which I do), and in return they will surprise you with your dream bag at the right time. For me, it worked out with the second SA. The first SA was more like a friend "matching" us up and sometimes because of that, it doesn't work out. Like how often does it work out when you know your friend is purposely trying to hook you up with another friend? lol. Although I must say that after I disappeared from the first SA for a while, she did end up calling me to offer me a B. I took the offer and am grateful but I sometimes think that its her way of apologizing to me because she knew I was upset at her. I can tell because she said to me that she hopes I can continue to have faith in her and trust her with future purchases. I've decided I will still buy things from her from time to time but I know I will always focus on my second SA, because he actually works hard for me.
I would suggest, like the other wonderful ladies here, to be upfront with your current SA. And if you feel like it's not working out, I would just move on. You will find the one, and I can promise that. Just don't feel discouraged.
