I think it's actually a cult, not a club.

Yesterday I made a trip to Costco. Every year Jesus smiles upon Costco and brings my favorite beer there and drops the price of it so drastically it's like buying water, or Michelob Ultra (same thing, really). So I stocked up on my favorite beer and then felt a little silly buying just a couple cases of beer. So I grabbed a pack of 600 batteries for our Flip camera and a big bag of those Baby Bell cheeses.

I had also set my mind to finally just buy a pair of shoes already, (thank you thank you thank you all for your suggestions). So I headed over to the shoe store. The car was a little hot because the sun has finally come back to my part of the country and I worried about leaving my cheeses in the car. I shopped for shoes with a giant bag of cheese in my purse.

Gosh I wish someone would have stolen my purse.

I found shoes, these, that are different than my favorite shoes but I think they're cute.

I hate "Savings Clubs", I don't want to carry around your stupid card to get the sale price and "special offers" in the mail. I just want to buy your stuff at the price you want to sell it at, okay? I refuse to join these clubs. It's my tiny, and frankly, ineffective act of rebellion.

So yesterday when I brought my shoes up to the counter with my purse and my big bag of cheese, I politely declined my cashier's offer to join the "Savings Club". "Oh, no thanks." And then I smiled, politely as well.

I was being very polite.

But oh boy, she really felt concerned about my refusal to join the club.

"Well you know, it's free!"

"Hmm, nope, I'm really just not interested."

"The form is really easy!"

"I'll bet."

"And we'll send you special offers and coupons!"

"Hmm, I'm seriously not interested."

"But you'll save money. You don't like saving money?"

Okay at this point, I'm starting to feel kind of indignant and a little like I need to establish my personal boundaries because No Means No, even when we're talking about your "Savings Club".

So I smile and chuckle a little, but I'm still not signing up for your stupid club.

She gives me my change, and says, "Well, just make sure you sign up next time."

I'll be honest, I wasn't having the best day. I could have let it go, I probably shop for shoes twice a year, maybe. But I needed her to know that I wasn't going to sign up for her club. Not today, not next time, not ever. If she gave me a crisp $100 bill, I wouldn't sign up for that stupid club.

So I said, "Ha ha! I'm never going to sign up." And turned to walk away.

She yelled after me, "Only stupid people don't want to save money."

I turned around with my mouth open and said, "Did you just call me stupid?"

And she says, 'Well no, I just said people who don't want to save money are stupid. Have a nice day."

It's no wonder I never buy shoes.

(And I'm never joining that stupid club.)

Comments

[HomeSlice]

um, wow. a sad day for retail customer service. that's usually when i beam a fake smile back and say, "are you having a bad day, sweetheart?"

[hillary]

at that point I would have asked to see a manager
I'm a vengeful bitch though, so I guess your way was better

[Swiggy]

My response to the "would you like to sign up?" question is always "no thanks, I hate saving money" - it just stops them in their tracks and leaves them speachless. I love it!

[Rhea]

A person with a JOB in the Detroit area said that? Wow!

I would have asked for the manager....I love getting people fired for acting stupid. Yea, I'm a bitch.

[Mary]

The DSW by me was found to have been a store where credit/debit numbers were stolen.

I am a "member," I too hate buying shoes (live in flipflops from March-November!) and I think I've gotten one coupon. You're not missing anything.

& I think I would have slapped that woman ;)

[Aisha]

I remember when my dad worked at CVS, they had a column pinned to their bulletin board as a reminder to not get too pushy while pushing the cards. It was always a fine line for him and his employees, because they would be lectured by the district manager about how they needed to 'get more people to sign up! stick a card in their bag if you have to!' but they would also get yelled at if they had any customers complain about the employees...

Being a retail employee blows. Doesn't make her response justified or right or anything. It just blows.

[sevedra]

OMG! I would have gone to my car and called the store manager on my cell phone, right away. So rude! I am not big on confronttion though, so calling from my safe place, not asking to see the manager in person. Personally, I would never go there again. I would find somehwere else to buy shoes. But that is just how I roll.

[Linda]

Given the economy here in Michigan, I would have gone straight to the manager. Retail sucks, but right now I'm guessing they'd have no problem finding replacing this moron with someone who actually has a clue.

[Trisha]

Oh goodness, I would have come unglued!!! But the shoes you chose, are fantastically cute, and on top of that, the pair of rocket dogs I have are amazingly comfortable. Enjoy!

[Lori]

That's really funny - I bought a pair of shoes at DSW yesterday too, and got the hardest sell of my life to join that club. I'm like you - I'd rather pay an extra few dollars if it saves me the hassle of sorting through endless junk mail. I also figure that those coupons are probably only good during a certain time period, which would cause me to shop specifically in that time period, and not necessarily when I need shoes, thereby causing me to spend MORE money than I would have otherwise. Anyway, yesterday must have been an incentive day for the employees or something, or they had all just had a meeting that encouraged them to give a hard sell.

[beyond]

ugh. i'll bet she was hungry. people get bitchy when they're hungry. (not that that's an excuse or anything!)
the shoes are cute and look really comfortable. (and comfort is the most important thing in a pair of shoes.)

[Susan]

---GASP--- Holy Hell! I bet that girl could have just bitten her tongue right off! This is obviously a mouth-engage-before-brain moment. I would have slapped her and then probably had to go to jail for assault. Good on you for not doing that. And for finding some great shoes!

[Molly]

Dude. I would have totally come unhinged.

Of course, I am insane and hormonal and pregnant, but still. UN. HINGED.

[Becky]

I'm fairly sure I would have gotten back in line and returned the shoes.

While eating cheese.

[kimblahg]

hellllllo planet feedback!

[Valette]

I got almost that exact same spiel when I bought shoes at the DSW in Boston. Even after telling the lady that I lived in ALASKA without a DSW around for thousands of miles, she couldn't believe I didn't want to join their stupid club.

Only club card I use is for Safeway, and I use my mother's card.

[Lily]

Yes, typically it is the management or even corporate that is having the sales force shove the 'membership' thing down every customer's throat. Just like the store credit cards. I can imagine myself as a retail shoe store clerk and getting so annoyed at the whole stupid savings club crap that I was forced to push on every customer and finally blurting out something like that, after the 20th customer declined my management pressured pitch to join the stupid club.

Truthfully she probably doesn't care whether you join or not, she's just trying to do a good job, the way her manager has defined "good job."

Really, people - you would revel in her getting fired over that? Harsh. I mean, keep in mind, Melissa has her favorite beer AND now she has cute new shoes. That girl? Still has her retail shoe store job. Isn't that punishment enough? O.o

Melissa - hopefully those beers are nice and chilled right now. In fact... *checks the clock* if you haven't cracked one open by now what are you waiting for, woman? A playgroup? lol ;) Mom-tini FTW!!

[jill]

smack. down.

[Coma Girl]

You should have thrown the cheese at her.

[bonzai]

I definitely think that you should send a pithy little note to their corporate headquarters. I'd bet they'd give you a coupon for FREE shoes!
And I'm with you - I HATE those clubs.

[Amy]

Oh, that's priceless. DID YOU JUST CALL ME STUPID?! I'd have taken a couple steps toward her then just turned around and left. Excellent.

I have a few of the little tags on my keychain, but if they only offer a credit-card sized membership-whatever, fuck 'em. Kills me that I constantly have more plastic than paper in my wallet.

[AmyinMotown]

I belong to the stupid club and actually would have said it was worth it until I heard that (but just because we shop there like once every couple years when my husband can be convinced he needs shoes and then buy a bajillion, so we get good coupons). But that?? That is BEYOND acceptable, I would have spoken to the maanger (while eating cheese).

Also, Sierra Nevada at the Madison Heights Costco?? Stocked up today, hallelujia.

[p/f]

She needs to learn how to let it go.

Whenever people tried to push 'savings' on my Dad, or asked him if he had a coupon, etc. he just said, "No, we like to pay full price."

[Amy]

Holy shit! I think I would have thrown the shoes at her & then asked for my money back. And not in a nice way. They're "savings club" sucks anyway.

[am]

OMG if it was that one on John R....that place is sucktacular. I had one lady there tell me "WHOO BOY! these are some ugly shoes! I was wondering who was gonna buy em.."
I just stood there going...um? really?? I had no idea what to say to her.
Jesus that place sucks.

[drgnlady]

Have you guys never worked in retail? Sometimes you have a crappy day, the boss has threatened to fire you if you don't push the really stupid club and a lady with cheese in her purse won't effing join even though you've offered to fill the card out for her. Every now and then when you work in retail, you have to fight back. It's wrong, she should have apologized but cut the girl a little slack. Plus, it made a great story, esp. the cheese.

[LadyCiani]

My favorite retail moment happened not long ago. Went to K-Mart to buy earplugs. Bought the big jar because, hello - better value! and my husband snores sometimes. Sometimes frequently.

Young, young boy at the register smirks and says, "Does anybody really need 50 earplugs?"

I glared at him, looked him in the eye and said "It's not polite to comment about people's purchases."

He blushed and didn't say anything else except tell me my total.

I count that in the win column.

[amy]

I think I would have called the manager. Bad day or not it is this woman's JOB to serve you with some respect!

[shina hart]

Love how she backtracked when you turned around! Did you give her the look? You know the one..you're lucky I don't (in this case) stupid bitch slap you and or have you fired...with a have nice day grin? I bet you did!

[Karen]

How rude of that girl to do that to you!

[marcy]

My sister did a (very brief) stint at DSW. They pay next to nothing and give out cash for everyone who signs up for the card. She hated it so much that when her shift ended one day she tucked her work shirt under her bosses windshield wiper and never came back. This woman must've been cracking under the pressure to whore out the card as well.

That place is a hell hole. A hell hole with very cute Rocket Dogs, though!

[Alice]

CUTE shoes. Ridiculous lack of customer service. I like the 'no, I hate saving money' line as a refusal tactic - I tend to sign up for things with mostly fake info (when it's a swipey-card thing), but with coupon-in-the-mail stuff, it's so easy to grab them online when you need them, it makes a lot of sense to opt out. Yay for retailmenot.com!

[Meg McG]

I would flip the fark out. I'd write REAL letters to the manager, the regional manager, the CEO, the board of directors and anyone else who's address I could get. NO WAY IN H-E-Double hockey sticks is some frigging CLERK gonna call ME STUPID! Whoo, I think I need to calm down...

[alexa]

Good job with the restraint...that was definitely pushy and annoying but I don't get all the people who would have called the manager. She was probably having a crappy day too. And it doesn't hurt to cut people a little slack...even if you want to give them a good shake.

Would you really want to get someone fired over this? Maybe her baby had kept her up all night, she's struggling to make ends meet and can't get why someone wouldn't want to save every penny they can.

I'm not saying she's right. I just think we should dial back on manager calling. Working retail sucks.

[Mary]

Hey Meg McG, feel superior much? I'm guessing you've never had a less-than-fabulous, OMG NEVER RETAIL job. You must be a treat to CLERKS everywhere. Interesting that such a small incident would rile you to that degree.

[Allison]

I'm really on the fence here. I worked at one of the mega-bookstores and was treated like dog crap daily when I was on the floor and pressured to push the stupid club cards when I was on cash. It sort of sucks that there's no recourse for an abused clerk yet a pissed-off customer can get someone who bugs them fired. But I just don't see how this clerk's actions were defensible. She wasn't saying "look, lady, I NEED you to pretend to take this card", she was being vindictive because you were standing your ground. I wouldn't have tried to get her fired, but I wouldn't be overly sympathetic either. Fabulous -- I'm in the wishy-washy middle as ever.

[spandrel studios]

While shopping last July, I actually roamed the mall with two eclairs in my purse because I had at least an hour's worth of errands to run -- and with the lousy week I'd had, there was no *way* I wasn't having dessert that night.

[Alli]

In response to drgnlady and mary...I had worked in retail for more years than I care to count and obviously, I am also a consumer so I have been on both sides of the counter. There is absolutely NO EXCUSE for treating a customer that way. Having a bad day at work doesn't give you carte blanche to behave like an a$$. At the very least, I would've asked to speak to a mgr. She'd be lucky to still have a job after that. It's people like that that make me shop online only.

[Hetty Fauxvert]

Had I been quick on my feet (which of course, I never am), I would have smiled sweetly at the clerk and said, "Would you like to apologize to me directly, or would you like me to speak to your manager?" I'll bet her mother or father never, ever in her life made her apologize for anything. And I'll further bet that the pain of apologizing would have been even worse than getting fired!

[Mary]

Alli, I wasn't saying that the cashier was right. Not at all. She was quite wrong to say what she did. My comment was directed to Meg about how clearly inferior mere store employees are to her: "No way in hell is some frigging CLERK gonna to call ME STUPID." Hetty, I love your response & hope to file that away for future use.

[die Frau]

First of all, love my Rocket Dogs. LOVE. They're a little too casual for work, so I may well copy you and get the same ones you have b/c they'd be perfect.

Second, as to the retail person: You are in a customer service industry. It's your job to make the sale, push the card, and take out your rage on a-hole customers in the back room, not to their faces. I realize they have to push the card, but nobody gets to call anybody stupid in any job situation, in my opinion. It's unprofessional.

[jendajen]

I cannot believe that someone would behave like that towards a customer in this economy.

Way to encourage repeat business!

I hate shopping for shoes too. They cost too much money, it's usually a poor product, and I hate dealing with people.

[soozey]

I agree on the dang clubs. At Borders too, I think they must get incentives, and I always appreciate that they have no say in it, they have to keep asking as part of their job, I just keep saying no. I don't like any club that keeps track of your purchases. From what I understand, those companies will flip in a minute to any casual law enforcement inquiry, so you have no privacy whatsoever. It's creepy.

Wow, I sounded kind of paranoid, but you know what I mean!

[Michelle]

Wow, I totally would have turned around and returned those shoes, which I know would be shooting myself in the foot (shoe?) but why support a business that puts so much pressure on associates to recruit club members that it undermines the service experience? Or that could allow someone with such poor customer service skills go uncorrected?

Kudos to you for standing up against the clubification of retail. Just the other day I had a cashier ask me for my phone number, and when I told her I'd rather not give it, she immediately said, "Then what's your email?" Honestly, store owners? It's not enough that I'm exchanging money for goods in your store, I now have to grant you the right to market to me in all media, in perpetuity? No thanks.

[kaimonogirl]

we call that part of town "the armpit". for a reason, obviously.

[jeannie]

Perhaps calling you stupid was her tiny, and frankly, ineffective act of rebellion. Consider that her earnestness was probably motivated less by a devotion to her craft and more by a desperate desire to not get laid off from her already low-wage job. The way she sees it, the more people she signs up, the more days of employment she has left.

So she really, really tried to sign you up, and I'm sure it was obnoxious, but you couldn't just grin and bear it, or heck, frown and bear it, for a few moments. You had to do what so many people think is hilariously cool (such as telling the Starbucks barista, "Where I come from, it's called a MEDIUM, sweetheart") and snip at her. Congratulations. You win at life.

[lynne]

Wow, I was just at DSW last night buying a pair of shoes very similar to the ones in your previous post, inspired by your previous post. And I got the same pitch from the saleslady, who had to stay past closing because I was so indecisive, so I had pity and signed up, even though I'm probably going to turn around and cancel at the first opportunity because I hate the clubs too. But she didn't call me stupid, I was in a very good shoe-buying mood and I still would have been outraged.

I seriously doubt you were trying to be "hilariously cool" by being offended at being called a name after you very politely declined her offer several times. Sure she is probably desperate to keep her job, and sure she deserves the dignity of not having to try to sell people on this stupid club. But after helping her keep her job by buying the shoes in the first place, I think you deserve the dignity of not being called a name on your way out the door. That's ridiculous.

[Erin]

Oh come on. If the woman is that desperate to keep her retail service job, maybe she shouldn't be calling the customers stupid.

[ella]

Holy crap! Them are fightin' words!

I would have asked for the manager and returned the shoes.

I've been given their hard sell for the club. Usually I'll say "I don't shop here often enough." And finally "I don't need to save. I can afford to pay full price."

Damn. I still think you should call and talk to the manager.

[Lauren]

I've had to go into DSW four times in the last month trying to find shoes for me and my partner to wear to her brother's upcoming wedding. I hate shoe shopping and only buy them once every few years (and when I do, it's usually from a local place or REI because I'm that kind of girl). But nope, for this, it's been DSW.

I cannot stand walking in there anymore. I've been harassed each time by some schlocky sales pitch for the stupid rewards stuff. I told the cashier who was trying to force me into it that if I had to say no once more time, I wasn't going to continue my transaction. I told her that I know that she was doing her job, but that the consant barrage of pushing to join has been enough to make me never want to walk into the store again. And then I told the same thing to a manager who all but blew me off. I genuinely don't ever want to have to go into the store again. It feels oppressive.

[Sarah @ BecomingSarah.com]

You have much more self control than I do. That woman would be REALLY regretting her choice to say the word "stupid" at all if I'd been the customer.

I hate it when people are pushy. GEEZ.

[Linda Sands]

No one should be called stupid. I applaud you for calling her on it. wow. I never would have had the balls.
But, I guess you can all think I'm crazy now, because I love DSW. I actually shop online all the time and have saved hundreds of dollars on shoes and boots that weren't even in my local store. My daughter and her friends love the gift cards I earn for them, and I've never carried the card. They also do shoe giveaways every hour when a store has a grand opening.
Though Marshall's is giving them a run lately...

[Sara in MN]

Just wanted to let you know those shoes are super cute! I'm probably going to go online and buy them right now! Thanks! Great blog, too...I found you through Matt's twitter...looks like you guys had a hell of a time!

[anonymous mom]

Yeah, this girl probably needed a little a slap BUT in all retail defense...being a retail manager at a very well known childrens shoe store who shall remain nameless...cough..let me just say this..yes we do mind when you come into our store and allow your children to make a mess while you giggle and say 'I bet you're used to this'...no bitch, in my house, my kids are required to pick up after themselves, and even more so in public because I do expect them to have RESPECT for other peoples property! So even though, I'm smiling and saying its no problem..it SO is, and YES! We do talk about your parenting skills when you leave. In addition, to the people who come in with filthy disgusting kids...and take this how you will, my kids aren't always spic and span, but again, in my house, we require daily baths for children, not weekly...and proceed to remove their shoes to reveal feet that are so filthy they have a black mold like substance between their poor little toes, then have the audacity to ask the child, why didn't you wash your feet before we came? WTF? He's 3 lady, that's why!!! Its YOUR job to wash the poor thing! And yes, once again, after we spray every surface you and your dirty children have touched with lysol and scrub our hands twice, we talk about you! This girl was simply saying it before you left...not that name calling us ok or nice, I wouldve fired her ass for that one but, does it really matter that she said it out loud, she was already thinking it.
Oh, and as a disclaimer, I love my job and the children, they are gifts and I love seeing little smiley faces all day while I'm wishing I was spending more time with my own children and not yours. None of these horrid things are EVER the childs fault, its the parenting!! And no, you cannot convince us that little Suzy never behaves this way, because you just allowed your 3 year old to slap you and tell you she doesn't have to listen to you! They have parenting classes available if you're not sure how to cope, otherwise, its time to man up and decide what kind of people you want to raise!
Wow! I'm so sorry, I got on a role, and obviously, like the clerk aforementioned, I've been thinking about this for a while. I, needing my job though would never do that, and will continue to smile and say, oh don't you worry at all about that, I will take care of it.