ANNOYED customer.

Oldernotwiser

Something of a contradiction here?

"i said no due to her size" and "claimed i was saying it becouse she was fat which was not true "

You're lucky she bought anything from you - I wouldn't!

jeannieblue

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

Something of a contradiction here?

"i said no due to her size" and "claimed i was saying it becouse she was fat which was not true "

You're lucky she bought anything from you - I wouldn't!

Tact is obviously not OP's forte, but you can see his/her point. Lesson on customer relations could come in handy perhaps??

Poppy9

jeannieblue wrote: »

With respect to the OP and larger than life characters...

Human beings are now alot taller and heavier now than ever. You only have to go around stately homes etc and see the size of chairs and beds etc, to see that they were built for people of a smaller frame.

Therefore, antiques are not necessarily made for today 'use' but more as decorative/display items. I'm not saying that people of a certain larger build should be discriminated against, but surely, common sense should prevail here.

A shopper who shops in an antique shop would be well aware of it's limitations and wouldn't ask to try it out if they thought they would break it. No person, but especially an overweight one, would risk making a fool of themselves by breaking a chair by sitting in it.

jeannieblue wrote:

For instance, if you bought an antique tea pot of great value.. would you make tea in it? Or put it on display?

Would you allow the customer to make a cuppa in it first to see if it was suitable for the purpose it was first built/made for? I don't think so. So surely that is common sense re the chair too.

That is a silly comparison. If I was considering buying a brand new modern t-pot from a shop I wouldn't try it out first. If I was considering buying a brand new modern sofa/chair from a shop I would try it out first.

The point is though that you don't treat customers with distain, especially if they are regular customers who've just bought other items off you. I'd be very surprised if a customer who called fat/overweight etc by a shop would return to buy again from that shop. If a shop insulted me, that would be the end of my custom.

jeannieblue

We are talking about antiques here Poppi - not day to day items...

There is a big difference.

And I am not condoning the OP's manner in the way that he dealt with this matter.

Out of curiosity Poppi, how would you have dealt with the situation? Delicate antique chair and large lady??

THE_LONE_RANGER_4

I think the above poster is being a little silly this customer clearly does not see her self as fat /large or what ever as many people of a larger frame dont view themselve as have a weight problem.
I actually did not say dont sit on please cos your fat(some have assumed this i think) and will break it ,
She said do you think i could sit on it and i said i wouldnt as it is rather small and delicate hence the purple mist, any way she has come back in this afternoon and appologised saying she was having a bad day so all has ended well she even bought the chair .
you see in the antique trade you have to have the gift of the gab.
I am well aware many on here have a little moan over my spelling/grammer etc but assume many times it is to derect from the original post as i have said on more than one occasion i am aware of it and do not realy care as it is not my bread and butter.We are just posting on a website .

Poppy9

If I didn't think it was suitable for sitting in I would have said something like

"it's very delicate and just a decorative piece really. Not really made for sitting in, hence I have the sign saying "no sitting". "

Then you are not directly telling them "no you can't", you are explaining why you have a sign and the delicacy of the item in question.

If they still chose to sit in it despite my comments, I would expect them to pay for any damage.

jeannieblue

OP's just answered both of us...

Always good to be wise after the event Poppy!

Plasticman

Poppy9 wrote: »

If I didn't think it was suitable for sitting in I would have said something like

"it's very delicate and just a decorative piece really. Not really made for sitting in, hence I have the sign saying "no sitting". "

Then you are not directly telling them "no you can't", you are explaining why you have a sign and the delicacy of the item in question.

If they still chose to sit in it despite my comments, I would expect them to pay for any damage.

I would probably go for:

"It's very delicate and just a decorative piece really. Not really made for sitting in, hence I have the sign saying 'no sitting'. And anyway, you probably won't be able to get your fat a*se in it".

foxxymynx

If a person has a bad experience, sales stats (used in sales training) say that they will tell 16 people, a good experience they'll tell 13 people.

Antique or not, an adults chair should be able to take the weight of a person who weighs 18 stone or more (going from wheelchair weights, so probably more for static chairs), otherwise it is not fit for it's purpose. I doubt many people would buy a chair that they didn't intend to ever sit on.

And you were sure that she wasn't going to buy the chair or recommed it to someone else?

I bet you've lost not one customer but several.

Good luck trying to sell that chair, if you won't allow people to sit on it....

THE_LONE_RANGER_4

foxxymynx wrote: »

If a person has a bad experience, sales stats (used in sales training) say that they will tell 16 people, a good experience they'll tell 13 people.

Antique or not, an adults chair should be able to take the weight of a person who weighs 18 stone or more (going from wheelchair weights, so probably more for static chairs), otherwise it is not fit for it's purpose. I doubt many people would buy a chair that they didn't intend to ever sit on.

And you were sure that she wasn't going to buy the chair or recommed it to someone else?

I bet you've lost not one customer but several.

Good luck trying to sell that chair, if you won't allow people to sit on it....

point one, i dont think you know much about the antique business and its products , point two she has bought the chair read the full post.
point 3, your sales training stats if they say so it must be true so there will be no ques in comet soon then?, ive always wondered why people who run these courses if they no so much etc etc why they arnt succesfull business owners in the retail sector?.ahhhh dont tell me they make more money telling people how it is done.
A bit like college lecturers we can tell you how but for god sake dont tell us to show you