(more than) Me,Myself & I

Working as a Sales Assistant

Currently, I’m working at Esprit in the Spring. In the letter of appointment, my position upon employment should be “Temporary Sales Consultant”. The first day of work was Hari Gawai, a public holiday in Sarawak, so the mall was quite crowded. I find it a bit tough at the beginning because I did several part time jobs before but not much on the retail line. I had to learn little things like how to put sensor tags onto the garments and how to detach them. Besides that, I have to stand for at least 8 hours during work. As a result of exhaustion, my legs protest by sending the veins to the surface of my epidermis as a sign of warning. Although I work in a shopping mall, I feel that the spotlights can shine as brightly as the sun. Long hours of exposure under the lights drives me giddy sometimes. The worst times should be during sales, which is now. The boutique can turn into a battle field in a blink of eye. Our job is to fold the shirts nicely and place them to where they belong.
All of these, are mere challenges, the greatest one would be…………………………………….the customers.
Customers can ask you funny questions. Below is a comparison of the answer of a qualified sales consultant and an ill-mannered “ah moi”.

Customer: Why are the things here so expensive, got people want to buy meh?
Sales consultant: (Smile) Our brand is a trusted brand and we have assurance of products.
Ill-mannered Ah Moi: Aiya, no money don’t buy la.
Truth: I also think the things are quite costly. Even after discount, I won’t call it cheap. If you want quality, you’ll have to pay more.

Customer: Moi, this shirt I buy 2, you count me cheaper la.
Sales consultant: (Smile) Sorry, ma’am. Our price is fixed.
Ill-mannered Ah Moi: You wait lor, until I become the Taukenio then I give you discount la.
Truth: Sigh~ I’m only a small, small sales assistant, even the supervisor can’t give you discount. Dear friends, I believe it is unwise to bargain in shopping malls. Remember, you’re not at a pasar malam!

Customer: Aiyo, why this pair of pants makes me look so fat?
Sales consultant: No…not at all…in fact it makes your legs look longer.
Ill-mannered Ah Moi: Fat ar? Diet la!
Truth: Hello, Miss, I think you are thinner than me. Why do you wana complain when you have a body which is near to perfect? Anything less than perfect is a flaw on a woman’s body but tell me, whose is perfect? Even Kate Moss’ isn’t.

Customer: Can you get me a new one? Did you check properly? Really no stock already?
Sales Consultant: Sorry, but this is our last piece.
Ill-mannered Ah Moi: You think I can get extra pay by cheating you?
Truth: Usually we won’t lie to customers, unless we are extremely busy or lazy. Ah Moi is definitely correct at this case, we don’t get extra pay for cheating customers. Honesty rewards you with more customers and business.

Customer: (Points to the zip) What does YKK mean?
Sales Consultant: I’m sorry sir, I have no idea. (Trying to look as humble and innocent as possible)
Ill-mannered Ah Moi: You go home and Google yourself lo, I’m not an encyclopedia.
Truth: Ah Moi is right again. Sales consultants don’t necessarily know EVERYTHING. I didn’t know customers have so high expectations on people who are paid a few hundred bucks per month. Luckily, that customer has met one who is so willing to learn (i.e. me). I was guessing the whole afternoon what YKK stands for until I read on Wikipedia. Is it the model of the zip or the material it is made of? So, YKK is actually one of the biggest manufacturers of zippers. Along that, the company also produces parts for engineering. Next time you find a YKK zip on your trousers, don’t panic. It is not hazardous, it is a name for good zippers.

The last and most annoying question of all:
Customer: Ah Moi, you’re not Malay ka?
Me: (Smile forcefully) No, I’m a Chinese.
Ill-mannered me inside my heart: I have a name tag which tells. If you can’t differentiate Chinese names from Malay names, I forgive you!
Truth: We can discuss this issue some time later. It can be long winded. In short, I’m a pure Chinese, I’m not even a mix-blood.

All in all, I do enjoy this job because I have nice colleagues and also nice customers. Sometimes, it’s really funny and interesting to meet all kinds of people. Today, my manager praised me. She said I’m a fast learner and can handle my responsibilities well. I guess I’m a qualified Sales Consultant after all.

posted by Shan @ 12:11 AM