Katrina1968 Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 So, an evil ol bat comes into the bookstore with a book purchased here last week. She wanted to return the book because she had read "several" pages of the book and found it to be repititious. Our store has an exchange/store credit policy. Now, I wouldnt have had a problem with doing the exchange or store credit but the book looked USED. We do NOT sell used books here and I know our customers would be pretty p.o if the thought they were purchasing a new book only to get home and find (several pages into it) that it had been read. So, the old bat (honest, thats what she was) goes on and on about the book and each time she opened her mouth she inserted her foot! Talk about walking out in a huff:irked: A part of me wanted to toss a thick old hardback (think Stephen King, Under The Dome) at the back of her head:mrgreen: but, alas, I'm tired and I just couldnt be bothered! What are you thoughts on bookshoppe manners? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wonders disciple Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 It would be nice to think people would have manners wherever they were. In my local Waterstone's I constantly hear people talking to staff in such a way that if it was said to me I'm pretty sure I'd be arrested:irked:. I'll stop before I go on a rant:). Anyway did she get a refund? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimera Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 Anyway did she get a refund? I sure hope not! That's not about manners imo, just basic truthfullness... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katrina1968 Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 Lets put it this way, we have lost a "valuable" customer:mrgreen:! My supervisor LOVES me. I take no guff. If we read the books and they come back looking used, we have to pay for them too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 I think it's incredibly rude to take a damaged book back to a shop and demand a refund! Good for you for not giving in! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 So, an evil ol bat comes into the bookstore with a book purchased here last week. She wanted to return the book because she had read "several" pages of the book and found it to be repititious. The way I view this is that you buy the book and you take your chances with whether or not you will enjoy the contents. Tough bananas that she found the 'several' pages repetitious. Irregardless of anything else, manners and treating people with proper respect and regard is important and makes the world a nicer place. Taking a chance on getting an unjustified refund is one thing, being rude to the people in the book shop is both daft and unwarranted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ned Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 This reminds me on the episode of Black Books where a man is trying to get his money back but Bernard finds a grain of sand on one of the pages, Manny tastes it and pinpoints the exact location of the beach. The man is sent on his way. You buy a book and don't like it then tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Univerze Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 This reminds me on the episode of Black Books where a man is trying to get his money back but Bernard finds a grain of sand on one of the pages, Manny tastes it and pinpoints the exact location of the beach. The man is sent on his way. I love Black Books. And there always be customers like this, be it at a book store, or any other store. Some people are just rude. If I buy a book in a book store I don't even think about returning it, read or not. You take your chances, I agree. If you don't like the book, too bad. Which is why I barely ever buy books I don't know, or of which I know the writer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruth Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 The way I view this is that you buy the book and you take your chances with whether or not you will enjoy the contents. Tough bananas that she found the 'several' pages repetitious. Irregardless of anything else, manners and treating people with proper respect and regard is important and makes the world a nicer place. Taking a chance on getting an unjustified refund is one thing, being rude to the people in the book shop is both daft and unwarranted. Yes, I agree. Heck, I've bought loads of books which I've not enjoyed as much as I hoped. It's not the bookshop's fault, and I certainly don't expect them to refund me for it!! (I wonder if she would take a DVD back to a shop if she didn't enjoy the film?!). I hate bad manners anyway. There really is no need or excuse for it, and it certainly doesn't get you any further. When I was working in pubs, while I was at college, I used to make a point of not serving customers who were known to be rude or abusive. If people have a genuine complaint (which this woman in the bookshop most certainly did NOT have), fair enough, but they still don't have to be rude about it. I don't know why people imagine that it's going to get them the result they're hoping for. Good for you Katrina, for standing your ground. She was probably hoping to intimidate you into the refund, and I'm glad that she wasn't able to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ned Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 If she hated the book that much then she should have sent it back to the publisher with a letter telling them what she thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 As mentioned, you take a chance when you a buy a book, I am sure she could have sent it out into book universe and someone else would appreciate it I have heard some really rude people in Borders (when it was there) and Waterstones speaking to staff, if I am next in the queue, I make more of an effort to be nice, I am nice usually but I am more nice (if that makes nice) but there is nothing worse that someone being rude to you in front of other people, its nice to know other customers appreciate you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 I love Black Books. What a rude woman. If I buy a book and find that I don't really like it I just pass it on, I would not dream of taking it back to the bookshop and asking for a refund. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephanie2008 Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 Neither would I. Once you've bought a book, it's yours. It's your own problem if you don't like it. I hate buying books that have already been read (one reason I don't buy many from charity shops) so wouldn't dream of taking it back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SueK Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 Let's face it, there are quite a few books that fail to deliver after we buy them, are we all in the queue for a refund? It is a chance you have to take, anyway, she could have donated it to a charity shop or passed it on to a friend (if bats have friends:mrgreen:). Cheeky is the word I would use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ned Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 I could just imagine her in Tesco "I want to return this Chicken Tikka microwave dinner for one as it didn't taste like i thought it would" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catwoman Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 My friend works in a waterstones and he says the amount of people who come back and try and get a refund for some reason or another. He said you find book marks 3/4 of the way in the book, crease marks/ dog ears, you name it and everytime each person says that they are going to write a complaint and how they have lost a valued customer. He said the worst one was some one who brought back a book saying that it was a double for Xmas, he said one, the book was the older version, so there was no way it was theirs, they don't stock it anymore, years in fact. Also he found, the binding to be creased in down numerous places, and to top it off there were many random places with little flakes of choclate down the middle. My mates reply was something like. "Next year tell Santa not to read the books and eat Chocolate before giving it to you." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfsbane Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 this is one of the dafted things I've ever heard, how dare people think they can just walk into a bookshop and either blatantly lie about it not being read/being a double/whatever or say that it sounded repetitive and demand a refund?!!! People are special.... I owned a cafe a few years back and a customer ate their soup and their bread and then decided they wanted a full refund because they hadn't enjoyed it.... when we said no, they took a handful of complementary mints 'to make up for it'..... what a world, huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catwoman Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 this is one of the dafted things I've ever heard, how dare people think they can just walk into a bookshop and either blatantly lie about it not being read/being a double/whatever or say that it sounded repetitive and demand a refund?!!! People are special.... I owned a cafe a few years back and a customer ate their soup and their bread and then decided they wanted a full refund because they hadn't enjoyed it.... when we said no, they took a handful of complementary mints 'to make up for it'..... what a world, huh? Oh that is finny, THEY TOOK THE MINTS!! How bloody rude! I would have laughed so much if that was me in that cafe. Slightly off topic, but I have seen people in MacDonalds drinking their cups of tea/ coffee, then going up to the guys at the counter and saying "ere I only got half a cup of coffee!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 My mates reply was something like. "Next year tell Santa not to read the books and eat Chocolate before giving it to you." That was so funny Wolfsbane, the arrogance of some people never seizes to amaze me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 I could just imagine her in Tesco"I want to return this Chicken Tikka microwave dinner for one as it didn't taste like i thought it would" You'd be surprised! A few weeks ago I was picking, when a customer handed me an opened packed of Mattessons Fridge Raiders that he'd given his child (aged about 3). He said "I was going to pay for these with my shopping, but I've tried them and they taste funny..." The child must have eaten half the packet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlette Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 Retail.. customers.. what can you say... I've returned a book to a bookstore, once. I read the first few pages and disliked it. It was still in perfect condition, so the store didn't have a problem exchanging it for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nightingale Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 Some of these stories are funny . I can't believe the nerve of some people . I've purchased a couple of books based on reviews i read on this site. I'll be demanding my money back from you dear reader if i don't enjoy the books Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katrina1968 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Share Posted January 5, 2010 It really is amazing what people think is their "right". Just this past Saturday a woman called. She had previously purchased a new book, Andy somethingorother, Moon River. She was SOOOoooo offended after reading the book that she doesnt want us to carry the book in the store. After reading the book cover to cover (she admitted it) she now wants to exchange it for another book. She is "sorry I read it, sorry its in my brain, sorry I cant get it out of my head", "it had several rude and offensive statements". I mean ARE YOU STINKING FOR REAL??! Its like she blames us for ordering the book that she special requested AND its like she thinks we WROTE the book! And no, we will most certainly NOT swap out that book, she can burn it, trash it or donate it but its not coming back into the bookstore! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 this is one of the dafted things I've ever heard, how dare people think they can just walk into a bookshop and either blatantly lie about it not being read/being a double/whatever or say that it sounded repetitive and demand a refund?!!! People are special.... I owned a cafe a few years back and a customer ate their soup and their bread and then decided they wanted a full refund because they hadn't enjoyed it.... when we said no, they took a handful of complementary mints 'to make up for it'..... what a world, huh? How spiteful! Some people are crazy. I don't regret leaving the world of retail I used to work in House of Fraser on the china dept so we'd often get affluent, intelligent shoppers paying a fortune for plates but when a fire alarm went off, they'd ask you if they could just finish paying and have their goods wrapped so they didn't have to hang around! I was like "you can wait here to see if the fire's real but I'm off!". Crazy. It's like all intelligence and rationality leaves them once they cross the stores threshold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talisman Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 After 20 odd years in retail not much surprises me ! The worst I ever got was some stupid woman at 4pm on Christmas Eve when I worked for Sainsburys who was mouthing off and complaining that the shelves were empty ! Stupid woman. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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