There’s an old observation that suggests women like to shop. Men like to buy. They don’t want to look around, they just want to get it over with, which could be why so many men can explain “buyer’s remorse.”
Whether those observations are true or not, the reality is that many Americans, even here in Great Bend, are going to be spending more time both shopping and buying in the next weeks, leading up to Christmas.
In part it is because they want to, but only in part. There are all sorts of stresses that come into play in this shopping season and none of them make the experience more enjoyable.
Towards the top of those stresses is the current economy, the amount of work that goes in to each purchase, as Americans fight the losing war with inflation and see their working and shopping power continue to shrink.
And all of that goes to explain the reason that Americans, including those in Great Bend and the surrounding area, are more aware than ever of how they are treated when they go into stores.
If the work hasn’t already been done, now might be a great time to start educating clerks about their manners, which, frankly, are poor to say the least, on many occasions.
It’s bad enough to know that your year’s work isn’t going to go as far as you’d hoped, but to walk into a retail store only to be greeted by a surly youngster who can’t wait to make it clear to you that you are cramping her style ... well, it’s enough to make you do every bit of Christmas shopping on the Internet.
Shoppers can’t miss the obvious, that many of the clerks they deal with are too young and self-absorbed to have any real grasp of just what the shopper has gone through to be able to buy Christmas presents at all this year, but guess what? there were kids manning cash registers and stocking shelves a generation, two, three and more ago, and they learned how to politely do their job.
Though it often seems that many of today’s clerks actually have the rationale that if they are just rude enough to the clientele they can drive them off so they can get back to texting their friends, that is not always the reality, and shoppers should do something about that, too.
When you do get a good clerk, say something about it. Give the young person a pat on the back. Comment to the owner. Let the clerk know just how much you appreciate them doing their job well.
Chances are, your approval will be the bright point of their day.
It’s worth a try, at least.
 — Chuck Smith