Crazy lady of the day
I am posting with more detail now that I am home!
I was taking cakes out onto the sales floor this afternoon, when a lady caught my attention by our cake ordering counter. She started out really pleasant.
"Hi! Did you need any help?" I asked.
"Oh, I can wait until you're done there," she offer politely. "I need to order a cake."
"They're not going anywhere," I shoved the cart of cakes to the side of the bakery and grabbed my cake order book. I was smiling and friendly, like always. "When did you need the cake?" I asked.
"Tomorrow morning."
We require 72 hours notice for cakes. We always have. This is due to the high volume of special orders, as well as regular items we do on a daily basis. When slow, we can pull off a cake with only 48 hours notice. This weekend, however, we were buried. Tamela missed a week and a half due to snow, then wanted New Year's Day off, and we sold out of a ton of items. My freezer back stock was empty. Not a good weekend to try to sweet talk me into a last minute order...
Only, she didn't want to "sweet talk" me at all.
"Oh, I'm really sorry," I said. "We need three days notice--"
"No you don't."
"..."
"You've done it for me before." She was immediately accusatory and cold toward me, scowling.
"I'm really sorry, we do have a 72 hour notice policy. There is no way we can do a cake for the next morning."
"You've always done it before!"
At this point I am continuing to apologize and offering other options. We have a massive variety of cakes in our self service cake. I offered to take one of those and write on it for her. Nothing was good enough.
"I can't believe this! You have always done it before! They just make me one in the back, right away! I just want a white cake with white icing!"
I continue to assure her that we can't, and don't make cakes for "the next day". Then I offer her one for Saturday morning (two days notice). Still not good enough. She continues to sputter and scowl and carry on.
"You must be new!" she shouted at me.
"Actually, I have been here for four years--"
"I want a manager! I want someone else!"
Jenn, who was standing nearby, wide-eyed with horror, approached and also tried to politely explain to this psycho that we required more notice for cakes.
Of course, this induced more carrying on. Jenn scurried away to get the only kitchen manager present (BM had taken the day off). Deli manager Rob comes over, already briefed of the fact that the lady is a big problem and batshit crazy.
He pretty much said the same things we had stated. When she continued to carry on, he pointed out that we were trying to work with her to get her a cake.
"No you're not! I can't believe this! I shop here all the time! My daughters shop here!"
Meanwhile, I was shelving my cake stock and carrying on conversations with other customers. As I directed one woman to the fresh tortillas, she leaned close to me and said, "Happy new year, right?" There were a dozen or so customers very close, all staring in shock at this lady.
A few more minutes of her carrying on, and Rob trying to teach her reality ensued. Finally she just started to back away.
"You are losing my business! And my daughter's business! I will never shop here again. NEVER!" Then she stopped and started jabbing her wrinkled old finger in the air toward me. "YOU ARE AWFUL! YOU ARE THE MOST AWFUL UNHELPFUL PERSON! WHAT IS YOUR NAME? I AM WRITING A LETTER! I AM SPEAKING TO YOUR MANAGER! I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW UNHELPFUL YOU ARE!"
People standing nearby were staring at her, appalled.
Rob turned to me then, "just go in the back."
I took my escape and bolted.
Rob gave her the name of the front end manager, who was the only other manager in the store (I guess most of them take the holiday off). He called him on his direct line to give him a heads up and let him know that an unreasonable customer with no valid complaint was coming his way.
She never showed. She left without speaking to anyone else.
I was taking cakes out onto the sales floor this afternoon, when a lady caught my attention by our cake ordering counter. She started out really pleasant.
"Hi! Did you need any help?" I asked.
"Oh, I can wait until you're done there," she offer politely. "I need to order a cake."
"They're not going anywhere," I shoved the cart of cakes to the side of the bakery and grabbed my cake order book. I was smiling and friendly, like always. "When did you need the cake?" I asked.
"Tomorrow morning."
We require 72 hours notice for cakes. We always have. This is due to the high volume of special orders, as well as regular items we do on a daily basis. When slow, we can pull off a cake with only 48 hours notice. This weekend, however, we were buried. Tamela missed a week and a half due to snow, then wanted New Year's Day off, and we sold out of a ton of items. My freezer back stock was empty. Not a good weekend to try to sweet talk me into a last minute order...
Only, she didn't want to "sweet talk" me at all.
"Oh, I'm really sorry," I said. "We need three days notice--"
"No you don't."
"..."
"You've done it for me before." She was immediately accusatory and cold toward me, scowling.
"I'm really sorry, we do have a 72 hour notice policy. There is no way we can do a cake for the next morning."
"You've always done it before!"
At this point I am continuing to apologize and offering other options. We have a massive variety of cakes in our self service cake. I offered to take one of those and write on it for her. Nothing was good enough.
"I can't believe this! You have always done it before! They just make me one in the back, right away! I just want a white cake with white icing!"
I continue to assure her that we can't, and don't make cakes for "the next day". Then I offer her one for Saturday morning (two days notice). Still not good enough. She continues to sputter and scowl and carry on.
"You must be new!" she shouted at me.
"Actually, I have been here for four years--"
"I want a manager! I want someone else!"
Jenn, who was standing nearby, wide-eyed with horror, approached and also tried to politely explain to this psycho that we required more notice for cakes.
Of course, this induced more carrying on. Jenn scurried away to get the only kitchen manager present (BM had taken the day off). Deli manager Rob comes over, already briefed of the fact that the lady is a big problem and batshit crazy.
He pretty much said the same things we had stated. When she continued to carry on, he pointed out that we were trying to work with her to get her a cake.
"No you're not! I can't believe this! I shop here all the time! My daughters shop here!"
Meanwhile, I was shelving my cake stock and carrying on conversations with other customers. As I directed one woman to the fresh tortillas, she leaned close to me and said, "Happy new year, right?" There were a dozen or so customers very close, all staring in shock at this lady.
A few more minutes of her carrying on, and Rob trying to teach her reality ensued. Finally she just started to back away.
"You are losing my business! And my daughter's business! I will never shop here again. NEVER!" Then she stopped and started jabbing her wrinkled old finger in the air toward me. "YOU ARE AWFUL! YOU ARE THE MOST AWFUL UNHELPFUL PERSON! WHAT IS YOUR NAME? I AM WRITING A LETTER! I AM SPEAKING TO YOUR MANAGER! I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW UNHELPFUL YOU ARE!"
People standing nearby were staring at her, appalled.
Rob turned to me then, "just go in the back."
I took my escape and bolted.
Rob gave her the name of the front end manager, who was the only other manager in the store (I guess most of them take the holiday off). He called him on his direct line to give him a heads up and let him know that an unreasonable customer with no valid complaint was coming his way.
She never showed. She left without speaking to anyone else.