Can I Steal Yours?

We are not allowed to let customers bring accessories into the fitting rooms due to a security issue. During a designer launch, I was hoping our managers would allow it to be an exception due to the traffic we would be receiving and we could just count the accessory in as if it were a clothing item.

She told me, "No."

I was left in the fitting room with no way of keeping track of each customer's accessories.

One of the more popular items was a belt the designer produced. Customers had initially grabbed belts not looking at what size they grabbed. When I asked them what size they had, they told me, "I don't know," and then proceeded to tell me the size they wanted. Having no method of keeping track, I was forced to give them what they asked even when I knew they were lying.

After a couple minutes of customers piling in with tons of accessories, it was evident that we must come up with an inventory system. I came up with the idea of taking our shopping bags and assigning them numbers and telling customers to tell us their number so we could hand them their bag of accessories. I knew the method would work from that point onward, but I didn't know what I could do when customers previous to that point would complain about missing accessories or wrong sizes. There were two other people working the fitting rooms. I prayed I wouldn't have to be the one to tell the customer we didn't have her items.

Of course that wouldn't happen.

She told me the items she had given us and I looked at the remaining accessories not placed in our bag system and wasn't able to find her items among them. I apologized and told her that customers must have taken it without me knowing. I said I couldn't do anything about it but that her best bet was to go out and see if there were more out on the sales floor. I knew she would be upset, but I didn't expect her to say this,

"Since you gave away my items, can I take someone elses?"

This is why I Work 2 Rant.