Embarassing Customer Moments

[Leigh Costello]

I just want to know if anyone has had an uncomfortable moment involving a customer. Mine follows....In my defense, we do not have a sign on our house advertising our business....On Saturday, I spent some time with some friends and one of the kids was, uh, vomiting all afternoon. I was assured that she was "just lactose intolerant, don't worry." I should have worried.

Anyway, I had a very well dressed business woman pull into our driveway Monday. Having spent the entire day very close to the bath and bed, I was not feeling well, to put it mildly. First, I thought who is that? Second, I thought oh no, I don't feel well again. Third, I thought do I open the door or not? NO worries, my handsome hubby opened the door for her. There I stood in cutoffs, a wrinkled tshirt, barefoot and I am sure I was green. Hubby went back to cutting the grass without further thought.

The lady turned out to be a customer who was "in the neighborhood" - we live in the sticks - and needed a gift for her daughter's 20th wedding anniversary. So, I kept my urge to purge in check, made a fantastic presentation, she ordered a custom gift and off she went.

She will pick up her order on Friday.

Please tell me someone else out there has had an embarrassing moment.

[Phyllis Meyer]

I had a small business a few years back (wedding decorating, singing telegrams...). I ordered invitations, glassware and other things for brides. One day my husband was out in the back 20 cutting weeds with a cicle off of our fence, (did I spell that right?) and of course our dog was by his side. The dog spotted something, the cicle swung...chopping a nice hunk into her tail, husband and dog proceed home to get the dog to the vet. A car pulls into the driveway (a bride to pick up her items). The dog goes running up to her with her tail wagging, BLOOD FLYING EVERYWHERE, husband trying to catch the dog, the girls and I pull in the driveway and see the scene. The girls start screaming at the top of their lungs, my husband and this customer are covered in blood looking at me as if to say; "do something". I did...I started vomitting

I don't know if this customer's memory is as funny as we see it as we look back.

Phyllis

[Belinda Barfield]

Did some work for a couple some years ago, and they became repeat customers, then friends. They drop by our shop from time to time just to visit. They stopped by a few weeks ago and the three of us were standing in the showroom, just chatting away.

We have another repeat customer, also now a friend, who decided to drop by as well. He is an elderly gentleman, who is also moderately hard of hearing. He wanted to speak to my partner, who was out in the shop. While we are waiting for the partner to come in from the shop, the elderly gentleman is standing a few feet away and loudly starts passing gas! The three of us try our very best to ignore this, but he just keeps right on firin' away. By now we are all smiling at each other, and then the lady of the couple starts gigglin' like crazy. Then I just lost it. Luckily, because the gentleman was hard of hearin', he asked us the repeat to joke we were laughing so hard over! I nearly wet my pants. It was so funny, but I was really embarassed. Glad the folks were friends instead of someone I actually had to sell something too!