Levi's Cresta a cut of **** above the the rest!

The experience at the Levi's Cresta store on Saturday, 30 May 2020, left me dumbfounded and wondering how in the world they make any money with the staff's unapologetically rude disposition.

I guess my 'fault' was inquiring about the items in the store from the SALES staff. After seeing a jacket that I liked and asked about sizes, I was told it came "only in large". I found that really weird and proceeded to ask the male sales assistant (apparently, his name is Sizwe. It is "apparent" because they flatly refused to tell me who they were upon informing them that I intended to lodge a for their atrocious service) to kindly make sure by checking on the Levi's system. Hell, I even asked if it was "only in large" as some kind of oversized designed to help poor Sizwe along. Said Sizwe couldn't even answer that but was initially confident in his misrepresentation of available stock. He checked on the system as requested but was visibly annoyed at my insistence that he do what he was simply hired for. Low and behold, they had a medium in store! I asked to fit it and was told due to COVID hygiene practices that would be impossible. I further asked if I was expected to buy a clothing item from Levi's without doing due diligence and was flatly, and dare I say emphatically with a smerk on his face, told "YES!". I was willing to buy it but asked if I could return it if it didn't fit and was told in no uncertain terms, "No!". Understanding the stringent health protocols in place, one could get the safety measures put in place by Levi's South Africa, but also felt customers were being strongarmed into buying items that they may be later dissatisfied with without any future recourse. That kind of sales culture/logic didn't resonate with me and declined to make a purchase. Furthermore, the store didn't even have any signage to support the health claim made by Sizwe; that could've saved me a lot of wasted energy trying to get to grips with the inarticulate and nauseatingly sickening disrespect from Levi's Cresta staff.

Following that, I noticed Levi's South Africa's patch sticker denim jacket offer on display at the store. I asked if they had any patches in store and if so, do they sell them seperately or have another system of updating currently owned Levi's jackets in place. This appealed to me since I own a few Levi's jackets. Said Sizwe answered, "No, we don't have that here." My confusion at the display being in a Levi's store prompted my inquiry into the point of displaying the service if it wasn't on offer at Levi's. Said Sizwe and the store manager proceeded to condescendingly laugh at my question and clarified their response with "you can get those at Sandton." I thanked them for their clarification and even conceded that I may have misheard/misinterpreted their initially vague answer of "No, we don't have that here". I proceeded to make my way out of the store to which the store manager boldly shouted across the store from the cash register that "I should apologise to Sizwe for my rude behaviour". Visibly shocked at her lack of customer service etiquette and thinking that it would be incredibly fruitless arguing with her, I simply said fine and left with a palpable irritation. I was in no mood to engage in a back and forth with her since I felt like this could lead to a decrease in my IQ. Her ill-mannered nature of the way she handled the situation made me realise that she may just be an idiot.

Tried calling service desk to complain but to no avail. Returned to the store with a friend that had later joined me at the mall to ask for said Sizwe's name as well as the store manager since they were implicated in such unprofessional conduct. Even went as far as reassuring a further female sales assistant in the store that I appreciated her professional conduct that her colleagues were devoid of and that I wouldn't include her in my complaint. The female sales assistant called the the store manager to attend to me. The store manager came through while chuckling at my return beneath her mask. I asked for Sizwe and her names and surnames to ensure that I file a comprehensive complaint of their conduct. I informed her of the reason for my request. She astonishingly told me that I shouldn't worry myself about such "things" since she "had done that herself". Asked for evidence to that effect and she simply laughed. At that point I genuinely got angry wondering if I was perhaps treated in such a deplorable way due to some racial profiling or the like. Mind you I live comfortably with three degrees under my belt so a Levi's jacket isn't anything special to me; but I digress. Anyway, the store manager simply wrote her name as "Store Manager Permanent" on a piece of paper. I didn't understand the significance of her "permanent" status but concluded that she must be someone 'special' Levi's South Africa with her 6k salary. I continued to insist that she furnish me wih her and her colleague's names and surnames for the reasons earlier stated given the insufficient information rendered. She unbelievably pointed me towards the door telling me that "my glasses prevented me from seeing her name" on a random piece of paper with the store's COVID protocols. Now I guess I was being ridiculed for wearing prescription spectacles...GREAT, LEVI'S! While my friend took a picture of the paper that we were directed to by the door, said Sizwe (now I knew his apparent name since I additionally insisted on his details as they weren't on the paper to which I was directed) told me to "move out the way, bro!" while the picture was being taken. Now I assume the customer was Sizwe's 'friend'. Upon inspection of the paper, a compliance officer details document rather than one that clearly specifies who the store manager, I finally established that the rude store manager's name is Bukelwa Khondo (if that's even her name). To rub salt into the wound, the Bukelwa Khondo that the shopping public is expected to readily know chuckled at my friend and me as we took the image of the paper.

I am so grateful for such behaviour from Levi's South Africa's staff because at least now I know where my black, dirty money should be spent. Thank you, Levi's South Africa for reminding me that I am black and a worthless cog in your commercial wheel. In no way will you EVER find me even remotely perusing anything near your physical stores or online platform. Your Levi's Cresta staff is a disgrace from a customer service perspective and painfully insensitive to this country's social dynamics. Absolutely disgusted!