Attitude when doing an exchange

Just have been to your Festival Mall JHB branch on the 19th July before 13:00 Store assistant by the name of Phindile lacks customer service. I was there to do an exchange was told the system is offline. I found this strange as you guys apparently have a separate system for exchange and a different one for regular purchases. After asking her to call your client care for them to explain this mediocre system. She came back to me saying i should have asked about an alternative. I want to know how would i have known that an alternative existed if she hadnt initially explained to me that the was an alternative? I felt that she wanted me to beg for the service, where is proper customer service in this, that I now have to urgue with her for not initially offered the option on the exchange option.