Selfast Oriental Plaza

Good day,

I am writing to the owner of the Selfast Oriental Plaza Shop with utter disbelief of the customer service we received in that shop on 27 July 2018 in the afternoon. I have been buying shoes from that shop ever since my arrival in this country some 18 years ago when i discovered it, despite the poor product quality most of the time, I love the style of shoes and decided to support the branch/store.

I was with my mother on the day and we specifically decided to drive to the Oriental Plaza and buy shoes from Selfast, the only reason we went there although it is quite far from my house. After spending almost an hour in the store trying on shoes without any assistance from the staff around 3h45-4h30 ( very close to closing time) ,I had two baskets full of shoes and I was at the counter ready to pay, the light skin ( coloured lady at the counter can confirm this), one of the shoes did not have a price tag on so I offered to go bring another similar pair in order for her to be able to scan it.

She was already processing my sale when I heard the bold Indian guy who works there ask loudly and rudely to my mother if she was the one trying on shoes by the small mirror close to the shoe section, she rep**** in the positive and before she could say anything else he rudely and agressively stated that 'this is not a Chinese Shop ' and ' you should pack your stuff away ', ' where do you think you are? '. Then he carried on saying that if this was Edgars, you wouldn't leave shoes around like this.

I would never tolerate anyone speaking to My Mother like that and even less somewhere where i am the customer spending my money on things i can buy anywhere else. That is disrespetful and a true reflection of his character as a human being.

My mother told him that had nothing to do with a Chinese shop and that statement had ******s connotations. He carried on shouting and I intervened, asked him if this is how he treats his customers? I told him the right thing to do was to politely ask us to pack away what we tried on, since not everything left there was ours. We were about to buy everything we tried on anyway.

He kept arguing with me and now defending his statement about the Chinese shop. Which I found quite shocking since in a Chinese shop , one actually does get greeted and assisted once in the shop and the customer service is great ( The Chinese do understand the concept that great customer service means a return customers which in turn translates to a successful future for the business : Win-Win situation) unlike this Selfast shop.

He even went as far as comparing the situation to Edgars : in Edgars , I can actually leave everything on the floor not that I would but Edgars has staff willing to assist when trying on shoes and they pack them away once you are done without complaining since they get paid to do that unlike at this Selfast Branch, so that comparison is very ******** and uneducated. He works there and must pack away things, I don't work there. He clearly hates his job and he's taking it out on your customers.

We have been buying at this branch for years and never once have we ever been greeted nor assisted, but still kept supporting it. Until yesterday, this was the last of it ever. I have actually witness another of your clients being treated like nothing by this same guy, seems like it's the norm for him to treat your customers like this.

He acts like he is doing us ( the customers ) a favour by selling to us. Which is so far from the truth, without us that branch will close and he won't have a job.

It's simple, his behaviour translates to customers not ever going back to that branch = loss of income and bad reputation which in turns will result in that branch closing . With this Economic Crisis happening in South Africa, any business owner should be furious that their staff is chasing customers away because of their attitudes.

The only thing I had to do to find another Selfast Branch is Google it and I have actually found one much closer to my house than the one at the Oriental Plaza and that will now be my preferred store , yes in this day and age it is that simple and that much easier to change our choices ( as consumers ) but to still get what we want.

One of the most important things to ensure as a Business Owner : Customers loyalty and satisfaction which is achieved through ' Customer Service which will set you apart from the competition since all retailers sale the same things nowadays, the customer has plenty of choices/options. Your staff especially the guy we had this experience with yesterday is chasing your clientele away with the kind of service he is providing.

As a business woman myself, I know the effort and sacrifice an owner of a retail store puts in and for their staff to neglect and insult that effort is a pity. Consequences of his actions, your store lost a sale, a loyal customer together with future recommandations from us forever.

We ended up purchasing shoes at the store next to yours right after we left your store because that is the reason we were at the Oriental Plaza to begin with ( to buy shoes).

Kindly look at the selection of staff in your store for your best interests and or provide training since it is much needed in that specific store. Looking forward to your feedback on this matter.

Signed,

Annoyed Customer