Woolworths was established in Cape Town in 1931. Since then, they have been continuously building their excellent reputation for quality, innovation and value..... and alleged strange occurrences in their fitting rooms!

It is always nice to treat yourself when you are given money for your birthday, especially when one has not bought any new clothes in months. On Sunday 27th September, I went to Woolworths in the Makhado Mall in Louis Trichardt (Limpopo). I selected my items to try on and then made my way to the fitting room. When I arrived, a staff member was inside, and as I approached her, she locked the door from the inside. Only one person is allowed in the fitting room at a time, and whilst this can be frustrating, it is an excellent demonstration of Covid 19 prevention. I stood outside the changing room and waited my turn to go in. After about ten minutes, a gentleman came out of the changing room holding a pair of shorts; he returned shortly with another pair of shorts. I assumed he had gone to find another size.

I waited and waited for almost half an hour outside the fitting room before my husband eventually came into the shop to find out why I was taking so long. I told him what had occurred, from which he then went to the checkout staff to ask them what was happening. He requested that could the gentleman in the fitting room not be made to hurry up, as 30 minutes seemed an unreasonable amount of time. My husband was informed that the fitting rooms were not in use, and that I must have been mistaken about seeing anyone going in or out.

I first inquired that if the fitting rooms were not in use then why was there no sign on the door, and why had the assistant, who clearly saw me when she locked the door, not informed me that I could not use the fitting room.

I was extremely upset that I was effectively being called a **** as the staff said there was no one in the changing room. I asked them to check, and whilst I tried to also look, I was not allowed. The staff member informed me that no one was in there. I can only assume then that there was an external door for the female staff member and gentlemen to have exited by …. or I will leave the other possibility to your imagination. In either case it was highly irritating that there was no signage stating the fitting room was out of use, and no one approached me, despite noticing me standing outside for half an hour.

No one was hurt, nothing was damaged… but the reputation of a shop that I hold in high esteem has certainly been spoiled.