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Carol Perkins: Hoosier hospitality in outlet mall There's a lesson here: They were closing, but clerks in the Edinburgh, IN Oshkosh outlet store let Carol Perkins do some last minute shopping, and went way beyond the call of duty to help her get the purchases she needed. The next earlier Carol Perkins column, The Hitching Post about her grandfather is worth reading anytime. By Carol Perkins With only an hour to shop before the stores closed, I made a quick stop at my favorite places at this outlet mall. I was on my way home from a trade show and didn't leave enough time for an outlet stop only thirty-five miles from Indianapolis, in the Edinburgh Premium Outlet. Unlike many outlets across the country, this one is thriving. By the time I had rummaged through merchandise at three or four stores, I had only one left on my list, but I had only fifteen minutes. After working for eight or ten hours and the clock ticking toward the end of the day, a clerk sees a customer opening the door and wants to scream, "WE ARE CLOSING." I was that customer. I stuck my head inside the Osh Kosh children's store (11626 Northeast Executive Drive, in the Mall), "Am I too late?" I asked the four ladies who were more than ready to lock the doors and probably tell me to hit the road. "Oh, no, we're open. Come on in," a salesperson said very graciously. Quickly, I scoured the racks like a woman at a blue light special, focused on the sizes of my four little grandchildren, and not wanting to extend my fifteen minutes. I carried my bargains to the register, but before I could lay them on the counter, the lights went out. Not just in that store, but throughout the mall. They flashed back on and went out again, several times, while I stood near the counter with my arms loaded with shirts and shorts. "I'm sorry," the young lady said as she held open the door, "but you'll have to leave." "But I can't leave without these items," I pleaded. "I live four hours from here, and this is the only outlet near me. Maybe the lights will come back on." Clerk must have felt sorry for shopper She must have felt sorry for me, so she agreed to make a handwritten ticket of the items...the old- fashioned method. While one of the ladies called off item numbers, another went back to the racks to see what percentage the items were discounted. The other folded the shirts and shorts while another recorded my purchases. This took more than a little work, especially by flashlight, but they were very willing to help me go home with these clothes. I was feeling a little remorseful that I was causing them this much trouble. Then the lady who was probably the manager added with a cell phone calculator. Because she couldn't get the cash drawer open without electricity, I had to pay with credit card, so she slid it (the old- fashioned way again), and called a number for an approval code. She called and called but no one answered. Computer had to be rebooted As we waited, the lights flickered on and off until finally they came on and stayed on, so she quickly rebooted the computer. At this point, she entered the item numbers and the prices from the handwritten list she had just finished. Two items had the wrong codes, so another lady had to fish through the bag to find those two items. As the lady at the cash register drew near the end of punching in the prices, she accidentally hit a wrong button and ended the process with two items left to record. Knowing she was hurrying because she hated to keep me waiting, I offered to pay the total and then she could add the other two to it. "Oh no, you don't want to pay this total. It is for $6,980,456,876, 00. "I don't think my credit card has that high of a limit," I laughed. They re-scanned all the items Then one of the ladies had to take all the items out of the bag and the other one scanned them, one at a time. Finally, I had a total. Before leaving, we had a laugh about it taking four attempts to come up with a final bill before I could leave. By then it was well after closing and I had done what I never wanted to do; keep them late. Thanks to four clerks who went the extra mile Many salespeople would have said, "Sorry, we cannot do that," and I would have been out the door. However, I learned that there are those who will go that extra mile to make a customer happy. That night I met four of them: Jillian, Alexis, Jane, and Mary. This story was posted on 2010-07-18 08:36:03
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Have comments or corrections for this story? Use our contact form and let us know. More articles from topic Carol Perkins:
Carol Perkins: The Hitching Post Carol Perkins: Who is watching your children? Carol Perkins: Feeling Like Myself Carol Perkins: Churches Carol Perkins: Missing Mother Carol Perkins: The new washing machine Carol Perkins: Let's Talk About...Flour Sack Dresses Carol Perkins: Let's Talk About... Field Hockey Carol Perkins: Sinus! Carol Perkins: In a hurry View even more articles in topic Carol Perkins |
 
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