The Customer Is No Longer Right

The Customer Is No Longer Right / Rebeca Monzo
Posted on May 3, 2013

Once upon a time in my planet, where there were many fine department
stores, small boutiques, department stores, cafes, restaurants and all
kinds of successful businesses, large and small, where it was a real
pleasure to go shopping, the slogan was: "The customer is always right. "

So it manifested itself and it worked very well. The customer was
satisfied and the owner as well, because the profits for his business
increased and he rejoiced on feeling the appreciation and respect of his
customers. Of course, every business had an owner and there is nothing
better than "the master's eye to fatten the horse."

With the arrival of the year 1959, the new "government" in just one of
the first things it did, nationalized all large businesses and
enterprises. Then the "revolutionary offensive" gave the final blow to
the already "skewered" and bled economy. Now the customer had become a
"user" who had no right to choose or demand, only to accept what the
ration book determined without protest. I couldn't buy what I wanted or
needed, and only and badly acquire what is "determined."

These vices were embedded and are a drag on the economy to this day, and
although it is assumed that the "legalization of the dollar" and the
arrival of the dual currency, at least what is for sale in hard currency
(and very difficult to acquire) gives the right to choose, though it's
not the case because people who work for the State, which is almost
everyone, and who in return receive miserable wages also have a motto:
"I pretend to work and the state pretends to pay me."

Therefore they have no interest in selling and unfortunately the only
motivation is to see who can "knock down" the client, using that
euphemism instead of using the ugly word "steal." Not all employees are
like this, but unfortunately a considerable number of them have been
carried away by this vice and don't even consider it a crime. Thus
demonstrating in this way, they lack a healthy motivation to exercise
their work as sellers.

A couple of days ago, an acquaintance of mine, entered the "The
Butterfly" store in Nuevo Vedado, to buy a fan for his wife as a
birthday present, since this was the only establishment where there was
the model that suited him and fit his budget. At that store, after
having checked all the stores of this kind, looking for this gadget, he
found that the employee who staffed that department wasn't there. When
he asked about it, they told him that she hadn't come in for three days
because she has a sick child. Then he insisted that someone, instead of
her, take care of him. He was told that no one could do it, only she was
designated for that department. Why is that?

Losing patience, he asked to see the manager, who showed up a little
annoyed and repeated what the employee had said. Then this man, losing
patience, identifies himself and said that he was also was an employee
in hard currency stores, and although it's another chain, they all
belong to the State and would not go in there without the fan, it would
raise the incident to its ultimate consequences. And so he managed that
they "reluctantly" sold him the damn gadget. As you see, long ago in my
planet the customer is no longer in the right, but I am of the firm
belief that rights must be demanded, as this customer did.

3 May 2013

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