Tuesday, December 11, 2007

A word about those kiosks in the mall

Let me begin with a simple disclaimer. If anyone reading this blog works at a local mall kiosk, this is nothing personal. I am sure you are a lovely person.

As you all know, I took Elise to the mall last Friday to have Christmas pictures taken. After our session with the photographer, we went to do a bit of shopping. I also wanted to walk the mall for a while with her in hopes that she would be nice and tired and ready for a long afternoon nap when we got home (it worked, by the way!). We made a few laps around the mall and I became increasingly annoyed with the people working the kiosks.

Those darn things are wall to wall up and down all the aisles of the entire mall. That is fine, but the sales people are bordering on harrassment! In the short time we were there, I was asked to let someone straighten my hair (um, my hair is already straight), put lotion on my hands, sell me a new cell phone, try out a new soap on my hands, and put some crazy looking chia pet thing in my hair to make it look longer!

NO THANK YOU.

But that is not good enough. These freaks will chase your ass up and down the mall trying to convince you to try their products. And apparently they don't remember you, because the next time you walk by the exact same person, they try it all over again!!!

On the first lap I tried to be polite. I smiled and said, "No thank you," or "My little one is getting tired and we need to get home." When they persisted, I just kept walking. By the 2nd and 3rd laps, I began to get annoyed, and I ignored them altogether. What I really wanted to do was tell them to BACK OFF.

What is up with this new trend?? Do these people work on commission??

It's not like it is just one or two kiosks to contend with - there are at least 10 or 15. You can't walk more than a few feet without encountering one. As soon as you get past one, here comes another. I am not sure how much revenue they generate for the mall, but I think the owner may really want to rethink having them if they are going to be so aggressive. They make me want to skip my trip to the mall altogether.

I was just telling Jamie about it, and he said, "My love, you should just shop online." I think I might take his advice.

5 comments:

...LiFe aS aN AirForce Wife... said...

seriously.. those people are CRAZY.. i agree with ur husband on this one~ =)

Ashley said...

I agree with Jamie too!Avoid the mall as much as possible! LOL! My brother and I went to the mall today as well.. its ridiculous!!! They tried to do my makeup today, but I have noticed that since Im pregnant, once I tell them no, they back off. I guess they're afraid to tick off a pregnant women or something LOL!

Jamie said...

Steps to follow:
(1) Tell said individual,"Hey, this is your lucky day. I happen to have presents for you."
(2) Place your hands into your pockets.
(3) Pull out your hands with "attention-getter" finger in fixed positions.
(4) say, " have a great day, STALKER!"

Melanie said...

LOL - That's how we roll around here!

Ashley said...

HAHAHA!!! Too funny!