Morons working in shoe stores

[mike23theking]

It happens to me all the time, especially when the Kidds came out.

You can't expect people that work in a shoe store to be shoe heads. It's that easy.

Except for me, I don't walk away laughing. I just correct them or give them the actual name of the shoe. Flame me for being nice.

 

[yungmoney33]

Originally Posted by ThrowedInDaGame

I love going to stores with an OD elitest attitude, sonning the workers, then leaving without making any purchases

lol

 

[eyes of hazel]

Originally Posted by sneakermane

"Hypebeast cats in every sense of the word moanin' and grownin' about jack."


Wanna-be non hypebeast cats moaning and groaning about what the next man is moaning and groaning about. Comedy...

"Wanna-be non hypebeast cats" is a bit of a stretch Cuz.

Try again.

Superstars b.

 

[dawg569]

If you don't like your job, then don't work there. It's their job to learn about their job. It's not up to you to know more than them in theirjob, it's pretty pathetic. Now, I'm probably different than others, and doesn't exactly pertain to the subject, but when I used to umpire baseballgames, I didn't know too much about baseball. I could have just known that there were three outs, three strikes in a strikeout, four balls in a walk, andknew what a double play was. You got to know everything, plus knowing how to call close plays and without hesitation, so I read up and asked help, got advice,more than just reading a book. That's what I'm comparing working at any shoe store. If you don't know your job well enough, then what are you doingthere? If you sign that contract, knowing you're going to be selling Jordans, AM's, and any other sport-culture related shoe, it's up to you to getinvolved and educated about popular colorways, nicknames, to a certain extent, because you know there are kids out there that are crazy about shoes.They're both related.

Now I'm not saying you should school them if they don't know, because that's just being mean, but they should strive better in their jobs. It'ssomething every employee in any job should do. I just don't understand why people do jobs they hate, or why people do jobs because it's easy, butcomplain about the pay. Suck it up and do your job. You signed the deal.

 

[jasonsb]

When I used to work for a sneaker chain called Sneaker Stadium (later became Just For Feet) I had as much or more knowledge about shoes than the managers andanybody working there before I started but that was because I am so into shoes. Over the time I worked there you realize these things:

You are only there to get the shoe for the customer

Assist with anything technical about the shoe if they ask

and most importantly SELL!

So with that being said...as long as she knew that, that shoe was a Nike Airmax shoe and not some other brand or what have you, it doesn't matter to herbosses.

We have to remember not all people care as much about sneakers or sneaker history as we do. Furthermore some of the players of the past aren't still signedto Nike so they aren't going to advertise or market it as such so they aren't going to give that information in a product knowledge class. Plus Nikedoesn't market the retroes for todays performance use just as nostalgia and lifestyle even though some people might use them to play whatever sport theymay play in them.

 

[tfaulk20]

I don't mind too bad when this happens, I just get pissed when they try to sell you all kinds od accessories that I don't want. Here is a recentexperience of mine:

I went in to the shoe store and asked for the godzillas in a size 10. The dude had on Js and acted like he was some sort of shoe head, but he says "whatthe hell are you talkin bout." I just sayed get me those right there. So this other girl brings em to me and I try them on and tell that I'll take em.Then she goes on this whole speech about the gel heel inserts and how great they are. I politely tell her no but she wouldn't stop. She says "I alwayswear these when I play ball and they're so great. You have to get these if you are a serious basketball player." I lost my cool a little bit and said"I think I've played more basketball than you have!" Then everyone at the store got pissed at me and thought I was a horrible person.

In a different perspective, I think this shows the need for nike to market their retros a little bit, maybe this is with a retro card, maybe this is with instore posters or whatever. I probably have more pairs of barkleys than anyone and its kind of funny that the general public has no idea about his shoes or evenlike them just because they are blinded by the Jordan hype machine. A few years ago I remember nike had a little poster in the finishline with the Philly alphaforces and the cb94s together with a picture of chuck in the background. I immediately bought both shoes at retail before they went on sale probably jsutbecause of that small ad. Little things like this make people buy shoes and I think nike should put some effort into this for their retros. People were beastinfor the barkley vs. godzilla shirts that came out last year, imagine if they came out with a lil penny shirt for the penny 2s this year. Small momentos wouldbe nice to see from nike in order to better establish a relationship between the consumer and the history of their retros.

 

[dawg569]

Originally Posted by TFaulk20

I don't mind too bad when this happens, I just get pissed when they try to sell you all kinds od accessories that I don't want. Here is a recent experience of mine:

I went in to the shoe store and asked for the godzillas in a size 10. The dude had on Js and acted like he was some sort of shoe head, but he says "what the hell are you talkin bout." I just sayed get me those right there. So this other girl brings em to me and I try them on and tell that I'll take em. Then she goes on this whole speech about the gel heel inserts and how great they are. I politely tell her no but she wouldn't stop. She says "I always wear these when I play ball and they're so great. You have to get these if you are a serious basketball player." I lost my cool a little bit and said "I think I've played more basketball than you have!" Then everyone at the store got pissed at me and thought I was a horrible person.

In a different perspective, I think this shows the need for nike to market their retros a little bit, maybe this is with a retro card, maybe this is with in store posters or whatever. I probably have more pairs of barkleys than anyone and its kind of funny that the general public has no idea about his shoes or even like them just because they are blinded by the Jordan hype machine. A few years ago I remember nike had a little poster in the finishline with the Philly alpha forces and the cb94s together with a picture of chuck in the background. I immediately bought both shoes at retail before they went on sale probably jsut because of that small ad. Little things like this make people buy shoes and I think nike should put some effort into this for their retros. People were beastin for the barkley vs. godzilla shirts that came out last year, imagine if they came out with a lil penny shirt for the penny 2s this year. Small momentos would be nice to see from nike in order to better establish a relationship between the consumer and the history of their retros.

Agreed, well said.

 

[franky 9]

reality is people who work at shoe stores are just there for a part time job, alot of them, even though i think its dumb, couldnt care less about shoes,especially in the manor we do, so i mean as much as i hate being in there and them being like whats bred? or all star? we do know alot more then the averageperson.

 

[thadirtyburgh]

Ive stopped posting on niketalk years ago but still have always kept up with the site and the forums. I am a manager at Champs in Sangertown Square mall in NewHartford, NY. This post really interested me because a lot of people bring up valid points:

1.) Yes, you should try to hire people who are somewhat into sneakers and/or collecting, keeping up on releases and the history.
2.) Yes, most of the people working at these stores are part-time high school kids.

Here is the most important thing that needs to be understood to both sides of this argument. Yes, we are a service industry and yes our main job is to sellfootwear. It is GREAT to have people who know the product's history and nostalgia. I have worked at 3 different Champs in the past 3.5 years, whether it bepart time, full time, AM, or now, manager, from my home Pittsburgh, to now, New York state. From a business stand point, the first thing you need is TRUST ofyour employees and people who will do what is needed to be done without you telling them? Do you know how hard it is to probe an applicant for those qualities,then on top of that expect them to be sneaker aficianados?

In an ideal world, I would have a crew of nothing but sneaker heads who bust their @**%% working and give top notch customer service; this isn't an idealworld. Just because person A knows about retros shoes history isnt going to make them a better salesperson or give better customer service if they dont have itin them. Person B may know jack-%@+% about retros but he greets every customer, gives advice, and gets shoes, offer accessories (which are a HUGE part of ourbusiness...we have ratios that need to be hit, i.e. an insole sold for every 23 pairs sold), and leaves the customer completely satisfied when he/she leavesthe store.

Just because the girl didnt know the shoes were Barkleys doesnt make her less of a sales associate. Chances are, if I have a guy who does nothing but talkabout retros all day, and literally does nothing at work but talk about retros all day and not wait on customers, and doesnt know a damn thing about technicalrunning shoes, who do you think is getting hours?

Ive been a collector for 7-8 years now and have a decent collection of around 250 pairs of kicks. Youll never see me dead in a pair of retros to work in. Istay in $160 Asics Gel-Kinsei's all day. Those insoles we try to sell to you? Youll never catch me without them in my shoes. Sure, its part of our jobrequirement to sell those things, but they work. If you don't want them, you dont have to want them or try them, but all that girl was doing was her job.Play 3 hours with the insoles in your hoop shoes and I guarantee youll tell a difference from the b.s. styrofoam insoles Nike or anyone puts in. If not, its anunconditional gaurantee on them anyways.

You *****ing about her not knowing about Barkleys is petty. If she can get your shoes for you in the size you need, she has done her job. If she wants to callthem Kobes, who cares? You know what they are. I guess you would have rather had John Q. Sneakerfreak talk about the Barkleys with you. Then, when he goes inthe stockroom and realizes you both wear the same size, and there is only one pair left in his size, he decides to tell you that there are none left in yoursize so he can get his on employee appreciation tomorrow.

Champs isnt open because the employees all know the histroy of retros, they are open because they hire the RIGHT people to successfully run the business.Apparently the original poster of this knows nothing about running a business, and only knows how to complain about a girl getting him the correct shoes in thecorrect size, and suggests a product to him that will indeed provide more comfort and stability for his kicks.

Just my two cents.

Rick

 

[dcortes23]

Oh yeah my all-star XX3's im stupid i'm stupid!!

 

[sherlock foams]

^^^
Preach!

The world is bigger than your shoe size.

Watch your step!

 

[cucumbercool]

sherlock foams sounded like a nice new slogan for nike.

...that may go on a tshirt

 

[king and duck]

When I started working at my current employer, I was the only one who knew anything about basketball shoes. . . and Nike shoes except for my manager. All theother guys could kick my butt in knowledge about running shoes, track spikes and soccer cleats. I remember one dude saying, "What IS zoom air?" Ijust depends on who you talk to also. One dude may be the hoops expert, while others may be experts on running or baseball or casual too.
You could have got the girl who could tell you a hell of alot more about Asics than you would ever know!
Telling you that you were wrong. . . that was a mistake. I agree on that.

Any of you shoe salesmen play that game where you face away from the wall, your co-worker picks a shoe off the wall, puts it in your hands behind your back,and you have to guess what it is by feeling and not looking?

 

[bgetsbusy]

I called a well respected local sneaker spot a few weeks ago and asked ATCII, dude asked me if it was an AF1 or AM and then said that he had no idea what theywere and that it was his first day....

 

[egamirror]

i get scolded at my job for exerting my knowledge too much on customers. some people know and want to test you, but most people just want to be treated wellwith good customer service (i.e. letting THE CUSTOMER choose what they want, people don't want to feel pressured and overwhelmed into buying a shoe simplyfor the name).

if you work at a premium shoe boutique, then lucky you. you can talk all kinds of smack about shoes all day and most of the people will follow and complimentyour conversation. someone came and asked my manager if we had a Quickstrike account and my manager calls me on my off day to explain to him what that is andwhy the guy is an idiot for asking if DTLR had one. my MANAGER keeps the retro cards behind the counter so i can show him which Jordans are supposed to becoming out so he can advertise and give the customers a knowledgable appeal. the point of this rant is, people just don't know, and a lot of them don'tcare. because you DO know, good for you. i have no problem with Kidds & Techs, etc. going on clearance because hype enthusiasts aren't buying purely onthe collectible factor. it makes things cheaper for those who do care.

i think i lost my point midway through typing this lol

 

[nike13]

how did this reach 5 pages? i always laugh at people who get mad cuz people dont know what kind of shoes they are talking about. employees at most shoe placesare just there to do a job, not be the nike wikipedia. many times i have been in stores and the employees ask me what kind of shoes i got on, and i always tellthem these are ___ and i got them at _____. this happens a lot when i wear nike sb shoes and not dunk sbs.

 

[thacamel]

I wasn't gonna reply here, but I am gonna go ahead. Now, first off, I work for Footlocker, and have for nearly 10 years. My problem is extremely lazyemployees. Like today, I drove to a bigger city about 2.5 hours away, to go shoe shopping, for employee appreciation. I went into a Champs, and saw a pair ofAir Jordan Retro III Flip in a Youth sz 4.5. I was gonna get them for my son. I asked the guy to check the price for me, and he looks in the shoe at the SKUand says, "they are $99.99." I ask him if he could check the price, because they were either $39.99 or $49.99 3 days ago, and again he says no, theyare $99.99. I asked him, then how come the Champs I work at has them for $49.99, and he replies with, "maybe they are just that price at your store."So he goes and asks the manager, and comes back and says, "the manager told me they are $99.99", and I am like can't you just go scan them andcheck for me please, and he says, "I don't have to, I already know they are $99.99 and the manager confirmed it." I just got extremely pissed offand went home.

 

[typecast3]

MORONSWORKING IN A SNEAKER STORE 04/25/2008 UPDATE: still idiots working in the shoe store. now they are chubby girls standing around and giggling. should theyhave jobs? probably not. please up the wages and hire somebody

 

[ydbounce]

i kinda feel where the topic starter is coming from.
outside of sneakers i'm into games so when i walk into shops like GameStop and the workers don't know much about upcoming releases or games in generalit can be a put off.

with that being said, as i have had experience in similar jobs the idea is to sell a product so most managers don't really press for workers to acquiretoo much knowledge on what they are selling, especially if its a retail job where the lifespan of a hire isn't too long.

 

[kid lebron]

laziness and extreme product pushing gets me extremely pissed off - the only good shoe stores around me who know jack about there products is Sports Authority

 

[rainin3s]

whenever i go to mcd's for some fries i like to discuss the history & significance of potatoes with the crew...

 

[bootleg ed]

Originally Posted by ThaDirtyBurgh

I guess you would have rather had John Q. Sneakerfreak talk about the Barkleys with you. Then, when he goes in the stockroom and realizes you both wear the same size, and there is only one pair left in his size, he decides to tell you that there are none left in your size so he can get his on employee appreciation tomorrow.

ETHER

 

[hustlinflip]

Since when do you have to be knowledgeable of a shoe's origins to be able to sell it to you?

A job is a job, experience & knowledge are a + but not needed.


If you (the customer) like it, you'll buy it.

The only things we, the sales associates, care about are multiples and accessories.