Mall employee classifies shoppers...and shoplifters

Inmy experience asamall employee for afemale clothing store I've come torealize that there arefive very specific typesofshoppers. Each typeisprobablyworse than. the next, and all of them have better things to do with their lives than shop.

The firsttypeofcustomer isjustyour averageJane Doe. They don’t always know exactlywhat they’relooking for,but theysurehope theycanfinditinyour store.Sometimes they’relooking foragiftfor.afriend, and sometimes theyjustwant something new andinterestingtowear.These customers are usually docile and easy to deal with. They just need someone to ring them up and to tell them thanks, and have anice day.

In case you forgot who Iam let me refresh your memory. Last spring, afellow staffreporter and decided to tryoutforcheerleading. We were cutious to see what cheerleading was about. Well after aweek ofpractices, two auditions, and a lot of anxiety, I made theJunior Varsity squad and began anew journey as aMillard South cheerleader.

Practices started right after audi-tions. Allnew members had togo for aweek to learn the spirit cheers. All practicesafterthatwerewitheveryone. During thesummer we would practice three days aweek at 7 am. At those practiceswewould condition and then work on the cheer we would betaking tocamp.

Camp was held July 15-18 at theUniversity of Nebraska at Kearney. I had twogoalsgoingintocamp: become abetter cheerleader and get to know my teammates. Each day was filled with learning new cheers, performing thosecheersinfrontofjudges,andthen being awarded forthoseperformances. Nighttime was forrelating and spendingtimewithyourfellowcheerleaders. Even though itwasa lotofhard work and very tiring, Ihad agreat time at camp. It was where I felt likeIhad truly become a cheerleader. The beginning of school meant the beginning of cheering at athletic events. The JV squad was responsiblefor cheering at home JV and reserve football, and JV volleyball games. W/e also cheered during the second half of home varsity football games. At JV and reserve games, not many student fans showed up, which meant no one cheered with us. In comparison, at varsity games, the stands were filled with students who were always excited and willing to cheer with us: And trust me, there is no greater thrill than cheering in front of a crowd of enthusiastic football fans. Another responsibility of all cheerleaders is to cheer at pep rallies. At the first pep rally in fall, all did was cheer at the beginning and the end. At the winter pep rally, the JV squad also performed the cheer we took to camp. I have loved cheering in front of my - classmates; love to look into the crowd andfindmy friendssmilingback atme.

The second type ofshopper that Iencounter isthe “dawdle allday” shopper. These people come tothemall a lot,probablyaboutthreeorfourdayseachweek.Thiswould be good for business, except for the fact that they never reallybuy anything.They mostlyjustclogthefittingrooms and asklotsofpointless questions. Ithink thatiftheyhad abetterhobby, likeicefishingorballetdancing, theywould spend considerably lesstime shopping.

The third kindof shopper iswhat Iwould like to call the “grab and go” customer. They are all in ahurry. Most of the time they’re late for a party, a wedding, or an important meeting. They'llgallop around thestorecollecting items in their size and run to the check out counter without bothering to tryanything on. It’sbest tojust ring these customers up asquickly aspossible and not ask any questions. They're likely to explode if you waste any of theirvaluable time.Jthink theirbad attitudeshave alotto dowith thestresstheyput themselves under byalways doing things lastminute.

The fourth type ofcustomer willbereferred toas thepre-teen. These kids range inage from 10 to 12.They travel in packs and are armed with their parent’s cash. They’re typically loud and giggly. Most ofthe time, Ifind myself selling them lowpriced items and cleaning up their terriblefittingroom messes. They justlove totryonnearly everything inthe entire store.

The lastand final type istheshoplifter. Shoplifters won't make eyecontact withyou ifthey can avoid it.They don’t want your help or advice. They don’t even want to pay foranything. You can usually spot ashoplifter by their odd behavior. They spend alotof time watching you and hiding behind racks. They leave behind empty hangers in their dressing room, and sometimes they'll even run asfast aspossible out ofthestore.Mall securityisabighelpwhen it comes to dealing with these people. Even with all the help, though, shoplifters stillcause many problems, such as anxiety, bad inventory, and alotofextra paperwork.

Each and every customer is a special case, but the onethingthat theyallhaveincommonisthattheyall feel that they are the most important shopper inthe store. Everyonewants theemployees tohelpthem, andtohelp them immediately, well,withtheexceptionoftheshoplifter.Next time you venture out tothemall, remember that there are alltypes ofcustomers there, and that you arenot the only shopper in the building. Itmay help you to become more kind andcourteous tomallemployees, andbelievemewhenIsay that we'll takeallthekindness we can get.

So Common

Sense Staff:

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As of nowI have about a month left ofcheering atbasketball games. I cheer at boys and girls JV and reserve games. After that Iwillbe done with cheering at games, for my junior year atleast. Incaseyou were wondering, I am planning on trying out again this year. Do have agood shot ofmaking it?Isurehope so.Incheerleading have found an exciting activity that Ihave come tolove. Omaha, Nebraska, 68137. tent. To place an ad, call895-8363. bepublished.

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