Don't Judge a Book By Its Cover, Nordstrom

"I should not be judged by the way I look, what that lady doesn't
know, is I make over $100,000 and drive a nice car. I don't have to
brag or flaunt what I have to get a VIP treatment."
If you don't have to brag on flaunt, why did you just do so?

Sigh. Obviously we learned nothing as a society of the lessons in
"Pretty Woman."

To quote my husband: "If I can afford it, I'm dressed for it."

Why didn't you ask for a manager? It wouldn't be making a scene..
unless you started screaming and chewing them out.

And we should all care what you make because????
I drive a very nice car, don't quite make $100,000/yr but think
everyone should be treated with respect no matter who they are.

In all the times I have been in our local Nordstroms no employee has
ever treated me with anything but respect. Even though I go in with my
very old comfy jean and a sweatshirt on occasion...they have always
smiled asked if they could help or said they would be with me as soon
as they are finished with their customer.

You on the other hand were in a hurry, wanted that shirt and asked if
they had it in your size. She probably was waiting on someone else,
but again you were in a hurry and wanted to be waited on. She probably
gave you a "look" because you were impatient and rude.

Sorry...but my experiences at Nordstrom have never been such as you
encountered.

"as if to say, are you serious??? you came in Nordstrom looking like
that?!"

Would she be fair in saying you looked at her "as if to say, hey lady,
you are stupid and I make more money than you, now server me petty
slave?"
You are putting words in her mouth, and I am sure you wouldn't like it
if someone put words in your mouth based on a look.

"She got annoyed and took her sweet little time to walk to the back.
she must of been in there 15 seconds"

So? She told you they didn't have any. What a lot of people don't
realize is the sales associates deal with the stock all day. A lot of
times they know how many they have, where they are, and when they are
out of stock. She told you they were out, and you didn't accept it.
When people ask you a question and you give them an answer, do you
like when they as if you can double check, as if they are too dumb to
really know for sure?
If I ask you about your nice car and ask if it has leather seats, and
you answer "yes", what would your reaction be to, "well, can you go
check and make sure they are leather?" I bet you'd take your sweet
little time too.

I think your message is that you do not appreciate that anyone should
judge another person by the way they look. Her loss.

However, Nordstrom should be told about it. Just say how she was
rhetorical when you asked for help such as when she said, 'if it is
not there then we obviously do not have one' type comment to you. Just
say that "I came directly from the gym as I had very little time..."
"I shop there often." "I would have hoped that I had a person with a
more helpful attitude."

Ok, look....maybe you SMELLED and she did not want that smell getting
into the clothing. I am sorry, how much you make, etc, has nothing to
do with manners. I know people who are on welfare who have better
manners/common sense than to do what you did.

Maybe she was afraid you were going to try it on.

So you want to "feel appreciated", huh? Then I'd try showing a little
respect towards others - - works wonders.

This is funny... What you don't understand is some people get this
type of treatment everyday and it doesn't matter where they go. I've
been overweight and I was treated horribly when I walked into a BCBG
store. Now that I've lost weight I go in stores that sell PLUS size
clothing only I get looked at like I'm making fun of bigger women.
Imagine if you were fat... Imagine if you were too skinny... Black,
Hispanic, Interracial, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, too short, too tall,
to tanned, to attractive, etc... As long as you are breathing people
are going to discriminate against you! Where ever you go... You can
stay away from the public eye, you will still experience
discrimination (some kids will say, that guy is crazy he never comes
out his house. You may not be crazy but they don't know that they are
just going by what they perceive.) There are people who make a lot
more than you do and I assure you they have had the same treatment or
even worse.

She wasn't insulted by your appearance! She was out of the shirt in
your size.

People who exclusively shop Nordstroms, who make $100,000.00 a year
and drive a nice car know it's called "The Nordstrom's Rack", no
wonder the saleslady was insulted! Who ever heard of "The Nordstrom's
Rail"?

Well I don't make 100 000 a year, I do have a nice car, and
although I don't have a nordstrom's card I do shop their regularly. I
have gone in jeans and a sweater, i have gone in business clothes and
I have gone in after the gym and have never had the level of service
you describe.. of course, i also don't have a chip on my shoulder
because i make so much money and deserve VIP treatment. I treat
everyone with respect, when you do that you get it back from
everyone.. get a life, you don't deserve anything, from anyone.. if
you have so much money try doing something good with all your money
and maybe then some good karma will come your way.

You just attempted to brag and flaunt to me and I didn't care. It
doesn't help your argument whatsoever. My geuss is probably nothing
happend, people just weren't as nice as you thoguht they should be.

No company cares how long you've been a member or shopping there. If
you don't like them, just don't go there, easy as that.

I make under $100K per year, drive a 16 year old car and am not a
Nordstrom card holder. When I shop at Nordstrom its usually on
weekends when I'm dressed like a homeless person and I have never,
ever experienced bad service from any of their associates. So
something tells me that perhaps your attitude was not appreciated and
in return you did not receive the VIP treatment you feel you are
entitled to as a superior human being. What goes around comes around
. . . .

Why would you need a gift card if you make so much money? Hmm?
Bragging about how you make over $100,000 and drive a hoity toity car
doesn't put you above others and automatically gives you VIP
treatment.

I have never been a Nordstom cardholder. I am always judged by the
way I look. I am tattooed head to toe. What you Edward A., don't know
is I make under $100,000 and drive a piece of crap for a car. I don't
have to brag or flaunt what I have to get VIP treatment. Giving people
respect usually does it for me.

Thank-you

Maybe you didn't smell so fresh or something. ;-)

Seriously, you don't deserve a gift card. Just move on.

By mentioning your salary, you are suggesting you deserve a level of
respect that is above others based soley on your earnings, not on your
treatment of others or how you conduct your life.

By saying you "deserve" a gift card just tells me that maybe whatever
paranoid delusions you were feeling during your shopping experience
were accurate.

Didn't you just do the same thing, by thinking that she thinks that
you are beneath the store?

come on, you know better. you write well, you are obviously
intelligent enough to write a good letter. you know you aren't
entitled to a gift card, so stop it, it's beneath you.

no one should be judged by the way they look. but everyone, you
included, is guilty of doing this in some fashion. quick--what's your
first impression of a fat person? don't think about it, just first
impression. if you aren't guilty in this area, you are in another.
the truth of the matter is that we all are judged by our looks, our
gender, our color, our perceived financial status and a million other
things. is it fair? no? does knowing this change how people are
hardwired? no. next time go home and get shined up. nordstrom's is
a nice store, i hear. we don't have one. but it wouldn't kill you to
tailor your appearance to where you are going.

and I wouldn't go to Nordstrom dripping sweat and carrying my gym
bag.

Yes, they usually put all their stock out. That's common sense. They
can't sell something if it is sitting around in back.

I have a house with no mortgage, buy my cars and everything else with
cash, quit my job at $100K and retired at 43. But I don't have an
attitude like yours. I don't expect the VIP treatment anywhere. I'm
just a person. I know that if I go somewhere looking like crap, I
won't get the same service as if I dressed appropriately.

well spoken, at least in written form. :) It was far from the worst
we read on here, though.

As for your not needing to flaunt, then why did you try to on here?
My guess is that you make less than $100K, just because you brought it
up in such a context. I do have to ask though, what should it take to
get VIP treatment compared with just good customer service? (Note : I
am not implying that you received quality customer service on this
trip to the store.)

I have to agree with others on here - that how you look is how you get
treated. Fair? Not at all. But it is a fact of life.

Example: If I'm off from work for a few days, I may go a few days
without shaving. When I go to the store and use my credit card for
payment, I almost always get asked for ID when I look that way.
Whereas if I'm clean-shaven, I never get asked for ID. I don't get
offended by it. I just realize that it is a fact of life.

That being said, I don't see how they owe you a gift card. The clerk
could've been nicer, yes. However, this doesn't equate to freebies
for you.

Oh, and mentioning your salary and your "nice car" is a bit
pretentious, don't you think? It certainly has no bearing on your
claim.

I guess no one ever told Sam Walton to dress to shop. I recall once
he came into my store a dept store when making a drop in visit to a
Walmart. Pickup...jeans and an old shirt. Now we all know what he is
worth.

I think to tell someone to dress to go shopping a certain way is
silly. People don't really dress do much anything anymore...Church,
Fly, Dining out, and so forth.

In this busy world with all the competition and lagging revenues
stores need to take those with money / credit to spend any way they
can get you.

Now I don't think they owe you anything. Nordstrom is full of helpful
people and I am sure you could of just shopped for a different clerk!


Making 100k is not a requirement for shopping at Nordstrom so I would
of just left that out of the letter. I have always found clerks to go
out of their way at Nordstrom.

I bet the management would of appreciated a little face to face
feedback of what happened and your expectations that the clerk really
didn;t take time to check stock. Coming from retail...most clerks
probably know from the floor if they have certain stock. I bet the
clerk only went in the stock room to appease you.

I agree that you shouldn't have received poor service because of the
way you were dressed. Everyone should be treated the same no matter
how much money they make, the fact they drive a nice car or how long
they have held a store charge account. However, this letter went to
Nordstrom headquarters and your request for "at least a gift card or
something" cheapens your otherwise valid complaint.

I mean, If I'm going to be shopping at a Nordstroms, you can bet I'll
be wearing whatever "nice" casual outfit I have and taking my designer
bag with me, because I have learned hard lessons in dressing normal
when I go to specific stores...I also remember if I'm going to an
urban clothing type store like Against All odds or Mark Echko(pardon
the spelling) I wear my sean john baby phat or lot 29 hoodie and
nikes or something...It sucks yes, but if you want service now a days,
you have to do what you have to do....

"As if" or actually?

I don't doubt that some people have their noses pointed skyward. But
there's a big difference between assuming that someone is looking down
on you... and then actually telling you that they are. Which, if you
think about it, is what you're doing to her.

No matter, since she didn't uphold Nordstrom customer service
standards. When you asking if they had any in your size, she should
have said "let me check" or "unfortunately, we put out our entire
stock of this item and [looking through the rack] it doesn't appear
that we have any left."

This should have been followed with "can I assist you in finding
another item that might work?"

Oh, and for those that don't live in this area... $100,000 is a very
good, but not outrageously large salary. And the Fashion Center at
Pentagon City (the actual name of the mall, although everyone calls it
"Pentagon City Mall") is a mid-level mall (it wants to claim to be
more upscale, but doesn't quite make it). For real snobbery, Tyson's
Galleria would be a better pick.

No need to mention income, you shouldn't be judged as a shopper
period.

Situations like this always take me back to the movie Pretty woman in
the shopping scene where she comes back loaded with purchased clothing
and gloats while asking if those salesclerks work on commission.

I agree with Redhead. While you shouldn't, it's just a fact of life
that you will get judged by how you look and I can see it especially
at a store like Nordstrom.

It's just a fact of life that the way you look usually dictates the
type of treatment you get when shopping. I learned that long ago,
when I would go in super-comfy clothes that were easy to get in and
out of while trying on clothes. One day when I went shopping after
work, I was dressed in work clothes (professional navy blue suit, the
whole works), and I got treated like royalty compared to how I got
treated on a Saturday while wearing sweat pants.

And if you walked in all sweaty and gross from working out, wearing
your workout gear... yeah, I can see getting treated on the poor side.
I may run to Target and the grocery store after working out, but I'd
not stop at Macy's do to some shopping!

NOt saying it's fair or right or whatever. It's just life.