Post #6 June 19, 2019

Walkie-Talkie strapped on and here we go…I’m walkin’ and talkin’ out onto the retail floor.

“H2 (that’s a fancy boss name) this is Theresa checking in – where would you like me tonight?”

Theresa, you’ll be playing hide and seek today.

That’s what I heard but not what the H2 really said. He really said I’ll be picking BOPUS orders during my shift.  Retail lingo breakdown – BOPUS…Buy Online Pick Up at Store.

Which for retail employees filling orders is really exactly like hide and seek on most days.  

Think about the last time you picked up an item put it in your cart and then decided you didn’t want it. Did you make the trip back to the department you got it from, or did you take it out of your cart and put it on an unrelated shelf in another department?

Yep, some customers do that. Confession time – it was MO before working in retail.

Let’s move on and head back to the office and grab a Bluebird. A Bluebird…to help me find what items I need to pick and pack. This Bluebird is black, doesn’t fly, is kinda heavy and it’s a piece of technology so it has a mind of its own, but without it, BOPUS orders do not get filled.

First order notification is a pair of socks. Really? ONE pair of socks and they are not even knee socks, or even crew socks, or even ankle socks…they are footies.

My first thought – Come on, who does that? You can grab a pair of these at a grocery store, a pharmacy, or even some gas stations. I could give you the first and last name of this ‘special customer’ but then I would lose my high power position.

My search begins. Let’s look at the details on my Bluebird  – UGG! There is only one pair left in stock and of course, they are not located where they are supposed to be. Plenty of other colors but not, ‘You’ll Never Find Me Yellow’

I really don’t even remember the exact color name but those little suckers are nowhere to be found.

So, let’s put them in TROUBLE.  Retail lingo breakdown – TROUBLE…it means some other employee gives it a shot and looks for the missing product with a new set of eyes. I make the announcement over the walkie that I’m putting the footies in trouble. Could someone else take a look?

What I really want to say – Good Luck Sucker, It’s a Lie. NOT in this store.

But in my most professional retail worker voice – even with my fellow employees – I say, thank you for taking a look.

Five minutes later everyone hears,  “I found them, Theresa. The You’ll Never Find Me Yellow footies you were looking for.” At that point, I’m like – Get Out of Town! Where? I went through every pair of socks in intimates.

They were stuffed between a box of Green Mountain Decaf and Caribou Regular.

Makes sense – if you have to make a choice you definitely grab coffee before socks.

I’ll end with I’m happy Susie Johnson will get her footies. Really hope I’ll be behind customer service to meet her when she picks them up.

Today’s post has kind of been a retail lingo lesson. Keep following along – you’ll be caught up and ready to rock retail if you’re looking for a holiday gig.

Thank you so much for reading. (especially since you made it all the way down here to the end) Please subscribe, share and most importantly leave a comment or feedback if you enjoyed this post.

Theresa Dodge Multi-Tasker Extraordinaire