Some customers can be really rude, in the last few weeks three have stood out for me. I actually expected, working in a store near a university and college etc that it'd be students who've had a few drinks that'd be the problem but it's actually the older people.
Firstly one old guy was shouting at me about a sell by date, asking me if it meant he had to eat the whole thing by that night, he didn't listen to me saying the best before date was a day or two later and by the end I just agreed with him as it seemed he wouldn't leave me alone if I wouldn't give him the answer he wanted.
Today I was helping a girl and her mates (who were students and all very polite) find some wine, which I actually know nothing about as it's not my department and I am not a wine drinker so my knowledge on wine isn't brilliant. So then an older woman begins asking me where organic wine is but she was speaking at me when I was talking to the girls and didn't speak very clearly so I just mentioned I was helping them. When I couldn't find the wine for them I said I'd ask someone who did but then the other lady begins saying I can show her where her's is first. Obviously only hearing her say organic as she didn't speak clearly and I was talking to the girls when she asked I just assumed she said bread as I didn't even know organic wine existed. So I showed her then she starts moaning and getting sarcastic saying she wanted wine not bread, I apologised and brought her back to the wine and she begins asking me if I'm at uni, so then I tell her I've graduated and she sarcastically says "wow", then she started saying I didn't know where it was so I said I'd find out for her. Anyway I found the girls' wine and found out the older woman's organic wine isn't stocked but she had already gone off which I thought was rude as I'd told her I'd find out for her and she didn't say it was okay or to leave it, so I did check but when I got back she had just impatiently gone off knowing I was coming back to let her know about her organic wine.
Lastly, an old man who a lot of people working in our store know is rude, from their past experiences with him, followed me around as I was reducing stuff and then told me, didn't ask me, he actually told me, to reduce bread, I told him I'm not allowed to so he said no one would know. I told him it goes through a computer system so it could be seen on there, then he told me to take my glasses off and he'd punch me in the face!
The worst thing is when these things happen I take the stance that I just have to keep being polite to these people but it's ridiculous how they speak to some of the staff. A few of the people there can't believe that I didn't say anything back to the guy who threatened me and I know a few would have actually spoke back at all of those three people. I find it ironic that older people go on about how rude today's youth is but from my experience in helping customers I've had absolutely no problem with any young people, not even teenagers or school kids or little kids who run around and make noise, it's the old people who I find are rude.