not being taken seriously?

[teokiatuan]

greetings.


yesterday i was at the bras basah-peninsula ring of guitar shops, and i tried equipment at 3 shops, one at penin and two at bras.

i tried some expensive models(>3.5k) and as i was testing them, i had the strong feeling that i was not taken seriously because of my age.i'm 16, i might not look like i have the cash/ am serious to buy the guitars, but i really am, and i was testing out the neck profiles to see which one suited me best.

as i was testing, all the shops did not let me turn it up to a bedroom volume for even a while. seriously what's the point of testing a guitar if i can't hear it at the volume i play?(in a hdb mind you), and by their body language and tone of voice, PERSONALLY i felt that they wanted me to put the guitar down asap and just get out of their store.

i can understand where the attitude is coming from, heck maybe even i might think that way if i were them, but customers should not be judged on age/image imo.


your views?
any of you(especially us younger ones) have gotten this kind of experience before?

thanks for reading.

 

[mrekoj]

eh....
welcome to singapore

 

[ahkiatt]

My tip to you. Dress rich. A long sleeve shirt and dress pants never killed anyone. And yeah, welcome to Singapore.

 

[Girlpants]

Yeah I get what you mean.
There are shops, not only guitar shops, that will not entertain you if you don't look rich.
I've seen and been thru alot.

I mean you don't have to dress rich to prove that you can afford the things from the shop.

WTH

 

[North]

Hmm, there're 2 solutions to this
1.Bring your parents along..
2.Dress rich..
3.Talk rich.. <--The third only applies to ppl who can do it..

Payback time>>Play until you think you burn some frets then never buy LoL

 

[GlypH]

welcome to singapore .son!

 

[teokiatuan]

thanks for the warm welcomes lol.

yeah well, i don't spend much money on clothes, so i don't look rich at all lol. bummer.

anyone have any spare 'rich' clothes to donate?

 

[velvetrevolver]

it happens to most of us all the time. recently i had that happen to me as well, when testing out an expensive pedal. cos i dun dress like a rich person u see. so, when i took out my american express card to pay for that pedal, he glanced at me like as though in disbelief that i got an amex card. either that or he musta thought it was some stolen card. -_-
so i looked back him and said "yes?" in my most sarcastic manner. after which i felt on top of the world. haha. due to etiquette reasons, i am not able to post the shop's name on soft. so, TS, do not let certain shopkeepers make u feel like BS. if they do, look for friendlier alternatives.

 

[superpotato_30]

Relax.. 16 here too

Just go in there with your friends talk alot about guitar stuff. Impress upon them that you're knowledgable not some average joe who buys guitars for their looks alone.

 

[Whitestrat]

your views?
any of you(especially us younger ones) have gotten this kind of experience before?

Bring your mum. They'll take you seriously.

 

[shredrat]

why not just state ur stand in the first place? Then again,they might be thinking u're lying.

 

[Whitestrat]

Just go in there with your friends talk alot about guitar stuff. Impress upon them that you're knowledgable not some average joe who buys guitars for their looks alone.

If you think that works, you're seriously deluded... At the end of the day, these people are looking for 2 things.

1. intent to buy (immediate)
2. potential to buy (future)

If you lack the ability to demonstrat either of these 2, you can forget it. This is not Japan.

 

[sklfc77]

Doesn't change with age guys, happened to my wife and I in a reputable designer outlet...my wife was looking at a rolex and since we were in shorts and t shirts the sales staff gave a face which changed after 15 mins when it was obvious my wife could afford the price tag. But we told her we were going to a different shop that doesn't give menopause face.

If you're sure of which guitar, what I would do is tell the sales staff to get the manager and ask for a different staff to serve you when making the sale...black face will get the message.

Anyway, got all sorts of idiots selling high end stuff don't let them faze you.

 

[theunknown]

hehe 2 weeks ago, liberator and i went to a certain shop in either penin or bras basah. i was looking a the epiphone futura prophecy. but there was only the TOM bridge version. i wanted to try the floyd version. so i asked one of the sales assistant "may i try the floyd rose version?" PAWNZ *looks in deep thoughts* "is that a colour?". hehehe.

talking alot of jargons doesnt really help. me and group of friends(softies) heh go to bras basah nearly every week. talk alot but yeah same treatment. maybe the sales people know us already.

but there's a sales assistant in Blackwood. very nice guy. was just touching the necks of guitars and he offered me to test the Gibson i was touching... i was like intimidated(hey i dont touch Gibbys always ya know!) but yeah he was very nice and doesnt show any doubts on me.

 

[rottenramone]

..

so you're wearing berms and a tee shirt.

1) speak in american accent
2) speak queen's english
3) speak in jakartan accent and call yourself cukong tommy
4) cross the road to raffles hotel and grab an angmoh tourist to call your name from outside the shop
5) what, you never bro bro brader with the sales staff?
6) wear a pork pie hat
7) queue up now for the yr end sale
8) bring along a damn hot chick

 

[mus]

Bring your parents. You will be treated better than what you stated.

Personally, I had the same experience as you before. Ignore it and don't let it put you down.

 

[velvetrevolver]

bro theunknown.... floyd rose is a colour!!! omg! thats freakin funny man! that made my day for sure! hahaha...

 

[superpotato_30]

If you think that works, you're seriously deluded... At the end of the day, these people are looking for 2 things.

1. intent to buy (immediate)
2. potential to buy (future)

If you lack the ability to demonstrat either of these 2, you can forget it. This is not Japan.

Point noted Somehow works for me though hahas.. Its quite individualistic to me..

 

[cereal]

Walked into a high-end boutique store intending to buy a present for my gf. Picked out a nice handbag, asked the saleslady about the price.

She said "$800" in the most sacarstic tone ever, i looked at her and panned "So cheap? I think buy (brand X) better" and promptly walked out the store.

If they are not interested in selling, i won't be interested in buying. Sure i may only be one person and it may/may not affect their business but at the end of the day its my money after all. What for i "pekchek" when forking out my wallet.

Sometimes people rather pay more for service, me i rather go Shop A which sells more ex but good customer service than which sells cheap but bad customer sevice.

But funnily enuf, some shops in Singapore sell ex and poor customer service...haha.

 

[Hydrofly]

I try not to shop in Singapore, unless if it's at ebenex and blackwood.