Bad Beer-Shop Behavior

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by Mgm54, Jan 25, 2013.

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  1. hokiechef

    hokiechef Initiate (0) Feb 23, 2009 South Carolina

    If you're talking about the store I was at it was more like one minute!
     
  2. BierGartenok

    BierGartenok Initiate (0) Apr 4, 2009 Oklahoma

    Because if a store says they will do it, they should do it. Sucks that stores are ran this way, my apologies to OP, hope you have better luck next time.
     
  3. vader06

    vader06 Initiate (0) Jan 13, 2011 Michigan

    I was just in a store here in Grand Rapids Michigan just a couple of days ago and they had at least 5 or 6 case just sitting in front of there checkout counter.
     
  4. RichardMNixon

    RichardMNixon Initiate (0) Jun 24, 2012 Pennsylvania

    And if they say "No, not yet, later this week probably"? How long do you propose I wait before I call them back?

    Not everyone's nearest bottle shop is five minutes away... I'd rather not make a 45 minute round trip because a store might have something.
     
  5. NiceTaps

    NiceTaps Pooh-Bah (2,034) Nov 21, 2011 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Let me get this straight.. you answered his question with a question rather than telling him what was 'in the back', thus putting him on the spot. And he's the 'douce'???? Wow, great service you provide there.:astonished:
     
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  6. PeterJ

    PeterJ Initiate (0) Dec 5, 2012 California

    Best way to get on a store's douche list is to walk in for the first time and just ask "what's in the back?" If its in "the back," it's there for a reason.
     
  7. NiceTaps

    NiceTaps Pooh-Bah (2,034) Nov 21, 2011 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    I disagree. The person asking 'what's in the back?' is the CUSTOMER! And in business, the customer is KING! So the beer is hidden for a reason, is it wrong to ask? It cannot be! I would've given him an answer to hopefully satisfy him. If he comes back with a request for DFH, I take him to the shelf and HELP him. OMG, what a concept. Here's a customer who is inquiring about good beer, and the clerk is pissed off, or worse, condescending. Not in my store, you direspect the KING and you are gone! And I do not care how much the customer knows about beer, he is a potential sales target, the KING.
     
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  8. cjoc83

    cjoc83 Initiate (0) Jul 31, 2010 Pennsylvania

    Totally agree. When I was looking for the 2.15.13 Enjoy By, every store I called was totally straight up with me about the length of the lists and that they would put me on as a courtesy if some people dropped out, but that I was not likely to get any. I eventually found some, but it's definitely important to just be straight up with customers. I think living in the Philly area, which is a huge craft beer city, everyone from bars to distributors have enough beer geeks calling them on the reg to know to just tell it like it is (out of annoyance in lieu of courtesy in some cases maybe, but so be it). As far as the OP goes, the store should have told you how far down on the list you were and if you weren't likely to get any. The fact that they just put him on a list implicates (to me, anyway) that they were getting enough so he could get some. I would be slightly miffed, too (although probably not enough to make a thread about it).
     
  9. Shakory

    Shakory Initiate (0) Jan 10, 2013 Wisconsin

    same here in WI..its amazing
     
  10. COBeerBuff

    COBeerBuff Pundit (868) Jan 4, 2009 Kansas

    I guess I don't understand it either how asking what's if there's anything special that's not on the shelf instantly earns yourself a spot on that list. To Peter's point about it being in the back for a reason, most of my stores put it in the back because they don't want someone walking out with the entire 2 cases worth of a beer, and it's meant more as a measure of controlling the distribution and sale of said beer rather than keeping it for their more loyal customers (read: friends).

    As far as the douche comment, I guess this means I'm on a lot of douche lists in areas that I travel to for business. I'm not a local and I don't pretend to have the inside knowledge of what's new and not on shelves, so I always to ask the question. Occasionally, I get the look from less beer-advocate purveyors that says "You're not a local and you're not getting any of my rare beer", but sometimes I'll get someone who understands that I'm going to buy a lot of good beer, and shares some of the local rarities that I wasn't aware of when I walked in to their shop.

    Case in point, I spent a good part of my evening at a shop in Hickory, NC and got to talking to one of the managers about beer and where I was from and all that led to me asking about what rarer stuff she had that wasn't in the coolers. Well, turns out I was there the week before the Event Horizon release. She knew I was flying out Thursday, and made me promise not to tell anyone until after Saturday (the actual release date) that I got two bottles, which instantly made that shop one of my go-to places when I'm on the road, and a place that I will hype to everyone in my beer circles. That's both the definition of good customer service as well as great beer advocacy!
     
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  11. thecommish101831

    thecommish101831 Initiate (0) Jun 29, 2010 District of Columbia
    Deactivated

    I keep stuff in the back for a reason.

    If you're asking for a particular item, say, Laguintas Sucks, I'll give you a yes or no.

    If you're asking me for everything allocated I might or might not have in the back, no, sorry, all sold out.

    I have better things to do than ramble on about 25 items I have in the back that are hidden for a reason. If you want something, ask for it. If you want everything, don't expect to get it at my store.
     
  12. hokiechef

    hokiechef Initiate (0) Feb 23, 2009 South Carolina

    Almost right, the regular customer is king, the folks that routinely support your business every day not just when something special comes out. For shelf beers there is so much competition that you need to have some way of rewarding those loyal customers. Not hard to get on "the super secret VIP list". Shop regularly, be nice to the employees and you are in!
     
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  13. Andygirl

    Andygirl Initiate (0) Jan 3, 2013 Michigan

    My beer store guy not only calls me, he texts me what's in if I don't answer. When I get there he rattles off everything they got that day (in the back), and asks me if I want any of it. I am telling him how great he is next time I go in, because he seems to be the exception. Kudos to you beer store guys that make your customers feel special.
     
  14. NiceTaps

    NiceTaps Pooh-Bah (2,034) Nov 21, 2011 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    It does not matter to me whether or not the shop wants to part with its stash. What matters is HOW the store chooses to treat the customer. Hide the beer, keep it for the VIPs, that's Ok, just be nice about it! Who knows what the 'douche' expected, he never had his question answered because thecommish101 showed arrogance. And his latest post deepens the hole that he's digging. I don't need to be right or almost right. But there are so many scenarios that could've played so well compared to what happened. Hey, it's a business. Beer just happens to be the article for sale.
    EDIT: There was no mention that the 'douce' wasn't nice, by the way, the clerk simply could not be bothered. The guy's a friggin' beer store clerk for God's sake. Where are the business basics in his approach?
     
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  15. hokiechef

    hokiechef Initiate (0) Feb 23, 2009 South Carolina

    Don't see how you would be on a lot of douche lists based on your last paragraph. You found a local store, showed interest in their products / beer in general. Spent the time developing a connection to the store manager and respect for what they were advocating. She recognized this and rewarded a customer who she realized would appreciate the gesture. Not only did she gain a semi-regular customer she also has someone singing praises for their shop.

    The douche is the hoarder who comes in only on special release days and demands to know what you have in the back.

    Oh and the fastest way to get off the list is to abuse it or feel entitled that you will get everything released. A lot of time their isn't enough to go around, even working at one of the better beer stores in my area doesn't mean I will get everything, in fact I miss out of a good deal of releases when its too small an allocation. Or I have to go to another store and find it.
     
  16. PeterJ

    PeterJ Initiate (0) Dec 5, 2012 California

    It's wrong to just stroll into a beer shop for the first time and make the first words out of your mouth be "what's in the back?" IMO. There is no satisfying answer short of rattling off the name of 10+ things you have back there and then selling him whatever he asks for.

    In your case, the customer would ask you "what's in the back?" You would respond with a question too i.e. "what are you looking for?" Then when he says Dogfish you walk him over to the shelf. That's not the back, and that's not what he asked. Normally you would think you were helping him, but in his eyes you just didn't tell him anything about your secret stash in the back. I agree that everyone at a beer shop and bar should always be nice to customers; never condecending and pissed off. And of course it has nothing to do with a customers knowledge. Every customer should be treated with respect, even if they are considered a douche.
     
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  17. thecommish101831

    thecommish101831 Initiate (0) Jun 29, 2010 District of Columbia
    Deactivated

    I guess my "VIP" customers are smarter than your customers.

    They know what's coming out when, what days trucks arrive at what stores, etc.

    I've been around long enough to know who's a regular customer and who's out cold calling and hoarding from store to store. That's why good stuff stays in the back on a "Ask for it and you might get your allotted one" basis.

    I get something in, I pull off 1 each for myself, interested employees, and VIPs, and the rest go up for grabs if people specifically ask for it. I'm not saving you one over the phone, and I'm not going to tell you everything that's in the back. Not too hard.
     
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  18. NiceTaps

    NiceTaps Pooh-Bah (2,034) Nov 21, 2011 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    I absolutely would NOT reply to his question with a question. You misunderstood my reply, perhaps. I would tell him something, even if it had to be a white lie. If I have a case of Hopslam in the back and it's spoken for, I tell him I have nothing...that's an answer, not a question. Then we go from there. Or, maybe there's something else in the back besides the hot stuff. The shops that I support encourage their customers to inquire...'cause ya never know.
    Edit: Where does it say that the customer "strolled in for the first time"? And if he did, wouldn't some courtesy and service go a long way towards seeing him come back again? There is no justifiction for poor treatment, no matter how 'good' the customer is. Come On!

    It does not cost anything to be nice! And all of us beer 'know-it-alls' had to start somewhere.
     
  19. BierGartenok

    BierGartenok Initiate (0) Apr 4, 2009 Oklahoma

    This^^
     
  20. BierGartenok

    BierGartenok Initiate (0) Apr 4, 2009 Oklahoma

    Basically, it's non of his business what's "In the Back" or "Under the counter."
     
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