Customer Service in London MAC stores

[QueenEmB]

I love the counter in Harvey Nichols - they sell palettes and other pro items. V friendly too.

I do love my local counter in Bristol HoF though - the girls are super friendly and I'm practically a regular now haha!

[J90]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tigerli17

I didn't even know we could ask for samples in London...I might have to try that and ask for some foundation samples...I'm crap at choosing foundation. Thats mainly what I went in there for last time on my lunch hour and I couldn't grab anyone at all...Gonna be brave and speak up next time :P

o you should definitely ask for samples! Definitely walk in and talk confidently, at the end of the day we are there to make purchases and keep the till ringing, and on more than one occasion I have been tempted to leave my basket and walk out because of their blatant attitudes but Ive realised if I speak up a bit and dont give them a chance to act all bitchy then its ok. Maybe a couple of us should get together and go for the next collection thats coming out... that would be a laugh! x

[DirtyPlum]

I have had the chance to meet a few of the MAs from Selfridges London on training days and spoken to them about the customer service and how it is for them on the counter.

They all seem to say the same thing that they are unbelievably busy and they now have a queuing system (which is the best way to get served) as once a MA has finished with their customer he/she must go back to the counter and serve the next person in line.

They also mentioned some pretty nasty customers they get so i can empathise with them in some way cos they have a vast variety of customers and are swamped with all sorts of queries and gripes.

Its a shame that some of us have had bad experiences but we're all human at the end of the day and all have crappy days... the MAs are on their feet all day, running around, trying stuff out and having to clean their brushes etc - its hard work (I work at a pretty small counter and we are crazy busy so Selfridges must be manic) .......
so I guess we can either be more patient with the MAs and if we are experiencing some seriously mean cow then we should speak up then and there.

I made a visit to Self.London the other week after boycotting it for ages lol and to be honest was happy with the service and hope we can all give them another chance. They are the number one store in the WORLD - there has to be some reason for that!

[JesseVanity]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DirtyPlum

They are the number one store in the WORLD - there has to be some reason for that!

Are they?

[MsCocoa]

If Selfridges is the no.1 store in the world then they have to have that title due to have everything under one roof, I know the MA's are only human but that counter is notorious for bad service; I will say that they are nice to once you've been served or if you just ask for what you want, but you can forget being greeted as they walk past you or even stand next to you for 5 mins.

[DirtyPlum]

[quote=MsCocoa;1089436]If Selfridges is the no.1 store in the world then they have to have that title due to have everything under one roof

I'm not sure of the exact reason for them being number one in the world but its something to do with sales (dont quote me on this) and therefore due to how busy they are and how much they sell, they pick seriously talented MUAs - yeah I guess you could argue that they are so busy cos they have everything under their roof but then so do Harvey Nix and Harrods...

I would suggest for anyone who has a serious gripe with them to contact the counter manager and express their concerns... lets look at solutions to the problem?

[amber_j]

Just a quick post...

I was in Canterbury today and popped into Fenwicks to see what the MAC counter was like. Even though it was small, it was well stocked, clean and tidy. Major bonus points go to the MA I dealt with. Not only did she approach me to say hello and ask if I wanted any help (I'm still scarred by my Selfridge's experiences), she also seemed genuinely interested in MAC products and excited about Cult of Cherry!

Lately at the Covent Garden store I've tended to come across MAs who don't seem that interested in MAC and don't know what collection is coming out next (or don't really seem to care). I know everyone has a bad day occasionally. I used to work in retail and some days really do suck. But if you have a nice customer who's obviously excited about their purchase, would it hurt to smile and be a bit more chipper? I'm seriously considering going to Canterbury to do my CoC haul. This is probably my new favourite UK MAC counter.

I'm off to the Portsmouth CCO in a couple of weeks. Will let you know if I spot any goodies...

[vocaltest]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amber_j

Just a quick post...

I was in Canterbury today and popped into Fenwicks to see what the MAC counter was like. Even though it was small, it was well stocked, clean and tidy. Major bonus points go to the MA I dealt with. Not only did she approach me to say hello and ask if I wanted any help (I'm still scarred by my Selfridge's experiences), she also seemed genuinely interested in MAC products and excited about Cult of Cherry!

Lately at the Covent Garden store I've tended to come across MAs who don't seem that interested in MAC and don't know what collection is coming out next (or don't really seem to care). I know everyone has a bad day occasionally. I used to work in retail and some days really do suck. But if you have a nice customer who's obviously excited about their purchase, would it hurt to smile and be a bit more chipper? I'm seriously considering going to Canterbury to do my CoC haul. This is probably my new favourite UK MAC counter.

I'm off to the Portsmouth CCO in a couple of weeks. Will let you know if I spot any goodies...

Wow, you had good service at Canterbury? Thats my 'local' counter, well my nearest one (live near Ashford, i'm at uni in Canterbury), and I try to avoid it like the plague! There is only one nice MA in there I feel. Every time I go in there (unless its the nice girl), I don't get a hello, I get half arsed help, and just a general 'I don't want to talk to you' attitude. But oh well, at least you had a good experience there!!

I'm also off to Portsmouth CCO soon Going on Friday!!

[QueenEmB]

I've been going to Covent Garden quite a bit recently because I'm working on Shaftesbury Av a couple of times a week and I've been happy with the MAs in there - I tend to try to be quite confident with them about my product and make-up knowledge so they know who they are dealing with haha!

[sinasuse]

wow that bad

Quote:

Originally Posted by trollydolly

im going to london next week and i want to make a visit to a mac counter or store but im not quite sure which one to go to. im going to be in the oxford street area (doing some major shopping!)...il prob end up going to selfridges and getting ignored again

[amber_j]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vocaltest

Wow, you had good service at Canterbury? Thats my 'local' counter, well my nearest one (live near Ashford, i'm at uni in Canterbury), and I try to avoid it like the plague! There is only one nice MA in there I feel. Every time I go in there (unless its the nice girl), I don't get a hello, I get half arsed help, and just a general 'I don't want to talk to you' attitude. But oh well, at least you had a good experience there!!

I'm also off to Portsmouth CCO soon Going on Friday!!

I think we were served by the same girl... Good to know that service is variable there.

[c00ki312]

shock horror! after refusing to spend a penny in mac selfridges london for years and years due to the AWFUL customer service, i finally visited the counter the friday after CoC was released...and the ma's were WONDERFUL! they were busy but not overly busy and as soon as i started browsing 2 ma's asked if i needed help. 2! before it wouldve been a nightmare to even get ones attention but they were so helpful and polite. I think the new layout and queing system contributed to the new service coz if you know what you want, you can just join the paying queue and the ma behind the counter will get your products as theyre on a wall display behind them. they now carry e/s pans and when i realised this, i asked if she could exchange my e/s pots to pans and she was happy to do so, instead of grumping around. so yeh i will contine visiting the counter but only when its less busy.

[NoAddedSugar]

I still get random service at Selfridges Oxford Street. At CoC launch I was approached by a very nice SA and we played with stuff (but I didn't buy because I have a pro card and they don't accept it there). A few days later I was in Selfridges for something else and decided to have another look around before I went over to the ProStore near Carnaby street and had an SA darting around me humphing right and left and straightening the counter I was at. I apolgised a couple of times for being in her way until I realised that actually I'm not the one who should apologise and I walked away.

Granted, I know its not easy to clean a counter with people trying to play with product, but that's what it's there for. She should have kept her annoyance to herself and asked me politely to move if I was in her way. I have loads of stories like that from that counter.

However, when I went to the ProStore there were plenty of SAs on hand and I was helped pretty much immediately and wasn't given any hostility or snottiness that I often see at Selfridges. Generally, I have a better experience at the prostore.

I agree with a previous poster on Harvey Nics knightsbrige, that counter is generally pretty nice and not snotty and they do have pro items. I don't know if they take the card though.

[amber_j]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vocaltest

I'm also off to Portsmouth CCO soon Going on Friday!!

OT (sorry!) - did you see anything nice in Portsmouth? I went last Sunday and picked up a few things (list of products available is in the CCO Sightings thread). Really gutted there wasn't any Port Red in stock

[NatalieMT]

I'd also give a good review of the MAC counter in Harrods, the girls/guys in there who have served me have all be absolutely lovely. Only been a handful of times (I live in Chester not London) but always received top quality customer service and left really happy. I was served quickly, the MAs were all very personable and friendly and gave good recs. etc.

I had one particularly good experience when a lovely girl also called Natalie served me, we chatted, she made some e/s suggestions and showed me what they looked like on me. I bought a couple and also a lipgloss, she saw I was also looking at brushes and gave me this booklet on all of them to take home and view at my own leisure.

[noticethestripe]

I've never been to the Canterbury counter. When I'm at Uni there I still always travel home to go to the Bluewater HoF one! I might be brave and try it sometime though.

I was at the Covent Garden store yesterday to pick up an empty palette and it seemed nice. I was approached pretty much straight away and served quickly. The only issue I had was when I asked for an empty 15 palette and a Newly Minted pan eyeshadow, I was asked if I wanted 15 of them to fill up the palette. My boyfriend nearly had a heart attack and I was just like "Uh.. no that's fine. One will do!"

[vocaltest]

Quote:

Originally Posted by noticethestripe

I've never been to the Canterbury counter. When I'm at Uni there I still always travel home to go to the Bluewater HoF one! I might be brave and try it sometime though.

I was at the Covent Garden store yesterday to pick up an empty palette and it seemed nice. I was approached pretty much straight away and served quickly. The only issue I had was when I asked for an empty 15 palette and a Newly Minted pan eyeshadow, I was asked if I wanted 15 of them to fill up the palette. My boyfriend nearly had a heart attack and I was just like "Uh.. no that's fine. One will do!"

Ooooooh!! You're at uni in Canterbury? Which one?
Haha I've been asked that before if i've wanted to fill up the palette when I bought it, and was like 'errr... no im ok!'

[noticethestripe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vocaltest

Ooooooh!! You're at uni in Canterbury? Which one?

University of Kent Do you go to Uni there too?

[amber_j]

Quote:

Originally Posted by noticethestripe

University of Kent Do you go to Uni there too?

Ooh, UKC is my old uni! It's a a great place. I went back to visit a few weeks ago and wanted to re-enrol.

[vocaltest]

Quote:

Originally Posted by noticethestripe

University of Kent Do you go to Uni there too?

Nope I go to Christchurch, rubbish I know but still! Close enough! How weird lol.

[noticethestripe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vocaltest

How weird

Indeed! May well run into you at the MAC counter at some point! That would be weird.

[abbey_08]

i went to the mac counter in harrods about just over a year ago i think and omg they was so rude, this girl told me that mascara x did not exsist and to go ask harrods customer services about it! the girls at the bluewater kent mac are very friendly but only been there once or twice.

[ClaireAvril]

i am so mad.. when i was in london i didn't go to any of the MAC stores.
hopefully one day i can re-visit!

[glitternmyveins]

I find it a little shocking to think that the London Mac Staff aren't meeting customer expectations, seeing as to work in London stores you need to be the best of the best. I work in a mac store in the UK too and I always try and treat each customer with respect, no matter what age they are or whatever. I'd love to print this out and send it to the store and see what the manager had to say! What a shame that people are feeling that we are too snobby to talk to. I get this a lot, before someone at work has even spoken to me it seems they have made their mind up that I am going to be unfriendly! We have to look and be professional but I always try and be as friendly as possible. What a shame that people feel this way...

[Lynzi-t]

I thought i would throw in my experiences here!

I have been to the soho store a few times and general try to get out of there as quick as possible as i like to spend time to decide on products i want to buy (otherwise i would buy the whole shop) and It seems once i have got a MA's attention and get one thing as i'm abou tto ask for the next they say oh i'll leave this behind the till and run off to someone else...always feel so very rushed in there. Fair play they are usually busy as they are a pro store. but i will only go there if i really need something!

Covent garden i havent been to before but a friend has and after the way they spoke to her i don't plan on going there. she went in to buy a technakohl liner. Once she got the MA's attention and asked for the liner the MA said well this isn't very good but if you want it for the water line you should use this and this liner is also much better. my friend had litterally nipped in there for just this liner as she has used it before and they MA was making it plain difficult for her even after she explained she has used it, didn't want it for her waterline and was in a rush! She also heard 2 MA's taking the P**s out of a customers make up - personally i would hate to think that MA's were taking the mick out of me.

Brent Cross Fenwicks - i used to go there a lot and will pop by from time time if im at the shopping centre but i will never go out of my way to go there or ask for advice. I went in to ask about foundations and concealers when i was fairly new to mac and the MA just told me to pick which one i thought. and when i picked she went yes! but it wasn't in way that she was trying to help - it was like she couldn't be bothered - i ended up spending near on £200 that day and all she seemed to do when i asked for something else was tut!!!!

Selfridges - 2 words! NEVER AGAIN! i went in not even needing advice just to see if 2 things were in stock! the MA simply dumped them in my hand and said take them to the till when your ready!

Now for my fav counter that has hardly had a mention and thats House of Fraser in the City. the MA's know me by name, they take their time to help me out and advise me on new collections and tells me how different products work if im not familiar with them. Take time to have a chat for example, just before summer i popped in to get a mineralize skinfinish duo, I told the MA that i was going on hols in a week so needed it for when i was tanned and she picked out the best colour for me after asking how easily i tanned etc etc. I didn't go in there until Mid September and when i came in she asked me how my holiday was and even remembered where i went! now thats what i call customer service! There is usually one MA that comes straight too me but if she isn't there all of the girls have helped me at some stage and have always been so helpful! try to avoid before 9am, between 12pm - 1pm and 5pm - 6pm! thankfully this fits around my working hours

hope that helps