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GNC Complaint - Inexperienced Sales Staff - Health related supplements
Health related supplements - Complaint
SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA -- Here is a copy of the letter I sent to GNC:
GNC, 3/9/2005
I am writing in regards to a horrendous experience I had at 2 of your Santa Rosa (CA.) stores today. I went to the Santa Rosa Plaza (Mall) store to buy a small container of protein powder for a client. Upon checkout the cashier, a very young guy, tried to up sell me to a larger size. I said no thank you. Then he tried to sell me a multi vitamin. I said no, I really need to pay for this and be on my way. He continued to try and sell me just about everything on the counter at random until it became a game for him. I could not pay, he would not let me. And all the while he kept looking up front to see if his co worker was watching or listening. So, I left, angry, with out buying anything. On the way out of the store, I passed the co worker and asked who the manager was. He said he was the manager. I told him I consider the cashiers actions harassment.
THEN, I went to the Codingtown GNC in Santa Rosa. As I walked in there was another very young guy with his back towards me. He did not know I was there. He was on the phone with what obviously seemed to be the Plaza Store, telling them “well, if he comes in I’ll take care of it and let you know”. He got off the phone and I told him what I was looking for. He proceeded with the same harassment. Instead of showing me the product, he tried selling me something else.He took a very defensive posture towards me. I briefly told him what had just happened. He said it was their job to sell. I told him that is not sales, that is harassment when you don’t let the customer leave or talk. He then said, and I quote “whether you like it or not, I will be doing the same thing to you here”. I said I was leaving, and he said “good”. I told him I would be contacting GNC’s offices about this. He said “fine”.
Now, I am a mature man, and am not off the streets, and do not display a temper or rudeness. I have am a part time fitness trainer, and manage the hospitality division for a large winery full time. I have never, and I say NEVER, seen such immature and horrible customer service. If any of my staff every treated a customer in such a way it would be their very last second employed by us. And I should know as sales is my job.
GNC, 3/9/2005
I am writing in regards to a horrendous experience I had at 2 of your Santa Rosa (CA.) stores today. I went to the Santa Rosa Plaza (Mall) store to buy a small container of protein powder for a client. Upon checkout the cashier, a very young guy, tried to up sell me to a larger size. I said no thank you. Then he tried to sell me a multi vitamin. I said no, I really need to pay for this and be on my way. He continued to try and sell me just about everything on the counter at random until it became a game for him. I could not pay, he would not let me. And all the while he kept looking up front to see if his co worker was watching or listening. So, I left, angry, with out buying anything. On the way out of the store, I passed the co worker and asked who the manager was. He said he was the manager. I told him I consider the cashiers actions harassment.
THEN, I went to the Codingtown GNC in Santa Rosa. As I walked in there was another very young guy with his back towards me. He did not know I was there. He was on the phone with what obviously seemed to be the Plaza Store, telling them “well, if he comes in I’ll take care of it and let you know”. He got off the phone and I told him what I was looking for. He proceeded with the same harassment. Instead of showing me the product, he tried selling me something else.He took a very defensive posture towards me. I briefly told him what had just happened. He said it was their job to sell. I told him that is not sales, that is harassment when you don’t let the customer leave or talk. He then said, and I quote “whether you like it or not, I will be doing the same thing to you here”. I said I was leaving, and he said “good”. I told him I would be contacting GNC’s offices about this. He said “fine”.
Now, I am a mature man, and am not off the streets, and do not display a temper or rudeness. I have am a part time fitness trainer, and manage the hospitality division for a large winery full time. I have never, and I say NEVER, seen such immature and horrible customer service. If any of my staff every treated a customer in such a way it would be their very last second employed by us. And I should know as sales is my job.
Comments:
Posted by AZJEM on 2005-03-22:
Sounds like you had your fill of punks. I get the very same treatment at the Family Christian Book Store. They always try to get you to buy their "specials" and when you don't, they cop and attitude. I usually make my purchases off the internet with an alternate company. Hope you can find what you need elsewhere.
Posted by Neillopez on 2008-01-27:
They cop an attitude because they are pressured into it by their superiors. I know very well. I used to be an Employee. Before we criticize the actions of the employees, we need to take a close look at their immediate upper management. They will allow it to go on as long as "Numbers" are produced, with the store looking like a "model store" and the paperwork is in order. The company needs to take a very close look at their regional managers first, who seem to advocate this.
Posted by shayen on 2008-02-21:
I was a GNC manager in the early 90's. Most of the stores are franchise owned.
The reason you may have been given pressure to buy a specific item is because certain GNC products carry a commission to the employee. For example, if you walked in and said "I need a good multi vitamin", ofcourse the employee is going to show you the multi-vitamin that offers them anywhere from .25 cents up to $10 commission. Taht is the way it worked when I was there, back in the day. I've no idea how it works now.
The reason you may have been given pressure to buy a specific item is because certain GNC products carry a commission to the employee. For example, if you walked in and said "I need a good multi vitamin", ofcourse the employee is going to show you the multi-vitamin that offers them anywhere from .25 cents up to $10 commission. Taht is the way it worked when I was there, back in the day. I've no idea how it works now.
Posted by rafi on 2010-01-22:
There are no commissions on the multi's. Gnc is a vitamin store, so they are expected of selling multivitamins.
Posted by I Like Honesty on 2010-02-11:
"Selling up" is a common, but repellant, sales tactic pushed by store managers on their young, minimum-wage mall employees as the only way for them to make any sort of commission on top of their lousy wages. There are probably daily quotas to fill, and ia a manager observes a clerk complete a transaction without making attempts to upsell, the employee will be dinged. Where I worked, we decided to abandon individual employee commissions in lieu of group incentives, i.e., setting a daily sales goal and trying to meet it. If we did, the whole team was rewarded. Attitudes improved, and sales clerks got out on the floor to help customers with products, make honest suggestions (NOT based on individual incentive programs) and really help the guests find what they were looking for, and maybe just a little more. It worked well.
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