Remember my post about the yellow and maroon Fendi handbags we made usyoso in Rustan’s?
We saw them here, same style but the Fendi boutique in Waikiki didn’t have the same yellow color.
The sales ladies exude the Aloha spirit. They’re courteous, patient, and accommodating. What’s nice about them is they even encourage you to touch the items. They’re not snobbish. They don’t guess whether you will buy or not. They don’t try to calculate how many credit cards you have. Basta they are more than happy to show you their stuff.
The girl insisted on getting this most expensive bag from the display case to show it to us up close. She enthusiastically explained the materials used, etc. Kami naman, ngiti-ngiti lang while listening to her and admiring the bag. She asked me to try it. Ayaw ko nga, madumihan ko pa. I didn’t even touch it. This Fendi formal bag is indeed pretty and cute but the price tag is definitely not cute, it’s US$7,000++ plus 4.712 % sales tax. Hindi masu-sulit. How many times would you be able to use it? Baka 10 times for the next 12 years, only when you’re wearing a gown or attending a formal cocktails event. If you use it naman in most of the events, tsismosa women would say, “yun lang ang bag nya, paulit-ulit lang ng gamit, ayaw bumili ng bago”.
There was a time nauso big bags, palakihan ng tote bags. The fashion trend now is mini and micro bags parang hemline. When I was in my 20s I had a few mini bags pero ngayon, I have plenty of abubot, my stuff won’t fit in this small but expensive bags. $1,000+.
Syempre designers think of ways for women to keep on spending on bags. They have to come up with something new. See through, big, medium size, long straps, short straps, plastic, leather, square, rectangle, etc. Ngayon, paliitan, as small as a wallet or coin purse. I am not inclined to buy. Hindi ako makikiuso. Hindi na bagay sa edad ko.
Ms. Annie, how would you compare customer service in a luxury boutique in HNL vs MNL?
The sales people I’ve so far encountered here in Honolulu are very welcoming and more than willing to explain everything about their merchandise, even insisting on showing the actual item no matter how expensive. Yung iba naka tago pa sa vault kukunin at ilalabas. Nakakahiya eh hindi naman kami bibili, curious lang. They are more enthusiastic. They take their time attending to a client, offering drinks, etc.
Sa atin, the sales people in boutique stores are also nice but more being part of their job. And sometimes, they are calculating. They would look at the customer from head to toe. Every single time I went inside Herve Leger and Gucci in Manila, they lead me to the SALE rack. Ramdam ng vibrations nila na wala akong pera.
I agree with Ma’am Annie, dito sa atin ganun mga sales people, head to toe makapanuri. One time pumasok ako sa store ng medyo mamahaling eye wear, aba talagang ganun makatingin, tapos nung tinanong ko kung magkano yung isang shades ang angas ng sagot Php 5,000.00 with matching irap! O diba sarap tusukin ng mata!
Hahaha, korek anonymous 12:13 parang ayaw magbenta. Pero d lang sa high end shops sila ganyan minsan sa ordinaryong tindahan me mga maldita din. Hehe, just last December namili ko sa Bayo SM Sounthmall, hihingi lang ako ng size, dumungaw ako sa fitting room, wala bingi bingihan si ate. Isa lang ang accomodating, sya tuloy dami ina assist. Buti na lang ang bait nun, namakyaw ako. Once a year lang ako umuwi sa tin nilubos ko na. Pero minsan d ko maisip bat minsan me nag mamaldita.
I’m not sure if this holds true in other states, but in HNL, the customer service is patterned after the Japanese style. Associates are trained to genuinely provide the ultimate luxury experience to anyone who walks in the boutique. There are studies kasi na the more engaging you are, the more likely a customer will buy something (non buying to buying=more revenue).
Back home, feeling ko basta maganda/guwapo, pasok na. Sigh.