Being polite to your customers is one thing and letting them take up all your time is another!

This coffee shop employee shares how she struggles with chatty customers that don’t leave!

Check out the full story.

How to politely send a chatty customer on their way?

Hello Reddit, I need a little advice. I work at this small cozy shop where we sell loose-leaf tea and coffee. Our customers usually want to treat themselves or look for a gift, so the vibe is mostly very pleasant.

Since our products are quite niche, we are more than happy to assist. We share our knowledge. Ask the customer to recommend the perfect product.

But this is where it gets weird…

Listen to other people’s experiences etc. Basically, we are just a bunch of tea/coffee geeks enjoying our work, and being friendly and chatty comes with it naturally.

Which is where the problem lies…

Some customers linger after the purchase. Sometimes the conversation stirs towards way too personal topics. Some (usually middle-aged men) come back over only to chat.

Do you have any tips on how to deal with such customers? How can I be more polite yet stern in dealing with them?

She doesn’t want to spend too much time with them…

I also have one specific noncustomer customer I had to deal with last year… Over time this 70+ years old man started coming here for chat.

I did not mind at first. But his visits kept becoming longer and longer. His record was 3 hours (it’s very quiet in the summer). Worst of all, he did not pick up on any of my “I’m busy, please leave” cues.

Even if a new customer came, he waited nearby and came back after. He only stopped after the last Christmas incident:

He came and lingered by the door for at least half an hour because there was a big queue and more people kept coming. He never joined the queue, clearly had no intention to buy anything.

That’s INSANE!

I could feel his eyes on me the whole time. The last straw was when I overheard two girls whisper about him uncomfortably. Now, I hate confrontation.

I played this scene in my memory so many times, therefore I remember exactly what happened. I had to stop serving. At least six people were waiting. Since I work alone, everyone was watching, as I left my post.

I came over to him and quietly said: “Name, please don’t do this to me. You can’t stand here, the people are nervous because of you.”

Now I don’t think it was my demeanor that made him say “I only wanted to wish you merry Christmas” and leave. It was more likely the social pressure. He did not show up for almost a year.

He was being so CREEPY!

Until today.

What should I do? How can I prevent this from happening again?

I know the problem is with me, because I get nervous easily. How can I appear more confident when confronting others? (But I still wanna be polite with it)

Do you have any tips for me?/ Did anything similar happen to you?

YIKES! That sounds scary!

Why wouldn’t she take an action against such customers?

Check out what people on Reddit advised this employee.

This user knows how to politely make an exist from such conversation.

This user knows the auto parts business is a hub for chatty customers!

This user knows who to go to for such customers.

This user also shares a similar experience!

This user knows the best answer!

Somebody needs to take charge of the situation!

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