Attentive sales clerks make shopping a pleasure

With inflation running higher than it has in four decades --- and with retailers under more pressure than ever with staff shortages due to supply chain and post-pandemic pressures --- I thought I'd share two positive retail experiences that I had today (Friday, Oct. 14).
I went to the Emerald Square mall in North Attleboro in search of a specific color shirt (lavender) for an upcoming wedding. I went to JC Penney first because I had a gift card to that store, but after looking for 10 minutes or so, I couldn't locate a shirt of that color. So I asked a clerk in the men's store for help, and he went out of his way to help me, something that's no longer a given these days.
This gentleman looked for a shirt from the racks, but didn't find even a color close to lavender, but he didn't stop there. He spent a few minutes searching online for an appropriate dress shirt, but didn't find an exact match. He offered to order the one he found, but he also suggested that I check out a couple of competitors in the same mall.
I took his advice and went to one of those competitors, Gentleman's Warehouse, and much to my surprise, I had an old-time retail experience: a sales clerk who bent over backwards to help me out. This clerk first took the time to measure me accurately, so I'd find a shirt with a good fit, and he let me try on a shirt of that size off the rack.
When that fit well, he found a lavender-colored shirt for me. Then, when I asked about a matching tie, he found four for me to choose from and said I could get two for the price of one, which I did.
I left with a good feeling, because these days you can no longer count on being helped by attentive clerks.
I felt grateful to the clerks at both stores for being straightforward, helpful and knowledgeable; they made my shopping experience a pleasant one.

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