A disengaged team is worse than no team at all.

Revenue target: ? (Made the sale)

Lifetime value: ? (Lost the customer)

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Yesterday’s visit to JB Hi-Fi Store in Auckland was a masterclass on how NOT to do retail sales.

I walked in, ready to buy an Instax camera. No greeting, no offer of help—not even a smile.

After browsing, I found a young sales assistant standing near the entrance.

Me: "Excuse me, I was wondering if you could please help me out with an Instax camera?" Her: "Can’t you just grab it from the shelf?"

?? Not exactly the response I expected.

Me: "I can, but I’d like some help deciding between the models." She rolled her eyes but walked over.

Me: "What’s the difference between these two?" Her: "They’re basically the same. One has a better-quality camera. I have this. I don’t use it"

Zero effort. Zero enthusiasm. Just an attitude that screamed "Why are you making me work?"

Still, I went ahead and picked one. Then I asked about the film:

Me: "How much is this set for 20?" – as there was no pricing ticket to the be found. Her: "It says $71 on there." – as she points to a pricing ticket. Me: "Yes, but that price is for 40 films. I’m only after 20." – clearly, attention to detail is no longer considered ‘cool’.

She looked confused, checked her device, and eventually told me the correct price.

Me: “Sweet. I’ll take it!”

Then, another odd moment:

Her: "Ok. Follow me to the counter, I’ll take these there—it’ll be easier for both of us."

Huh? Easier? It’s a small camera and film pack. Not exactly heavy lifting.

Me: “Okay. Sure” I say, awkwardly.

At the counter, she started chatting with her colleague, barely acknowledging me.

She scanned my items, I paid and asked for a GST receipt. She looked bothered by this, cancelled the transaction, asked for my phone number, and processed it again.

Me: Pays for the item. Grabs the bag. Says thank you to her. Her: Nothing. Not even a thanks. Just chatting away with her friend.

Well, looks like that’s the last time I’ll be shopping at JB Hi-Fi.

The real problem though? Leadership that allows this kind of culture to exist.

It’s a chain reaction:

? A willing customer gets treated like a burden.

? A poor experience turns into a lost future customer.

? A business slowly loses trust, one transaction at a time.

Sure, JB Hi-Fi made the sale. But at what cost?

?? Lost loyalty.

?? Lost repeat business.

?? Negative word-of-mouth.

Retail is ALL about experience. If customers feel like an inconvenience, they won’t return.

If you’re in Customer Experience or Retail Leadership, this is a reminder:

?? A disengaged team is worse than no team at all.

P.S.: If you think I should’ve shopped somewhere else... you’re probably right ??

#CustomerExperience #Retail #Trust #Sales #Growth #NZ #RetailNZ #NewZealand

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