>>11143032I grew up during the time when old people who had worked at full service shops were aging out of the work place. So despite the modern era of shopping being 20 years old, there were 50-70 year olds still working, using their age old training and hated that customers were touching all the products. They had risen in status to become managers, using their age old wisdom to chide the younger workers for allowing customers to touch the product that was stocked freely throughout the store.
They were working against corporate too, since stores were more lax about needing every single store being exactly the same from town to town, state to state. So I remember some toy stores keeping product BEHIND the counters, like Star Wars figures or even keeping them in glass cases. So you couldn't touch the child friendly packaging that toy companies had invented a decade ago to increase sales, with the clear plastic bubble so a kid could inspect the toy without ever opening the box.
It wasn't regional either, since i traveled with my parents to other states and outside of the US. It was when visiting other countries that i thought it was fancy seeing employees doing everything for you, not knowing this was a dead business model. Going online in the 90s, i talked older people across the US who complained about their dinosaur bosses and found out it wasn't just me who got screamed at for touching a product on the shelf.
That screaming at not touching the product was more common at regional stores, since they would have been established by dinosaurs, who grudgingly accepted and sought more profits from having open layout stores.
speaking of which, do shoe stores still have employees who measure your feet, help you slip a shoe onto your foot and even tie them for you at the stores? It's been over a decade since i physically bought shoes but even at Nordstroms they just gave me a box and looked proud about their excellent service.
