Gun store employees

[Dreams of Steel]

I work in retail selling major appliances at a locally owned mom & pop shop in Sherwood, OR and I pride myself on my product knowledge. I gather that knowledge from reading tech specs and feature lists as well as manufacturer-provided info regarding performance results as well as a massive amount of customer and independent testing company reviews. I believe that anyone selling anything should know as much about the product and have as much practical experience as they can. I talk to people all day, every day who have no idea what it is they are looking for, and I imagine this is true for many people behind gun counters across the country. I do not tell people what they want, I let THEM tell me what they want then I show them the available products that meet their needs. I NEVER sell someone a product that I know doesn't meet those needs. I may show them something different than they originally thought they wanted, but only so they can make the most educated decision possible. If I were selling something as important and potentially deadly as a firearm, I would put even more effort to test and familiarize myself with as many guns as possible. I am surprised that there are so many companies willing to let an inexperienced person sell a firearm. I guess I have been lucky, in that I have not had to put up with that kind of customer service, although I do my research before I go into a place to buy something, especially a gun.

 

[NoFlinch]

.... I pride myself on my product knowledge.....

Now if you could only pride yourself in your usage of paragraphs.........

 

[Dreams of Steel]

Yes indeed, such is the folly of using a mobile device to reply to a post. I promise to do better (with a real keyboard) next time...

 

[decklin]

I work in retail/sales and I can tell you for a fact that sales associates definitely judge you on your appearance. This is something I teach against all the time.
I have watched customers climb out of some extraordinary vehicles and they look like a bum.
I've got a few millionaire customers and not one of them dresses like it.

I've been turned away by salesmen too. Once I went into a Larson Jeep dealership to buy a new jeep. After an hour of getting jerked around and passed off to more salesmen I finally left. Ended up going to toyota and bought a new tundra. First thing I did was drive back to the jeep dealership and show them the error of their ways.

It is definitely hard to find a good employee at a LGS. That one kid at sportsmans is great, though. Pick a gun on the wall and ask him what he knows about it and he will rattle off every spec and feature of that gun from memory.
He doesn't own a lot of guns but many of his friends and family do so he gets to try a lot of things. This has been a great help to me as he will tell you specific things he liked or did not like about the gun. Weird grip, trigger pull, holster options, etc.
He is also not afraid to say, "I don't know." What makes him different is he will immediately start looking for the correct answer.
I would love to have him in my store but then who would sell me guns?

 

[NoFlinch]

I've got a few millionaire customers and not one of them dresses like it......
........ That one kid at sportsmans is great

My neighbor is a multi-millionaire----you would think by looking at him that his income is lower than mine....

Tell Sportsmans Mgr. about the kid..............

 

[jbett98]

I go to the Gun Room for the real facts about firearms.

 

[40calruler]

I always play dumb and innocent to hear the idiots both behind the counter and infront try to "teach" me something.
Its a lot of fun.

I was doing this same thing last weekend and have no problem most of the time doing it. I look at a gun and then pull up info and reviews on my phone so I can normally tune it all out. My issue really started when they started misinforming the woman that came in for her first gun ever.
She first stated that she wanted a small .22 revolver from what her friends had told her so I figured they would pull out the LCR .22lr or 22mag from the case as that was what they had in stock that fit what she was looking for. Nope all he opened was his fat stupid mouth. I understand .22 is not the best gun to carry but to start with as a petite woman I believe it is a smart way to go and should never be laughed off. I sure as hell would not laugh at anyone pointing a .22 at me.
I dunno if I told you folks I really do not like that guys attitude. Just thought I would say it one more time.

Also happy/sad to see I am far from the only one that gets as bent out of shape as I do about all these people. These people being idiots in any customer service position anywhere.

 

[Just Jim]

I was doing this same thing last weekend and have no problem most of the time doing it. I look at a gun and then pull up info and reviews on my phone so I can normally tune it all out. My issue really started when they started misinforming the woman that came in for her first gun ever.
She first stated that she wanted a small .22 revolver from what her friends had told her so I figured they would pull out the LCR .22lr or 22mag from the case as that was what they had in stock that fit what she was looking for. Nope all he opened was his fat stupid mouth. I understand .22 is not the best gun to carry but to start with as a petite woman I believe it is a smart way to go and should never be laughed off. I sure as hell would not laugh at anyone pointing a .22 at me.
I dunno if I told you folks I really do not like that guys attitude. Just thought I would say it one more time.

Also happy/sad to see I am far from the only one that gets as bent out of shape as I do about all these people. These people being idiots in any customer service position anywhere.

What other people buy is none of my business. People will make mistakes on what they buy as a learning experience just like I did. Today is Water World and most people are not trying to learn what is better so I don't spend the time trying to educate. I leave them to their own devices when it comes to cars or guns etc. Friends who ask for help I go full out for but strangers are on their own.

 

[Member 34319]

Interesting thread.

I have been on both sides of he counter.

I try to be patient no matter which side I am on.

The thing is guns are a weird consumer good. They bring out egos on both sides of the gun counter. I have no freaking clue why either. It's like guns are the last proving ground or something among owners and hobbiest. Who knows more about them and so forth really can become a piss fest. Really it's annoying, I don't get it. Worse than used car sales. Worse than any other sales I have ever witnessed.

When I am behind the counter, I say nothing. I ask if there is something you would like to look at. I demonstrate the gun is clear, by either locking the slide back on a pistol, or opening the bolt rearward, or various other methods depending on the type of firearm. Then hand the firearm to the prospecting customer with the muzzle pointed away from them. Only when asked, and I will repeat, only when asked, I will either talk about a feature, any knowledge I may have on the gun, or experience, or state that I am not familiar with the gun and ask if they would like me to look up the answer online. I also try to coach others that work around me to do the same.

Basically I know not to open my mouth around gun folks, you never know what type of can of worms you can get yourself into with the smallest of comment. For instance, a customer was looking at some pistols. He stated that his wife owned a .40 caliber pistol and she did not care for the recoil so much. I proceeded to show him a few things online about conversion barrels. The interaction was going very well and it proceeded to looking at other small 9mms, then a few revolvers and the such. I made a small comment about manufacturers moving away with manual safetys. That one comment was all it took to take a seemingly good interaction and turn it into a full blown poopfest. I had stepped over the line, I guess. I really don't think he liked hearing that, and he then proceeded to ream into me how I was entirely incorrect, and that people like me shame the gun buying experience. He was very much angry and made it known. I stood and took all of it, I know that it wasn't worth further aggravating this person. Eventually I pawned him off on a manager and moved on. This wasn't even one of the worst incidents I have faced behind a gun counter either. Just a more memorable one, because of how small the comment was to trigger it. One of the worst was with a customer who made some inappropriate comments about muzzling other customers, then proceeded to do so with the pistol he was looking at. When I asked him to leave, in a manner of ways, he was not to happy.

The biggest thing to realize is that there are many shoes behind those counters as are in front of it. We can't always wear each others shoes, but at least maybe we can all take a chill pill when it comes to guns.

We should't be fighting each other when there are so many against us as a whole as it is.

 

[edslhead]

I get all my gun knowledge from my friends when I'm out golfing, that way I don't look like an idiot when I go into a shop.

 

[40calruler]

Interesting thread.

I have been on both sides of he counter.

I try to be patient no matter which side I am on.

The thing is guns are a weird consumer good. They bring out egos on both sides of the gun counter. I have no freaking clue why either. It's like guns are the last proving ground or something among owners and hobbiest. Who knows more about them and so forth really can become a piss fest. Really it's annoying, I don't get it. Worse than used car sales. Worse than any other sales I have ever witnessed.

When I am behind the counter, I say nothing. I ask if there is something you would like to look at. I demonstrate the gun is clear, by either locking the slide back on a pistol, or opening the bolt rearward, or various other methods depending on the type of firearm. Then hand the firearm to the prospecting customer with the muzzle pointed away from them. Only when asked, and I will repeat, only when asked, I will either talk about a feature, any knowledge I may have on the gun, or experience, or state that I am not familiar with the gun and ask if they would like me to look up the answer online. I also try to coach others that work around me to do the same.

Basically I know not to open my mouth around gun folks, you never know what type of can of worms you can get yourself into with the smallest of comment. For instance, a customer was looking at some pistols. He stated that his wife owned a .40 caliber pistol and she did not care for the recoil so much. I proceeded to show him a few things online about conversion barrels. The interaction was going very well and it proceeded to looking at other small 9mms, then a few revolvers and the such. I made a small comment about manufacturers moving away with manual safetys. That one comment was all it took to take a seemingly good interaction and turn it into a full blown poopfest. I had stepped over the line, I guess. I really don't think he liked hearing that, and he then proceeded to ream into me how I was entirely incorrect, and that people like me shame the gun buying experience. He was very much angry and made it known. I stood and took all of it, I know that it wasn't worth further aggravating this person. Eventually I pawned him off on a manager and moved on. This wasn't even one of the worst incidents I have faced behind a gun counter either. Just a more memorable one, because of how small the comment was to trigger it. One of the worst was with a customer who made some inappropriate comments about muzzling other customers, then proceeded to do so with the pistol he was looking at. When I asked him to leave, in a manner of ways, he was not to happy.

The biggest thing to realize is that there are many shoes behind those counters as are in front of it. We can't always wear each others shoes, but at least maybe we can all take a chill pill when it comes to guns.

We should't be fighting each other when there are so many against us as a whole as it is.

I feel like I read a novel but it was a good informative novel. I agree that folks need to chill and your gun does not show your junk size nor does your knowledge. I would never scream or visibly get upset as that is a silly way to behave in a store.
I just come on here and get it off my chest. I have to say with all the info and responses I do feel better. I know there are good folks at the shops as I have dealt with many. I have also dealt with many as described in the OP.
I am pretty laid back for the most part even when dealing with morons and cannot understand people that get so upset while in the store. It is not hard to just walk out and know you will not give them anymore business if you get nowhere when you speak to the manager. it sounds like you do your job the way I have said I would like to see in all shops. Now if only the other folks could get that. I do not want experts or even close to it. Simply polite customer service as well as knowing it is ok to not know something. No reason to say they do when they are clearly just making it up as they go along.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

I was doing this same thing last weekend and have no problem most of the time doing it. I look at a gun and then pull up info and reviews on my phone so I can normally tune it all out. My issue really started when they started misinforming the woman that came in for her first gun ever.
She first stated that she wanted a small .22 revolver from what her friends had told her so I figured they would pull out the LCR .22lr or 22mag from the case as that was what they had in stock that fit what she was looking for. Nope all he opened was his fat stupid mouth. I understand .22 is not the best gun to carry but to start with as a petite woman I believe it is a smart way to go and should never be laughed off. I sure as hell would not laugh at anyone pointing a .22 at me.
I dunno if I told you folks I really do not like that guys attitude. Just thought I would say it one more time.

Also happy/sad to see I am far from the only one that gets as bent out of shape as I do about all these people. These people being idiots in any customer service position anywhere.

I do hate seeing gunstore workers sell a woman the tiniest, hardest to manipulate, weakest caliber pistol for conceal carry..

Honestly, after taking my ex out shooting however many years ago Im a firm believer that a person should carry what they shoot best with be it a sub-compact, compact or full sized.. I too thought she may "like" the softer recoil of the .380's but she shot MUCH better with larger framed firearms and even conpact .45's.

Just like with guys, its finding what you shoot best with, not what you hope and wish to shoot best with. She also hated the smaller firearms (as I mentioned before) because they were so darn hard to manipulate. Small safety levers, or slide release (though she was taught the real slide release is just racking the slide).

So I hear what you're saying. Its tough to just listen to guys lie or ramble on about stuff they have no clue about. I should edit my first post and say "sometimes" I play dumb.

 

[teflon6string]

It makes me sad to think that anyone might listen to either the Gun Room owner or that other loudmouth gasbag at Dick's Washington Square. Too bad the one who can be fired continues to persist there year after year. Caveat emptor I guess...

 

[NoFlinch]

... I too thought she may "like" the softer recoil of the .380's but she shot MUCH better with larger framed firearms and even conpact .45's.
...

Ya, as mentioned earlier, these guys that sell these little 380's or 9's to women are STOOPID!

A friend bought a sub-Ruger 380 (forgot model, but the popular one), and I shot it 2x before handing it back to him in total disgust.

I couldn't stand the recoil........ and I'm not real recoil sensitive.....

I'm just sensitive about what people say about me..........

 

[40calruler]

Ya, as mentioned earlier, these guys that sell these little 380's or 9's to women are STOOPID!

A friend bought a sub-Ruger 380 (forgot model, but the popular one), and I shot it 2x before handing it back to him in total disgust.

I couldn't stand the recoil........ and I'm not real recoil sensitive.....

I'm just sensitive about what people say about me..........

I can only guess you mean the LCP and that is a POS that functions well. It is no fun to shoot and to break that in is a painful experience.
I sold mine I had years ago the day after firing it for the first time.

 

[ILoveMyWoobie]

One of the joys of working at a gun range as opposed to a gun store is that I have the ability to watch what guns run good and which ones do not or are ammo picky. Its like buying a car- I'll listen to my mechanic buddies before I listen to a car salesman. I have kept a diary for over a year of guns I've shot or ones I've took notes on for specific reasons. I don't push my knowledge on customers but I'll offer un-biased facts if asked. I also keep my ears open because I know and accept I don't know everything so I try to learn as much as I can.

 

[nehalemguy]

I'll confess.

I worked behind a gun counter for eight years when I was a young man.......and it was fricking awesome!!!!

Royd Jackson (Gunbroker owner) and I worked together at the Larry's in Oregon City. In those days we dealt in a lot of used firearms. Royd and I always eagerly anticipated what rare and unique firearm might walk in on any given day.

We didn't make much back then, and didn't really care.

E

 

[nehalemguy]

....and while we are on the subject, let's talk about customers.

Which one of you was it that came in and asked to see the .304 Weatherby Penetrator? (read about it in a L.Ron Hubbard novel)

And which one of you was it that fired a Glaser round into the floor while showing off their CC piece to another customer?

And which one of you was it that wanted their deer tag three days after the deadline and got mad when we said sorry?

And which one of you was it that tried killing a mole with a .12ga Winchester Defender by sticking it into the ground, and then threatened to sue because we didn't inform him that doing so would rupture the barrel?

Hmmmmm?

E

 

[NoFlinch]

....and while we are on the subject, let's talk about customers.

Which one of you was it that came in and asked to see the .304 Weatherby Penetrator? (read about it in a L.Ron Hubbard novel)

And which one of you was it that fired a Glaser round into the floor while showing off their CC piece to another customer?

And which one of you was it that wanted their deer tag three days after the deadline and got mad when we said sorry?

And which one of you was it that tried killing a mole with a .12ga Winchester Defender by sticking it into the ground, and then threatened to sue because we didn't inform him that doing so would rupture the barrel?

Hmmmmm?

E

OH..............Uh.................Um..............Ah................

 

[oli700]

I totally respect the position and the people doing it and never treat them as lower than me.

I just really think that if you are going to pass something off to someone looking for information as stone fact, they need to be 100% sure that it is in fact 100% true.

There is nothing wrong with not knowing something, many times I have seen new comers hanging off every word of the guy behind the counter. More times than not this might be a newcomers first real contact in the firearms world.

I have never been on the sellers side of the counter but I bet it is every bit as frustrating knowing how lame the general public is , especially the ones who know everything think the gun shop is their second home.....I have seen the look on the shop guys face " kill me now"....as some guy drones on about how Teflon coated bullets go through level 6 paladin armor