Adventures in Liquidation: Day 1

I'm sad to report the bookstore is going out of business. I know I've never said specifically what company  I work for, but it should be no surprise to hear I've been working for Borders Books for the past 3 years. 

It is a bit misleading to say this is day one of the liquidation, we have not actually started selling things off as they are still working their way through the court system to finalize the sale to a liquidator.
 

The best part of today was getting to tell the scavengers "Um, no, we haven't started any sales." Or watching people walk through the stores looking for big discounts only to find things as normal, but too embarrassed to ask "When do things go on discount?"
 

Thank you to the news, who have apparently been reporting the sales started today. And that our doors will be closed on Friday.
 

This is going to be a tough process to watch and to work through. My hope is to keep blogging about it because 1) writing always helps me cope and 2) as painful as this is, there is still some humor in the situation. I hope this can be a record of my last days as a bookseller.
 

Day 1: Grief Counselor and an Attitude Adjustment.
 

The phones rang all day long. There were so many people in the store, it was actually our busiest day in a long time. Ironically, we've been making our sales goals for the past week or so. 

And today was a great day sales-wise if only because of the rush to spend gift cards.
 

The employees are taking it fairly well, but we've been in bankruptcy for six months so that makes sense. I sometimes want to assure them that I am sad about the whole situation and not to confuse my constant laughter as insensitivity. Believe me, if I could cry about it or show some sort of sadness, I would. I think the last day I use my key to let myself in or out will be the day I lose my mind.
 

By and large the majority of the comments from the customers have been supportive and expressions of sadness as well as gratitude for helping them all these years.
 

I've felt like a grief counselor.
 

Lots of nodding. Tilting the head to the side and scrunching up my face, murmuring soothing noises.
 

The cafe is closing first, Thursday is the last day. Today as I watched some Dosha hair stylists buying coffee, I wondered "Which mall coffee shop will now get their business?" I'm guessing Peet's. The Starbucks is across the busy intersection but Peet's is just around the corner.
 

The phones, the phones, the phones.
 

I've long wondered about people's phone etiquette. Chewing while talking on the phone? Seriously, don't be an ass. Greet people nicely. Say hello and goodbye.

Last week my boss said she started blaming everything wrong with society on Facebook. That made me laugh. I decided then and there to blame everything on Facebook.
 

And while I was listening to a phone customer complain about having to drive to Clackamas for their books now, when he hadn't even said hello when I picked up the phone, I though God Damn you Mark Zuckerberg! You put us out of business!
 

A preposterous idea, but hilarious.
 

By and large the question is "Are you still there?"
 

Well i answered the phone, didn't I!!?
 

It definitely had a Christmas feeling in the air today. Long lines, stupid questions, and tons of recovery (abandoned books we have to put away).
 

I've always tried to have a super positive attitude in the face of even the rudest customer. I've dealt with some doozys. There was the giant man in sweatpants that once yelled at me, left the store, came back and yelled at me again.
 

The couple that yelled at me for not properly representing Jesus in the Christmas displays.
 

The lady who crumpled up a CD and threw it at me when I refused her return.
Today a woman wanted to return a Panini book she got as a gift because she was vegan and had no use for a book about paninis.
 

Yesterday they announced the liquidation at 1:30pm and we had our gift cards and loyalty programs pulled by 2pm. We had no way to offer her a store credit because we couldn't process it. Aside from which, I wasn't taking back her goddamn panini book.
 

This is a list of the sins Borders and I committed against her:
 

1. We have terrible customer service.
2. No other company ever refused to take things back with out a receipt.
3. She is never shopping with us because we won't accommodate her return and she promises none of her friends will ever shop there again after she tells them not to.
4. We are terrible, terrible people and have done a terrible thing to her.

5. Can't we just look up her credit card history for proof of payment (I've long wondered why customers would want a perfect stranger to have access to their credit card history).

This continues for several minutes in a barrage of repeated insults about what a terrible person I am. 

A little known fact about me, I'm almost incapable of yelling and getting super angry. I can raise my voice, but the guilt I feel afterwards is so uncomfortable, I can't sleep at night.
 

This is not to say I will let you screw me over or walk all over me, but I for sure will not be yelling at you. I will calmly explain why you are making me angry.
 

When it comes to the store, I always let the customer get away with things and I take their yelling in stride and just suck it up.
 

But not today. I couldn't handle it. I'm going to be unemployed and there are 50 employees at the store also facing unemployment.
 

So this time, I'm finally able to get an appropriate amount of anger in my voice. I'm able to tell her it is terrible! Terrible that we are going out of business! that we are losing our jobs! That I can't give her a credit on a book I have no proof she bought from us because I have no physical or technical way to do so. So terrible that I have nothing I can do to help her and she should probably leave.
 

I was shaking so hard after the interaction, I had to run to the office. I had to tell my boss this woman threatened to call corporate on me and that HAHAHAHA, joke is on her, we don't have a corporate office any more. GOOD LUCK.
 

And then I was very sad. But I went back on the floor.

And I tilted my head to side and said, Thank you so much for being a good customer, and, It is sad, and, We don't know when we are starting the big sales. 

I said this to 1000 more customers and worked 6 more hours. And then I drove home the long way so that I could look at the water and the bridges, my Portland touchstone.