September 2020 by Adventurous_Al_Star
I would recommend to all of you out there to not go to the Co-op shop in Kintore, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, as some of the staff there seem to be quite rude , cold, distant, and not all that friendly. I know the Covid-19 situation has affected things, but I had some problems there even before that! However, I still went there sometimes, either because (1) I needed to buy more electricity (not realising until very recently that I could get that at the Post Office), (2) because I decided to get a takeaway and, while waiting for it, I could nip over to get a few other things that I needed (with no other shop close by, and Sainsburys a good half a mile or so away), or (3) because I was visiting a friend of mine, and we decided to buy some drinks.After having a bad experience there in April. I decided to give the Co-op a break for a few weeks. Then, in May, I gave them another chance, and bought a few things there. The guy who served me at the till affected me quite badly with his attitude. With being in a bit of a bad mood myself - for various reasons I won't go into here - all I wanted was tp quickly pay for my items and get out of there. Anyway, I asked the guy if he could please put my items on the right-hand side instead of on the left-hand side (with him having started putting a few items on the left-hand side), because (1) I am right-handed, (2) I am a big guy, and felt worried I might get in the way of another customer), and (3) I was feeling tired, and also have difficulties with vestibular movement and a sense of my surroundings, which can make me a bit clumsy.Problem was, he gave me attitude with his body-language, and seemed reluctant to do what I had asked. He then did what I had asked, but looked resentful, as though I had done something wrong by making his life more difficult! That affected me so badly that I got quite angry with him, and his reaction only made things worse, with my anger then quickly escalating into a full-blown rage / "meltdown" (I have Asperger's Syndrome, which has a debilitating effect on me in such situations). Before I knew it, staff were calling the Police, who came over, had a chat with me and escorted me home. I was told not to return for at least a few weeks. But, when I went there on Monday just past, primarily to buy electricity, the manager came and told me I was banned for life! I then said I had no idea of that, but she just repeated herself. I told her that I didn't like her attitude, and that a permanent ban does seem rather extreme and harsh. But, she kept interrupting me, accused me of being argumentative (when I was simply standing my ground and not letting her walk all over me), and kept making me feel unheard, disrespected, belittled, and humiliated. So, again, I had a meltdown, and she called the Police. This time, they gave me a warning, and told me that the Post Office actually also sells electricity - first time I had ever heard that!I know where I went wrong, but I did try my best the previous time to apologize for getting so upset and was contrite, and I honestly thought the ban was only temporary. The problem is that I can't stand rude people, especially in a customer / server scenario where I feel disrespected, not valued as a customer, and invalidated. And, the problem with rude people is they tend to get defensive in their reaction to me getting a bit angry with them, so my anger quickly escalates into a full-blown meltdown.Another point: Eric Cantona only got banned for 8 months from football after doing a Kung-fu kick against a spectator who was being verbally abusive towards him, but I got banned for life for having a meltdown and causing staff to call the Police, which is nowhere near as bad! I felt like I was being abused on a psychological level by the guy giving me attitude with his body-language while serving me, so I was abused!I can see why some staff at that particular Co-op are so rude and unfriendly: Their manager is rude, unfriendly, arrogant, and very argumentative.So, do yourselves a favour, and don't go to the C
