I wonder whether the collective stupidity
that characterises most retail interactions in airports will ever change.
This morning I flew Larnaca to Warsaw at
03:40. At Warsaw airport, I bought a 500 ml bottle of water at the duty free. Here
is a record of the interaction.
Cashier: “Good morning. May I have your
boarding pass?”
I hand over the boarding pass.
Cashier: “Is Vilnius your final
destination?”
“Yes”
Cashier: “For statistics purposes, may I
ask where are you from?”
“Athens”
Cashier: “That’s 6 zloty”.
I hand over 5 Euro.
Cashier: “I have to give you change in
zloty.”
“Fine”
Cashier: “Here is your change.”
“Thank you”
Cashier: “Would you like a plastic bag for
the water?”
“No”
Cashier: “Have a nice day!”
Fucking collective insanity. So much about
this retail transaction is wrong.
- Duty Free retailers do not need my boarding card, nor my final destination, nor where I am from. This is a gross violation of basic privacy rights.
- In all my years travelling (and I am on the road 200+ days per year, with over 60 flight segments per year), no Duty Free retailer has ever actually used this data to improve my shopping experience, or even to contact me with anything relevant.
- I am just buying a fucking, grossly-overpriced bottle of water.
- I do not need a plastic bag for a bottle of water. The bottle is already damaging to the environment. Why make it worse?
- It should be obvious that at 06:30 in the morning, even assuming I had slept the night before, that I don’t need a third-degree interrogation to buy a bottle of water.
This is a useless and offensive procedure.
I had exactly the same experience in Larnaca, buying another over-priced bottle
of water (€ 1.50 in Larnaca instead of € 2.00 in Warsaw). Right down to the
offer of a plastic bag.
Is there any evidence of sentient life in Dufy retailer management? Is there any prospect of relief from the vast and collective
stupidity which characterises most bureaucracies today?
Get a grip. Really.
© Philip Ammerman, 2016
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