Conor arrived at Jackson's Furniture at 8 a.m. sharp the next morning. He had chosen to wear his new suit and tie since that was similar to what the sales team had been wearing yesterday. When he walked through the doors, several sales associates powerwalked over to him.
"Can we help you find anything today?"
"Are you looking for a sofa, or perhaps a recliner?"
"How about dining room furniture?"
"I can direct you to the bedroom suites."
Conor was overwhelmed and held up his hands. "I am a new employee. I am just here to meet with Mr. Matthews and get my assignment."
"Oh." The dejection and disappointment were clear on each of their faces. As they drifted away, one lingered and finally stepped forward, hand outstretched. "name's Arty. Arty Maron. You said you were to meet with the boss?" Arty was a thin man in his later fifties, with wispy gray hair combed over a balding head. He wore thin glasses near the end of his nose.
"Yes Arty. My name is Conor, nice to meet you." Conor shook his hand and followed as Arty led him to the back.
Mr. Matthews was waiting in his office when they arrived. A broad-shouldered man, Mr. Matthews looked like a hulk, and was clearly very fit. At over six feet tall, even Conor felt he was looking up slightly to look him in the eyes.
"Ah, Conor! Good of you to join us. Peter spoke highly of you, so I have high hopes for you. You are umm... a bit overdressed for what I had in mind for today. Hmmm. How about this. I need you on the loading dock this afternoon and the rest of the week but if you work hard, perhaps I can give you a shot on the floor. But this morning as you have dressed the part, go ahead and shadow Arty here and let him teach you the products. You will need to know what is on the dock as well. Just remember Conor, honor the customer. They are the ones who make your job possible and so we do everything we can to make them happy. Understand?"
"Yes sir."
Arty led Conor away and started teaching him the various brands and models of couch. "As Mr. Matthews said, the customer is always right, even when they are dead wrong. So just try your best to steer them back straight and it will all work out. Most don't have a clue what they want, and we just have to show them why the one we want to sell them was their idea all along."
Conor was baffled by this philosophy but nodded and followed his lead. As they circled the showroom, Conor was a quick study and memorized everything Arty told him. After about an hour, a finely dressed couple came in and strode for Arty's section. "Now watch and learn."
"Hello and welcome to Jackson's Furniture. What is it that you will be looking for today?"
"My fiancé and I are looking for a sofa for the new house!"
"Do you have one in mind or would you like me to suggest something?"
The fiancé glanced at Conor and said coyly," I think I would rather know his opinion than an old man's."
Arty visibly choked as the couple stepped over to Conor who spluttered as he tried to collect his thoughts and remember everything Arty had told him. "Umm, right. Well, you both look like a fine couple. If you let me know what price range you planned to stay in I can best direct you."
"I can afford your best" the gentlemen said.
Conor paused to consider before leading them to a sectional Arty had described as near the top of the line, but just slightly less expensive. "This here is an excellent choice and is considered very high end. And you are in luck, today we are actually running a special, this particular set is 110 silver dragons. I can promise you, your friends will never be able to tell the difference."
"11,000 copper dragons!" the man spluttered. However, his fiancé sat on it and smiled.
"You said, difference... does that mean you have something higher?"
Conor grinned roguishly. "Well ma'am, there is one set, I normally hesitate to show it unless requested to but if you are looking for true top of the line, I would be happy to direct you."
The man visibly paled but cleared his throat. "I told you from the start, I can afford your best, now show us the best. I don't know why you wasted our time with this drivel."
Conor led them to the best sofa in the whole shop. "This is our pride and joy. The top-of-the-line Jackson custom sectional with recliner seats. I am sorry to inform you, but this one does not come with any discounts. It is a limited edition so we can't simply give it away. I hope you understand."
The lady looked at the sofa with hungry eyes. To Conor, the couch was actually rather hideous. Whichever designer had come up with this ugly thing needed to be fired, however, if some rich person was desperate to be parted with their money, who was he to stop them? A sour thrust landed against his heart at that thought. Conor felt a wave of displeasure and guilt wash over him as he watched the couple. The man was positively out of his depth and ready to run, but the fiancé had sighted in on spending a huge sum today.
"I love it." She said. "How much?"
Conor hesitated until the gentleman nudged him. "Go on."
"This custom piece is listed at 155 silver dragons. 15,500 Copper."
"What? That's a full Gold dragon and then some!" the man's eyes bulged in realization.
"Yes, sir. It is. However, if it is just the design you are in love with, I do have one that looks similar but is about half the price."
To Conor's surprise, the woman stood, a look of horror on her face. "do you really expect us to take sub-par furniture into our new home? No, nothing but the best will do, isn't that right George?"
"Umm, right. Well then, being it is decided... Hunny, why don't you go and wait in the car. I will pay and arrange for pickup later." He kissed her and watched as she sauntered out the door.
"Kid, you said there is one that looks almost identical, for half the price? Sell me that one and I will give you a nice tip for helping me out."
Conor chuckled and led him and Arty over to the desk where Arty quietly helped him fill out the paperwork.
"Thanks again, kid. I will remember this!"
Arty stood dumbly watching the customer walk out the door. "How? You were with me for an hour. How did you do that?"
"I have been in sales before Arty, but you are also a good teacher. I paid attention to what you said."
"But he was going to buy the big set! We could have been rich off that commission!"
"Yes, but he clearly didn't want to spend that. Now that we helped him get what he needed for half that, he is more likely to spend that money here again in the future and will also likely ask for us to assist."
"Hmm."
The rest of the morning was rather quiet, so Conor took a long lunch break as requested by Mr. Matthews and went home to change. When he got back, Mr. Matthews was waiting. "You are in the docks for now. Furniture moves through the back all day long. Its hard work but we all pay our dues. I want you to know, however, I heard about this morning. Good work. I like that kind of initiative. We will get you a shot on the floor again soon!"
"Thank you, Mr. Matthews. I will not let you down."
"Good. Tomorrow is my day off, so one of my managers will be here. Just follow their lead and you should be fine."
The rest of the shift went well, with a rather uneventful afternoon of moving ordered furniture from the back warehouse to the loading dock for customer to pick up. Conor left for home at the end of the shift feeling good about this new job and the opportunities it might provide.