高档服装店的六个秘密

切尔西·格林伍德

Working in retail is of a rite of passage1 that most people should experience at least once， in my opinion. Sure， its usually a dead-end job requiring mind-numbingly boring tasks， but it teaches a lot of valuable lessons about responsibility， communication， and teamwork.

I got my first retail job in my not-so-early 20s2， during a time when I was trying my hand at a freelance writing career after years of staff positions. I was basically the inventory manager at a high-end womens boutique in a trendy downtown area.

My role was not customer-facing （although I did answer phones） but instead behind-the-scenes： I received shipments from wholesalers， logged merchandise into the system， priced and tagged items， shipped packages， etc. As a highly-organized person with attention to detail and not necessarily the best people skills3， the role was right up my alley4.

And， while I expected the role to lend some structure to my days and put some extra cash in my pocket， I learned a lot more in my year at the boutique than I had ever imagined.

Every boutique is unique

Despite the high prices， boutiques are ideal for those seeking something more original than the offerings of your average fast-fashion5 store. Every boutique has its own totally unique mix of inventory due to the tastes and buying patterns of the owner or buyer.

My boss would find inventory and inspiration in diverse places and travel to fashion trade shows to buy the latest styles. Theres a world of merchandise to choose from， and youll never find two boutiques with the same exact mix of wares.

Be respectful of stores

When you spend enough time in a place， it starts to feel like a second home， and you take a certain amount of pride in it.

So there was nothing more obnoxious6 and disrespectful when customers would mess up displays， leave garbage behind， or heap piles of clothing on the dressing room floor. Or when people would let their kids or pets loose7 in the store. Or when someone would come in right at closing， browse long enough to make us stay open late， and walk out without making a purchase—or giving it a second thought8.

Bottom line： As a customer， youre in someone elses personal space， so try to keep that in mind.

Content is king

The first rule of determining value is to always check the fabric content tag， which is usually sewn into the seam on the bottom right side of a top， dress， jacket， or skirt; on pants， its in the waistband. If something is made of cotton， polyester， or polyurethane （aka “vegan” leather）， I wont pay a lot for it. If its silk， linen， velvet， wool， cashmere， leather or another quality material， that might justify the high price.

Its the little things

Next， take a closer look at the details. A high price tag might be due to detailed embellishments like beading， embroidery， elaborate buttons， hand-stitching， intricate draping， etc. These extras take time， skill， and money and thus increase the cost of an item.

Dont knock the discount

An employee discount is a major perk9 of working in retail， so if youre in the market for a job， be sure to apply at places where you actually like the clothing.

And keep in mind that smaller boutiques might offer better perks than corporate stores10， which follow strict protocols. For example， we were sometimes allowed to purchase items “at cost，” meaning the owner would only charge us what she paid to the wholesaler for an item. Thanks to this， I bought many high-quality items that I wouldnt otherwise have been able to afford and which have become staples in my closet11.

The selling never stops

The saleswomen at my boutique didnt work on commission， so they werent pushy with customers—at least not overtly. One of the main sales techniques I observed is akin to “the devil on your shoulder.” Saleswomen understand that most customers want to purchase something， but they need to be provided with that something and a good reason to buy it.

First， saleswomen will always encourage you to try something on. “Whats the harm？” theyll ask. But they know its one foot in the door12—and that its hard to resist buying something when you see it on yourself and love it.

When you exit the dressing room and step in front of the mirror， next comes the flurry of flattery. They might have you try on some heels （to make you look taller and slimmer） or style you with expensive jewelry or accessories to dazzle you into saying yes to the dress. Sometimes theyll pull out the big guns， like proffering13 shapewear， telling you its the last one left， or bringing out the owner to fawn over your look.

You may be waffling14—perhaps the price is high or the fit is off—but theyll keep telling you what you want to hear until youve convinced yourself to buy it.

我認为，大多数人至少要在零售店里工作过一次才算真正长大成人。的确，做零售往往枯燥至极，也没什么前途，但是能教给我们大量有关责任、沟通和团队合作的宝贵经验。

二十五六岁时，我获得了第一份零售工作。那时，我辞去干了多年的职员工作，正在尝试自由撰稿。我工作的高档女装精品店位于市中心时尚地段，我干的大致就是库存管理员的活儿。

我并不直接和顾客打交道（尽管我的确还负责接听电话），我做的是幕后工作——接收批发商寄来的货物，登记货物入库，给商品标价贴价签，发送包裹，等等。我是一个非常有条理、关注细节的人，但未必十分擅长和人打交道，所以这个岗位正适合我。

一开始，我只希望这份工作能让我的生活有条理一些，再挣点零花钱，然而在精品时装店工作的一年里，我学到的东西比我想象的要多得多。

每家精品时装店都独一无二

尽管精品时装店的价位高，但是如果想要找一些比普通快时尚店里的商品更有独特性的东西，最好还是去精品店。由于店主或采购员的品味各不相同，采购习惯也千差万别，每家精品店都拥有自己独特的货品。

我的老板会去不同地方寻找货源，发现灵感，他还辗转各地去各种时装贸易展购买最新款的服装。可供选择的商品太多，你永远找不到货物完全相同的两家精品店。

对每家店铺都要尊重

在一个地方待久了，那儿就好像是你的另一个家，你多少会有些荣耀感。

因此，最令人反感和无礼的莫过于顾客弄乱摆好的衣服，乱丢垃圾，或者把试过的衣服堆在试衣间地板上;有的顾客放任孩子和宠物在店里乱跑;有的顾客临近打烊时才来，随意长时间翻看衣服，店员只能陪到很晚，结果最后什么也没买就走了，甚至根本就没有买的意思。

最根本的一点就是，你要时刻牢记，你是顾客，你是在别人地盘上。

材质至关重要

确定衣服的价值，首先要查看介绍面料的标签。标签通常缝在上衣、连衣裙、夹克和短裙右下侧的衣缝里，裤子的标签一般缝在腰缝里。如果衣服是用棉、涤纶或聚氨酯（又称人造革）做的，我就不会花重金买它。如果衣服材质是丝绸、亚麻、天鹅绒、羊毛、山羊绒、真皮等优质材料，那么价格高也是情有可原。

细节决定服装档次

接下来再看细节。如果衣服上有珠串、刺绣、精巧的纽扣、手工缝制或繁复的流苏等缀饰，衣服的标价就高。制作这些缀饰需要时间、技术和金钱，这就抬高了商品的成本。

不要忽视折扣

做零售的一大福利就是可以享受员工折扣。如果你正在找工作，确保你喜欢应聘的那家店里的衣服。

还要记住，大型服装店或连锁店有严格的规章制度，因此和这些店相比，小型精品店的福利往往更好。比如，我們店里的员工有时可以“按成本价”买东西，也就是说店主只收取她付给批发商的金额。正因为如此，我买了很多原本买不起的高档服装，这些衣服后来成了我衣橱里的常备单品。

推销无处不在

我们店里的女员工并不按销售额拿提成，所以她们不会对顾客死缠烂打，至少不会太出格。我发现她们常用的一种推销方法类似于“耳边念咒语的恶魔”。店员们知道，大多数顾客都想买点什么，他们需要的是有人给推荐点什么，并且给他们一个正当的购物理由。

首先，她们会一直鼓动你试穿。“试试无妨。”她们会说。但她们很清楚这是引导顾客购买的第一步。一旦试穿并发现自己很喜欢，你就很难抵御购买的欲望。

然后，你从试衣间出来，站在镜子前面，她们会不停地奉承你。她们会让你穿上高跟鞋，使你显得更高更苗条，或者给你搭配一些昂贵的珠宝或配饰，让你目眩神迷，最后买下这件衣服。有时，她们会使出杀手锏，像赠送塑身内衣，或者告诉你只剩最后一件了，又或者请老板来恭维你形象好。

你可能还在犹豫不决，因为价格太高，或者不太合身，但是她们会一直顺着你的心思说话，直到你下定决心购买为止。      □