DEAR MISS MANNERS: I personal a small retail present store. I provide my clientele conventional present certificates, printed on card inventory, which have the recipient’s title, the sender’s title and the present quantity, all handwritten on my own.
For the previous a number of years, a gentleman from the West Coast has known as and bought a present certificates for his sister who lives right here regionally. It’s a substantial quantity every year.
She got here in as soon as and requested a hand-blown glass merchandise that was out of inventory. I’ve since had them restocked, however she hasn’t returned.
I hold detailed notes of every present certificates offered and redeemed. This previous yr, when the brother known as, I didn’t point out to him that his sister hasn’t been redeeming the certificates. I believed it gauche. However I did ship a well mannered word together with her subsequent present, telling her that the merchandise she was in search of is now again in inventory. I included our retailer hours, and wrote that we stay up for seeing her once more.
It’s been six months and he or she has not proven up, and he or she has a number of present certificates now.
They by no means expire and can all the time be honored; that’s not the issue. I truthfully really feel in a quandary about receiving cash for merchandise that aren’t being bought.
The brother presumably doesn’t know she isn’t redeeming his present certificates, however I don’t know if saying one thing to him is the well mannered factor to do.
Ought to I say one thing the following time he calls, or keep quiet?
GENTLE READER: “I hope that your sister is well. I haven’t seen her in the shop in a while, and I was concerned. I would love her to enjoy the things that you are kind enough to facilitate her buying.”
It is a mild technique to alert him to the certificates state of affairs, whereas legitimately veiling it underneath the extra well mannered guise that your concern is basically about her well being.
Miss Manners will add that it additionally saves each of you the embarrassment — if it will get again to her — of ratting her out if her style in retailers has modified.
DEAR MISS MANNERS: I work with a lady with whom I’ve a pleasant, skilled relationship. We are sometimes in shared-food settings collectively, equivalent to workplace lunches or joyful hours with appetizers.
She adheres to a no-carb eating regimen, however is kind of gracious about encouraging others to order or convey no matter they’d like, saying that she’ll “make it work.”
My qualm is that when she wants to change a meals, equivalent to solely consuming the cheese from a pizza, she is going to execute the modification on the shared dish, reasonably than taking a slice of pizza and carving it up on her personal plate. The crust carcass stays on the serving plate.
Is that this unusual? Is there a well mannered technique to encourage her to carry out pizza surgical procedure on her personal plate?
GENTLE READER: “Here, Taylor, why don’t you take your piece first.”
