Sales, salespersons,SOAP & CO

   

 The clock is 9:00 A.M. and I`m still in the bus trying to keep my eyes open, when I barely hear a voice (and it`s not my imaginary friend) : "The next station is White city! " .
     I know I`m late but until I realize this, my feet are already in Millie`s.
- "Americano without milk like usual, right? "
- "No! Today I need a double expresso and a blueberry muffin. It`s Saturday! "
     It`s just the beggining of a new day at SOAP & CO where I work as a salesperson for more than 4 months in terrestrail time. I`m searching for my red lipstick in the bag hoping I will also find a smile to put on this sleepy face with dark circles. Anyway for the second problem it`s a solution: an eye cream. And guess what: it`s produced by Soap & Co. Yes! That`s what we are doing: we sell Dead Sea body products and cosmetics. And by ~we~ , I mean a team of 10 romanians and israeli (in total are 9 different teams). Not a permanent team because here the people are always coming and leaving; more often than the Dead Sea`s waves.
     Doesn`t matter if you have been before a journalist, a gardener or a barber, after you pass 3 interviews and the company decides you are suitable for this job, all you have to do is: SALES! SALES! SALES! You can cough like a horse, fainting, starving or having  another human problem, you need to concentrate and to sale. Doesn`t matter if yesterday you sold half of the shop and you think the comission will be enough to leave with your whole family in Ibiza, today it`s another day, and you need to start again full of energy. You have to ignore all the english women and their habitual sentences: "I`m in a kind of a rush!" "No thank you (pronunced fenchiu)", " I bought it before" or the english men`s very developed sense of humor: "We don`t need soap. We don`t wash!"
     But despite this, there is also a good part besides the white envelope with pounds that is coming every two weeks: you meet a lot of people. It`s like a salad of people. Starting with the very shy asians: chinesse, japanesse, malaysians, koreans, singaporeans for who you need half an hour to stop them, and this after you know at least 5 words in each language. Another hour it takes you just to explain what the products do, what are they good for and how to use them. In the end they usually buy but only after they ask you 3 times  how to use the products.
    The next group of beloved people are "Salam walecum!" : arabs from Saudi, Katar, Kuweit, Emirates with their moagizas dressed in Prada, Gucci, LV, but covered by a black robe through you can see only their eyes. After you say the 20-30  words in arabic that you unavoidable learn in this job, they become so impressed that you know their language and you try not to jump of happiness when they say they want 3, 4 sets of products.
     Another particular group are indians, bangladesh and pakistani that negociate with you until you start to begging them to understand that it`s not your shop and you can`t do more discount. But anyway they will always say: "I know you can do it for 50. Speak with the manager. More discount. I pay cash now. You can do it.!!!"
     Meanwhile the manager is somewhere in the shop prepared all the time for things that he needs to deal with: refunds, angry customers, sad/bored/sleepy employees, other big managers, a diet etc. Even if he wants to punch half of the employees and to shout in the middle of the shop, he is smiling. At least for the moment...
      After you succeed to sale some body products it comes the part of facial demonstrations, that  is the next level. Here you need to make the person who seats on the chair to tell you about his life, to confess and to have confidence in yourself. In this way you meet designers from Brazil, guru from India,pastors from Mexico, IT speacilists from Portugal, doctors from Nigeria or divorced scottish women. You can spend one hour, even two with them but at the end when they buy 3 bags with products you feel it worth and they enjoyed as well. Or you can hear the magic words: "I will come back." "I will think about it!" " I will consider it!".
      Meanwhile the Saturday is finished and as Sunday is a short day, at 19:00 we are drinking a beer, speak about the week that just passed and making salesperson jokes.
    Tomorrow will be Monday again...