A household with odd hobbies spawns equally odd traditions, and one of them here is the "Carve Pumpkins and watch Army of Darkness" party. After having gyros for dinner last night, it was formally decided that this year's munchies would have a Greek theme. So I thought that the more adventurous guests might like to sample a Greek specialty, "retsina," which is a wine flavored with pine resin.
Retsina can be an acquired taste, which probably explains why I've so far only seen it at the People's Food Co-op. But it wasn't on the shelves the last time I was in, so I called to ask whether it was back in stock. The lady in the wine department knew exactly which bottle I was talking about, but explained that the store couldn't buy it, at least for the present. She noted that they still had a retsina in stock, but then surprised the heck out of me by noting, "It isn't as good, but it's all we can get at the moment."
Wow. That's customer service. The Food Co-op (possibly) lost the sale of a bottle of wine with that phone call. But they also established a reputation as a retailer whose front-line employees have some knowledge of the products they're selling. For all I know, my question may have been a fluke, and the wine dept. lady just happens to have a taste for the stuff. But that's still one heck of a first impression to make on a customer.
Contrast that to the wine store I called a minute later who didn't recognize the term, and when I said, "It's a Greek wine..." the conversation immediately detoured into the lady who answered advising me to check with Woodman's or Festival Foods. Which was decent of her, if not particularly helpful: The big-box approach to wine-selling typically doesn't play to niche curiosities.
But the big ups for customer service definitely go to the Co-op here. It's always fun browsing their wine section (very much like browsing the books at the library) anyway, but I'll definitely linger a little longer next time, to see what other interesting things are tucked away on the shelves.
