Good service has very little to do with price points. I was reminded of that over the holidays, in a place I did not expect.
I am rarely stumped when talking with salespeople. And by no means is this the fault of the staff themselves. In the context of Philippine retail, however, the strongest salespeople are often reserved for luxury spaces. Even then, some assigned to high-end stores fall short. The unspoken rule seems to be: “If you cannot afford the product, you cannot afford my time.”
That assumption unraveled for me in December.
After being devoured by the supremely attractive sport of pickleball (yes, it is a sport), I found myself spending more time in sporting goods sections and stores. This might be a phase. But if it gets me burning calories, losing a few pounds and adding some needed air for vocal duties, I am all in.
Sometime that month, I dropped by a large multinational sporting goods retailer that had opened an experiential space in one of Cebu City’s malls. I was looking for court shoes when a member of the sales team approached me and struck up a conversation in full English. She was not selling me anything. She was simply curious why I was there.
That interaction stayed with me.
If I were in the business of poaching talent, I would have already been thinking of convincing her to leave her current job and join our own sales force. She was engaging, pleasant and deeply knowledgeable about the sport. I assumed it was an exception until weeks later, when I was looking for a paddle at another branch of the same retailer, this one smaller and in a different Cebu City mall.
The same thing happened.
Another salesperson approached me with the same ease. No hard selling. Just genuine interest. When she learned I was looking for more affordable items, she encouraged me to visit the larger branch instead, where there were more options. I left wondering if this was what good service actually felt like.
After the Sinulog festivities, the same retailer opened its third Cebu store. During a conversation with the store manager, I finally asked what explained the consistency.
She said everyone on the team, even those working behind the scenes in marketing or e-commerce, practiced a sport. It was a requirement. During hiring, applicants were asked what sport they played and how often. Everyone on the floor had some relationship with movement.
That made personalized service easier. Advice came from experience, not scripts. Product training came first, followed by customer service training. It also explained why no one ever seemed to be frowning on duty.
During my visits, I met several of these staff members. One was a dragon boat national athlete. Another was a hiking enthusiast who had trekked most of Cebu’s known trails. Another ran regularly, first around business districts in Mactan, then later on a campus oval after moving to Cebu.
Perhaps the inverse is also true. It is easier to sell when products are accessible, functional and reasonably priced. Or perhaps good service simply comes more naturally when the people selling believe in what they use.
Either way, it was a reminder that good taste, in retail, is often less about polish and more about sincerity.