Brutally Honest

After shopping and primping before going out last weekend, I realized that I must share a fascinating aspect of the culture here. The sales people at the stores have no problem telling you what they think.

I brought one cocktail dress with me from home but for some unknown reason, I neglected to bring the shoes that I would normally wear with it. After packing up an entire household to move, I'm not going to give myself too much grief for the oversight but I was still a little disappointed. So, I made a trip to my local department store Takashimaya in search of dressy shoes.

I tried on 5-6 different styles of shoes. I had two sales ladies helping me and they just couldn't help but share their thoughts about my choices. First, they insisted that one pair were too big because you could see a sliver of shoe behind my right foot. My feet are almost a half size different, so when faced with the choice of either having to cram my foot into the smaller size or having a little shoe left over with a larger pair, I tend to opt for comfort. They found this bizarre. And apparently even my feet are fat in Asia because the shoes I tried on were too snug around my toes unless I went up a half size. In the end, I chose the most comfortable pair and the woman said, "I think that for YOUR feet, this is the best style for you." Gosh, that made me feel so good!

I had a manicure/pedicure one afternoon and after choosing the nail polish color for my toes, the nice ladies went to work on beautifying my "fat" feet. The woman filing my fingernails noted that my index finger nails were shorter than my others and asked if I wanted them all that short. "No, that's okay. They can be a little shorter." When it came time to paint my fingernails I inquired about a french manicure. Her reply: "You have 2 fingernails shorter than the others. It will look untidy with white tips." She then filtered the response by saying, "Of course, we can still do it if you REALLY want." I could see her point and ended up with colored polish instead.

Overall, I don't really mind that they share their opinions. Many times when I'm shopping, I need an honest second opinion if I'm unsure about a purchase. But, I could also see where it could get irritating if you don't really care what they think! And if you feel good about something only to hear criticism from a stranger, that would ruin the fun. What strikes me most is that it's just so different than in the States where they typically just want the sale and will give you a lukewarm, "That looks cute!"

In Singapore, I will know they are telling me the truth, however unpleasant it may be.