% Convenience Store Interaction Report – 2025-12-01 % An M. Rodriguez % December 1, 2025 ## One-Sentence Summary Report of an interaction in which a cashier attendant stated that an item was unavailable despite it being present in the display directly in front of them. ## Abstract This report documents a brief interaction at a convenience store in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York. The purpose is to record the sequence of events involving a request for an electronic lighter and the attendant’s responses. ## Report Info - Date: 2025-12-01 - Place: Kew Gardens, Queens, New York City, NY 11415, USA ## Keywords customer service, retail interaction, product inquiry, electronic lighter ## Introduction This report summarizes a retail encounter involving a request for an electronic lighter at a convenience store in an affluent Queens neighborhood. ## Observations - The customer entered a convenience store in Kew Gardens (ZIP 11415) to buy lighters. - The customer specifically sought **electronic lighters**, distinct from traditional mechanical lighters that use a friction wheel. - The electronic lighter in question uses an electronically generated spark. - When asked whether the store had electronic lighters, the attendant replied: **“No, we don’t have.”** - Upon looking at the display, the customer observed that the store **did** carry electronic lighters. - The attendant had not acknowledged their presence before the customer pointed them out. - After the customer noted, smiling: *“You don’t know your merchandise, there they are, the electronic lighters,”* the attendant appeared slightly upset. - The attendant then pointed at traditional lighters, not recognizing the electronic ones beside them. - The interaction suggested that the attendant did not identify or distinguish the electronic lighters from the mechanical ones. - Despite the affluent ZIP code, the attendant did not demonstrate engagement or interest in assisting beyond the initial response. ## Discussion The events show that the attendant did not register the requested product even though it was visible in the display. This lack of recognition persisted even after the customer identified the correct item. The encounter appeared to reflect a lack of care either for the store’s merchandise or for the customer as another person, expressed in the form of low attention, low engagement, and failure to identify the relevant product. ## Conclusion Electronic lighters were present in the store, yet the attendant initially stated they were not. The discrepancy between availability and acknowledgment was observed directly during the interaction. No explanation was offered by the attendant. ## About Author(s) An M. Rodriguez, an@preferredframe.com, https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9098-9468