Parents/Kids Behaviour in Supermarket/Hypermart

[jtoh]

I am completely against parents letting kids play on toys as a form of baby-sitting. It’s just so annoying to other shoppers. If you have the intention of purchasing the toy, then by all means try it out. But you don’t need to try it out for a LONG time.


It’s the same with reading storybooks at Kinokuniya and Borders. Parents just leave their kids at the kids section with or without maids. I’ve heard parents tell the kids "you just stay here and read. I’ll go shopping and come back for you later." Hello! This is not free babysitting.

[corneyAmber]

jtoh:

I am completely against parents letting kids play on toys as a form of baby-sitting. It's just so annoying to other shoppers. If you have the intention of purchasing the toy, then by all means try it out. But you don't need to try it out for a LONG time.

Totally agree with you. Yes, it is alright to test out a toy/bicycle but like you said, is there a need to take such a LONG time to test it out?

[jedamum]

but if you are not in the queue to want to try it (even if you are, you can approach the sales staff for help), why deprive these other kids from having fun if they are not rowdy? (if rowdy of course not acceptable la). i am not sure of the situation, cos it can also be the case where the parents were undecided or unwilling to buy the bike and hope that the kid can outgrow his interest after numerous times of trying it out. let the sales staff handle such things. why get irritated?

on and off, we bring our kids to Big Toy Stores to 'play' toys (luckily it is big, so the amount of time we spent at each section should not cause any significant distress to shoppers) and we don't always buy any. We can't afford to buy and don't want to splurge on toys, so we bring them to 'try them out' at Toy Stores until the sales person chases us away (or, we can detect annoying looks).
i feel more sad than irritated when i see the kid trying out the toy for a long time but the parent did not or could not buy it for him. which kid would only want to try out the toy and not own it? it is the parents who are in the way of their 'happiness' :evil:. but there are also parents who gave in every time their kids whine for their fav toys. r they doing the right thing? seeing kids trying out the toy for a long time and after their parent told them that time's up and they leave without whining, shouldn't they get a pad on the back?
of course, the above don't apply to abuse to the stuff that they 'played'. my kids know that they had to take care of these shelve items even if they want to play with them. they have to make sure that they return it to the correct shelf after use (those Fisherprice toys price real ex!).
paisay, only my POV.

[sall]

Kids are kids, when they try on the bikes or basketballs or whatever, they will get carried away and get very rowdy. They will also bang into shelves or worse, other shoppers. They will not get bored and decide not to pester their parents to buy for them. For most of them, the parents have no intention of buying. I feel that it is wrong to play with all the toys or bikes and then leave. Some toys got spoiled and I often see the boxes are all so torn-up. How the store sells it to another customer? It’s just not fair to the store.

[autumnbronze]

For scenario 1:

I carry a pkt of milo and a cereal bar or some biscuits whenever DS is out with me - SOP one. Of course there were occasions when he saw Yakult or something that he wanted to have at that point of time. But he has been cautioned that he can only do so after we have paid. And just so to avoid further negotiations from him, I will tell him that I will give him the money to pay the cashier ... that makes him feel important and he looks forward to that, hence temporarily taking his mind off the item.

However, I suppose if its a genuine case of the child being hungry or thirsty, then I think its ok to cut some slack. But again, if such a scenario happens with my DS, and he is not able to sit out his thirst or hunger pangs for a while and I happen to forget to bring something for him to munch, I would relent but I would remind him that this cannot become a habit and that we have to pay for the items first before consuming.

For scenario 2:
I cannot really comment on this cuz we don't bring him out to hypermart/supermarket to play/try out with toys. He is usu with us and helps us buy groceries. The few times we have brought him to Toys R Us to purchase something for him, DH is there to supervise him. If he wants to play with the sample toys, he has to ask for permission, because from young, we have taught him not to anyhow touch things that don't belong to him. Of course now he is older, he is more curious and sometimes he forgets, but we will step in and reinforce.

[corneyAmber]

Well said, autumnbronze. Like what you and Jennifer said, good habits start from young and I am sure your sons will grow up to be well-behaved boys. :celebrate:

[autumnbronze]

Maid:

Well said, autumnbronze. Like what you and Jennifer said, good habits start from young and I am sure your sons will grow up to be well-behaved boys. :celebrate:

I hope so maid ... I hope so. I have always stressed around the forum that to me personally, having a sound set of values is very important.

I know its tough for parents .... always having to be alert and sounding like a broken record repeating instructions/reminders all the time .... but I am also confident that parents would reap the benefits of this 'hard work' in the long run

[corneyAmber]

autumnbronze:

I hope so maid ... I hope so. I have always stressed around the forum that to me personally, having a sound set of values is very important.


I know its tough for parents .... always having to be alert and sounding like a broken record repeating instructions/reminders all the time .... but I am also confident that parents would reap the benefits of this 'hard work' in the long run

Don't worry, I am sure they will. Good habits start from young and I can see that you have already done your part.

I am one example for you. I brought my boys up without the help of a maid and I am glad to say that my sacrifice has paid off. Worth every bit of sacrifice that I made.

[tutormum]

1. I have seen open packets with missing amount, put back on the shelves. Does it mean that if you have opened a packet and doesn't like the product you don't need to buy? Eating something that has not been paid is stealing. :stompfeet: As parents, we have to be mindful what we teach our children. Why go shopping when the children are hungry? Why can't parents feed them first? I would go shopping after lunch instead of before. If the situation arises, e.g. if the children are exceptionally thirsty and can't wait to get a drink, then the decent thing to do is to go to the counter to pay for that particular drink so that the item can be consumed before continuing to shop. Anything not paid still belongs to the store. period. Children need to learn to respect other people's properties.


2. If there is no intention to buy a toy, I'll never bring my children to the toy department. Why tempt the children if you have no intention of getting them any? Of course there are times when you need to buy one e.g. for special occasions like birthdays and the children may not fancy any after \"choosing\" and \"testing\". Choosing and testing a toy is fine but it's not fair to the store if it is treated as your own if you have not paid for it. If your children like it then pay for it and they can play it at home. If not, just move on and look for another. Would you buy a particular toy after knowing that other children have spend \"a long time\" playing with it? I'm sure after all the choosing and testing, the parents would want the sales assistant to give them a \"new\" one when they decided to buy. I'm sure the original poster find it repulsive when parents let their children treat the store as a playground and getting free play without any intention of buying. :spank: :spank:

[corneyAmber]

tutormum:

1. I have seen open packets with missing amount, put back on the shelves. Does it mean that if you have opened a packet and doesn't like the product you don't need to buy? Eating something that has not been paid is stealing. :stompfeet: As parents, we have to be mindful what we teach our children. Why go shopping when the children are hungry? Why can't parents feed them first? I would go shopping after lunch instead of before. If the situation arises, e.g. if the children are exceptionally thirsty and can't wait to get a drink, then the decent thing to do is to go to the counter to pay for that particular drink so that the item can be consumed before continuing to shop. Anything not paid still belongs to the store. period. Children need to learn to respect other people's properties.


2. If there is no intention to buy a toy, I'll never bring my children to the toy department. Why tempt the children if you have no intention of getting them any? Of course there are times when you need to buy one e.g. for special occasions like birthdays and the children may not fancy any after \"choosing\" and \"testing\". Choosing and testing a toy is fine but it's not fair to the store if it is treated as your own if you have not paid for it. If your children like it then pay for it and they can play it at home. If not, just move on and look for another. Would you buy a particular toy after knowing that other children have spend \"a long time\" playing with it? I'm sure after all the choosing and testing, the parents would want the sales assistant to give them a \"new\" one when they decided to buy. I'm sure the original poster find it repulsive when parents let their children treat the store as a playground and getting free play without any intention of buying. :spank: :spank:

Very well said, tutormum! :goodpost: :celebrate:

Senario #1 - My thinking is the same. If a child is really hungry/thirsty, then by all means, grab whatever's necessary, pay for it, let the child consume it before continuing with the shopping. Why teach a child that it is okay to consume first, then pay later, right?

Senario #2 - That was what I was trying to say! Parents treating the toys department like a playground without intention of buying, say a bicycle for example. I have seen groups of kids (think they were either siblings or cousins), racing each other down the aisles on bicycles, obviously having fun, and their parents behaving as it that's the most natural thing to do. :roll:

And yes, testing a toy with the intention of buying it is one thing, but what about bouncing the balls, throwing the balls at each other? Surely, these are not testing the toys? And besides, a ball is a ball, is there a need to test by throwing it at each other, and inconveniencing other customers in the process? :roll:

Yes, we may say that it is the job of the staff to put a stop to such behaviour, but the problem is that most times, the staff either pretends to close one eye for fear of offending the parents or they are too busy with other things to constantly keep an eye on the kids riding the bicycles, playing with the balls for eg.

At the end of the day, they are our kids and they are our responsibility and we have to guide them, and bring them up. It is just so lame to say that such behaviours are okay since the staff did not utter a word. :roll: