Okay. So...I've only posted a few reviews on Yelp, one of which was of the Chanel boutique at the Dallas Highland Park location. Chanel at 19 Rue Cambon, which is the location of the brand's original boutique. Bottom line: Show up early, on a weekday if possible, and absolutely be prepared to deal with a completely arbitrary, quite blatantly unfair/dishonest, absolutely infuriating "queuing" policy when waiting to be helped by a boutique sales associate. When you walk in--if the store is at all busy, hence my recommendation to go early--you will immediately be told that there is a "line" of customers ahead of you waiting to be helped. Of course, no problem. May I add my name to a list? No, there is no list, we will come and find you when it is your turn. Maybe twenty minutes. Um, okay. Who am I to argue with store policy? I politely take a seat in the store's show area, which is what I wanted to purchase that day. I'm happy to wait, people-watch, and gaze at all of the lovely shoes happily waiting to be tried on. Before I continue--and it feels almost stupid to mention something that shouldn't matter whatsoever--I should add that I made a point to visit the boutique looking my best, dressed in Chanel, etc. I'm no slouch, and am always VERY polite to high-end sales associates; I know that they have to deal with difficult customers on a regular basis. ANYWAY, I'm mentally taking note of other clients being helped to give myself an idea of how much longer I'll have to wait, and nearly an hour later, politely asked an SA when I might be helped. She assured me immediately "You are next on the list." Okay. As a second hour goes by, I watched, agape, as two other waiting customers asked the same question, and were given the exact same answer. And by far worst of all: at least four other individuals--I am not exaggerating--swept into the store, began grabbing shoes off of shelves and demanding the sizes they needed from the nearest SA. These people did not request a specific SA, which might indicate their being a VIP client. They were merely demanding, entitled, and obviously couldn't care less about the "order" of things. And amazingly...they were all assigned an associate within minutes. Politely, but clearly unhappy, I approached the same SA and asked again when I might be seen, pointing out that a number of people had just walked in and been seen immediately. She was apologetic and again assured me that I was next on the list. I sat back down. I was offered a beverage, requested an espresso, and was given a bottle of water. Twenty minutes later, I stopped a passing sales associate and repeated my question, and again, asserted that I had been waiting "in queue" nearly two hours for assistance, and had watched as quite a few other customers had been helped immediately after coming in and loudly grabbing/demanding products. Amazingly: she simply replied, "Yes." And again, let me emphasize--these people were not special or VIP with special privileges; they were simply rude. The moment I asked, which was the first and ONLY time I displayed noticeable anger, it was astonishingly suddenly my turn! An associate appeared within seconds! When I asked to try (and eventually purchase) four different pairs, I was suddenly attended to by a SECOND associate! Would I like another beverage? At this point, I was pretty seriously annoyed, so I simply replied, I had asked for a coffee, was given a bottle of water, and now I would like champagne--adding that I would need it to "relieve" the frustration of having been obviously passed over for hours, all because I had sat quietly and cooperatively as asked. A huge pour immediately appeared. And then a second, as I pretty much shotgunned the first glass to avoid killing someone. I wish I could say that this experience had been a one-off, but it unfortunately repeated itself with varying degrees of insanity at the multiple other locations I patronized, as well as at several other high-end boutiques. I should've been more suspicious when told I couldn't even give my name in order to wait, and that I would be "recognized;" sure. Recognized. At a boutique with hundreds upon hundreds of customers circulating in and out throughout the day. Maybe I feel so strongly because of a cultural bias towards fairness, waiting for one's turn, etc. (again, obviously I understand there are occasional VIP clients who work only with a specific SA, and are seen immediately). But I was shocked. Honestly felt a little dirty as I left $4000 poorer, having bought four pairs of shoes. I suppose as long as clients continue to spend, as I did despite my frustration, these brands can condone any type of client service they like. But man...I don't think I'll be back to a Chanel boutique anywhere in Paris, which is both ironic and a shame, considering the considering the significant VAT savings on retail prices. read more