Horrible experience at Pharmacie Lafayette in Toulouse. Fairly regular customer at this store, the staff had always been polite and the store is reasonably staffed. Like many stores in France you check in your bag or have them check it on the way out, pretty creepy but you get used to it. I wanted to buy aspirin and asked staff near the pain medicine and was told they do not sell aspirin and they suggested a regular pharmacy. On the way out I walked through the security gate and smiled at the regular security person. He mumbles something and I ask him to please repeat. He claims he saw me put something in my pocket on the computer screen. I told him that was not possible, I had not touched a single product, just asked the friendly staff if they had aspirin and left, maybe 3 minutes if that. he repeated that he wanted to search my person and of course I took offense. I told him I was not familiar with the laws in France and I suggested that this was illegal (in Canada you could find yourself on the wrong side of the law for frivolous searches). I asked him which pocket he wanted to search and he could not tell me. I then suggested that he had seen nothing and was making this all up. One of his colleagues then became verbally abusive, suggesting that I had no right to ask about the laws of France and that it was the store regulations. I took off my coat emptied my pockets and asked them what other violation of my privacy did they want. They did not touch my items or attempt to search me. I feel they should have been polite and cooperated in my desire to know if they were protected by french law. They failed to communicate that I could leave or what they wanted, when I left I wasn't even sure they were not going to assault me and try to beat me up. In spite of this bad experience I have to blame the management of this store for very poor training and supervision of their security staff. In sixty years I have never been so badly treated and insulted by a merchant. Although the store selection is fine there is virtually nothing that I can't buy online elsewhere. It shocks me that they were so rude with a customer and could not answer very simple questions. Obviously I don't feel safe shopping at the Parapharmacie Lafayette and do not recommend the store chain and the unsafe shopping experience to other shoppers, friends and family. read more
