Pakistan and customer service lessons for the UK

I’ve just got back from ten days in Pakistan (some work, lots of play.)

Admittedly it’s not your standard tourist destination but Lahore and the surrounding area had plenty to offer. Massive natural beauty, amazing architecture, great food and some of the best shopping I’ve ever experienced. Of course the country has problems aplenty; this is not the place to enter a debate on the crushing poverty, the dubious politics and the place of women.

Without wanting to trivialise these bigger issues, it occurred to me that when it comes to retail service, the country could teach the West a lesson or two. Of course in Pakistan, labour is cheaper and more plentiful and of course, as a rare Western visitor, you might claim that I enjoyed preferential service. Except I’m not sure that I did. I saw the same attentive service offered to those shopping around me.

My first stop was to pick up some locally made shoes. In a bustling family store there was a vast array of exotic design to choose from. There were banks of seats to sit on and mirrors aplenty (M&S, you could learn a lesson here). On a hot day (34 degrees C), our party of three was immediately offered a soft drink each. Bear in mind there were probably around 20 people in the small store, so it wasn’t a case of business being slow. There were plenty of staff on hand and they were responsive and knowledgeable.

Another lesson in efficiency came when buying petrol. In a busy forecourt, there were plenty of roving attendants ready with mobile card payment units and queues were not an issue.

Lawn fabric in use by Deepak Perwani 2012

Pakistan is famous for its textile industry – it has a “lawn season” at the start of each spring when stores large and small launch lightweight cotton designs from leading brands for the hot months ahead. My visit coincided with the season. Silks are also a tempting buy and anyone in the market for a proper Pashmina (100% fine cashmere) will be spoilt for choice.

I visited leading fabric emporium Saleem Fabrics which has, over 4 or more floors, the best range of materials I have ever witnessed. The salesmen, and they were all men, were happy to spread out as many bolts of fabric as we wanted to see. Nothing was too much trouble. Chairs were brought up – fabric buying is a serious business in a country where a huge amount of clothing is still made at home or by dressmakers. We were offered tea while we made our purchases. There was no pressure to buy and despite their broken English and our non-existent Urdu, they managed to communicate the qualities and uses of each material we were shown. Delighted with our selections, we were shown to the busy cash desk and the total cost was totted up – prices were clearly explained and calculators were whipped out to convert rupees into pounds without us even asking.

By this time we realised that superb service was par for the course. Soft furnishings is another area where Pakistan excels. We amassed gorgeous cushion covers and top quality, hand embroidered bedspreads. Laden down with purchases, the staff in Khaadi and others like it carried out bags from the shop and placed them in our car parked close by. Wow, I thought that only happened to oil barons and their chauffeurs outside Harrods!

Coming back to the UK was a shock to the system in so many ways. Despite the massive structural and cultural differences between the two countries, there really is much that the UK can learn from Pakistani customer service. Every day we read about another failing high street retailer. Last week it was Game. This week, somewhat ironically, Debenhams announced it is shutting down its Taunton-based customer service centre in favour of outsourcing. We read about the role of technology in both saving and destroying traditional retail. We read about promotional activity and shopper experience. Let’s not forget that almost every one of us has walked out of a store faced with a huge queue or surly service. But despite this, good old customer service as a way of building and preserving business seems to have been forgotten. Surely we’re missing a trick here?