I had been a regular customer of Presto since childhood. From the age of 6 or 7, this is where my mother would take me to by my sheet music, my reeds, all of my musical accessories and instruments.
Through my teens, I would visit to try and buy new instruments, buy jazz CD's, classical music, staff paper, really anything I needed.
I've since stopped visiting Presto, having noticed a strange shift in the behaviour of the staff towards me, especially by one particular person. I have been treated horrendously, once having been told by this staff member that they were 'surprised' that I was able to competently play one of their instruments (which I was intending to buy before that point).
On another occasion, I visited to enquire about instrument rental / hire services (which I later learned was not a service offered by Presto). Rather than receiving a polite response, I was instead told that, if I were to rent an instrument from them, it would probably be returned 'wrecked' , if at all. Needless today, this was incredibly strange and hurtful at the time and I left feeling both embarrassed and confused.
Sadly, these are not the only negative customer experiences I've had there in recent times, and I do not intend to return again. I've been followed around the shop while browsing, told off for testing instruments (while other customers were doing the same), having the instrument in question snatched out of my hands.
The staff (particularly the one i have mentioned) had no valid or apparent reason to make these assumptions or to treat me way. I am a relatively simple, quiet, and polite person. I dread to assume why this has happened; I would certainly hate to think this was racist or discriminatory behaviour on account of my dark complexion.
I am not a person typically taken to posting public reviews of any kind; however, in the absence of any other clear avenues to do so, I felt it important to express how upset and disappointed I am to have felt excluded arbitrarily from one of very few retailers I can honestly say is part of my identity and history as a musician and as a person, all due to the baffling, rude, and possibly discriminatory behaviour of the staff ( I say this tentatively and regretfull). read more