A SPECIALITY grocery store owner is charging customers to browse after becoming fed up with people who enquire but don't buy.

A poster telling customers they'll be charged $5 for browsing if they don't purchase anything has been put up at Celiac (sic) Supplies in the Brisbane suburb of Coorparoo, Reddit user BarrettFox reported.

Owner of the gluten free produce store, Georgina, says she resorted to putting up the sign after spending hours each week giving advice to people who leave empty-handed.

Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmerman says charging customers to browse will likely turn people away.

He says a few stores in Queensland are charging to try on shoes or clothing but this is the first time he's heard of a browsing charge.

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Personally I wouldn't be setting foot through the door of any of them - charged for trying on shoes?

Bonkers, strike another one for on-line shopping.

I hope they go bankrupt.

Speciality store ... Ffff, just eat a freaking doughnut.

Next it will be Ann Summers

How are they going to enforce it? Put up a notice on the door and hope people don't laugh at them?

Someone should go in there, and when presented with the demand for $5, give them a $20 invoice for the opportunity presented to entice them into buying. There is good money in providing leads for things like solar systems and utility supply.

Once again, Australian suppliers act like they have no idea of customer focus.

Sounds like she should charge for advice not browsing! People browse so they know what you sell so that they know where to go if they need stuff. If you can't browse you don't buy.
If she had any sense she would make her advice into leaflets and charge a few dollars for them

Why doesn't she put up a sign saying she will match or beat competitors prices (and take down the $5 charge sign.)

I would avoid any business that charged for browsing.

The GF products are already horrendously expensive - over $8 for 4 small hot cross buns.

I do go to my local specialty store when I can't get the stuff at the supermarket, and I usually do buy something, but if I was to be charged $5 for stepping through the door, I wouldn't visit at all.
This shop owner is "cutting off her nose to spite her face" as they say.

I'd love to go in there and let her try to make me pay $5. What's she going to do if I refuse? Call the police?

I am always surprised that Dymocks has not gone under, seeing as the place is full of people killing time reading books and magazines from front page to back cover.

In WH Smiths in the UK the magazine aisle is usually full of people reading the mags, surprised they ever sell any.

Anyhoo, this women charging $5 to look is abviously a loon.

She looks the picture of health too ...
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/quee...327-2gu2v.html

I don't think I'd want any health advice from her!

She seems like a nice woman though.
Apparently, "handicaps" don't get charged

It must be said, this shop owner has received thousands of dollars worth of advertising... just a pity she has blown it by standing by her error.

She should have used the media coverage to back down on the $5 fee and to launch an informative web site and offer price matches to all comers.

Business could have boomed...

It's clear she's pissed off and is trying to do something about it - but it backfired.

As for people taking the piss, I don't think I could ever be an independent retailer I would be wondering about everyone who wandered in. Are they serious? Do I need to talk to them? Let it through to the keeper? Do I need to look nonchalent like I don't care? People often talk about customer service or lack thereof, but it must be hard at times.

I imagine that these shops must sell something...it's just that there are no sales when I am in there...there is a clothes shop in Berwick which sells marked-up country clothes. Why would you buy? They must rely on gifts, and last minute impulse, or people who really don't care and want the quality and can overlook the price.

As for WhSmith, et al...I think people take the piss because they know the chain can absorb it! I used to spend hours in Waterstones etc.

Back in my days working for Waterstones/Sherratt and Hughes we used to have regulars who would wander in once every few days to read the next chapter of various books we did end up with some dogeared write-offs, which the staff then got cheap but we also had a fantastic reputation for not hassling people and it often paid off as people would comment they felt comfortable browsing for the right titles and taking their time, as opposed to a couple of other local booksellers who weren't quite so tolerant.

Very 20th Century thinking of her ...

Wise words, capitalise on the exposure rather than look like a sour old hag.

From comments elsewhere it appears that some of the gluten-intolerant locals don't shop there anymore due to her attitude ... And this was before the browsing fee thing ...