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30 Funny Takes On The World Of Retail Employees By Stephen Beals (New Comics)
Interview With Artist
Get ready to dive into the retail world with Stephen Beals' latest "Adult Children" comics! If you've ever worked in customer service or just wondered what goes on behind the scenes, you're in for a treat. Stephen's witty humor brings everyday life situations in the retail sector to the forefront, shedding light on the struggles, interactions, and absurdities that retail workers face.
The artist started drawing comics as a way to unwind after work, turning everyday frustrations into funny art. Today, we bring you a fresh batch of his recent works, where every strip is a relatable slice of the daily grind. From amusing customer encounters to the dynamics among colleagues, Stephen captures it all in a way that'll have you nodding in recognition and chuckling at the universal truths of working in retail.
More info: Instagram | stbeals.com | twitter.com | Facebook | gocomics.com
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Anxious Aardvark 1 year ago
Remote tech support job. I did get to say this to several customers. Always managed to get a laugh, mostly because it was *after* I resolved their issue.
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Reenzy Bennington 1 year ago
LMAO we have a bakery like that, new employee every other week or month. But yeah, schedules are a thing. Everyone has to get their working hours. Whether it's 3 days in a row or 5.
We contacted Stephen again to learn more about the creative process, influences, personal experiences, and insights for aspiring cartoonists. We were curious to know if the artist has any routines or habits that help him create comics regularly and stay productive. He jokingly replied that, firstly, he sits down and gets comfortable. Not too comfortable, though, because he doesn't want to fall asleep. "Then I have to physically put my pen in my hand. If I don’t do that, I’m likely to start reading something, like Bored Panda. While Bored Panda can be a lovely treat during the day, it can also be a tool for procrastination for me."
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#2
Alex Ruddies 1 year ago
I'm going to use this...I'm also a manager so it should be interesting.
Reenzy Bennington 1 year ago
Karens need to learn that people at front desks or assisting them with their purchases or issues are QUALIFIED to answer any questions they might have and more often than not, managers don't even give a sh*t about anything other than profit and marketing. If you want your questions answered, talk to the employees. They work there every day. If they can't answer your questions, they will be the one suggesting you talk to their managers instead.
Alex Ruddies 1 year ago
Hey now, most retail managers don't even care about profit or marketing, that's the GM's and owners worry.
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#3
BookFanatic 1 year ago
I accidentally said that to a cop once. He stopped in and asked if there'd been any troublemakers today and I said "Well, now that you're here..." I meant to continue "...I'm sure there won't be" but he started laughing so hard I couldn't finish.
Rayne OfSalt 1 year ago
During my short stint in retail, I had one regular who, when he walked through the door, would point at me and yell "oi, you! I demand bad service, a terrible attitude and overpriced junk I don't need!" to which I would reply "you've got it, you filthy old degenerate bastard!"
Rayne OfSalt 1 year ago
It was great, up until the day it happened while there was upper management in the back of the store that I did not know about, who overheard everything and fired me on the spot, despite my regular's protestations that I was doing exactly what he wanted me to.
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Andrew Keir 1 year ago
"Truth" and "Tact" may start with the same letter, but that's as far as it goes
Stephen has mentioned before that his passion for comics was sparked by newspaper cartoonists from his childhood. When we asked the artist if there were specific cartoonists or comic strips that hold a special place in his heart, he replied, "If I'm rereading Calvin and Hobbes, it will brush off with me. Same with Bloom County and Peanuts. I've read so many, and there are many wonderful oldies. Lately, I've been checking old newspapers. If you go back several decades, you can discover comics that never made it to a book collection."
#4
Alex Ruddies 1 year ago
Well, considering inflation, gasoline is actually really cheap. I remember gas hitting 5 bucks a gallon back in 2005. If it were to hit 5 bucks now it still would be cheaper. That is unless you're from anywhere other than the U.S.. I lack the numbers to give you accurate numbers on petrol and liters in other countries.
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Khaled Shariff 1 year ago
It's not easy being over 40 and dealing with ageist stereotypes. I have to wear a suit and scarf to go shopping. These cartoons are understandable because retail people are abused regularly, but it's not just older people that do it.
Andrew Keir 1 year ago
You pay the posted price, Mister. And maybe tip your hairdresser a bit more next time?
#5
The Old Wolf 8 months ago
Custys will never u nderstand that retail employees don't give a rat's south-40 nor do they have authority to deal with your insane expectations.
Liz Jorgensen 1 year ago
I had a customer once tell me they had been shopping at my store for 10 years when we were open for 3
To add more intrigue, we asked Stephen to depict a typical day in his shoes as if his life were a comic strip. "I sort of do that now," the cartoonist shared. "A lot of things depicted in the comic aren’t too far off from my life. I think I would make myself an iguana with a cowboy hat. Nothing like an iguana in customer service. It would be my life with a little flair."
#6
John Truglio 1 year ago
This also works for the ultra high workers and occasional one tripping on LSD.
#7
If you aspire to be a comic artist, Stephen has some advice for you! "Do what interests you. If you try and guess what people will like, it most likely won’t work. Have fun. That’s the most important."
#8
Thomas Helms 1 year ago
I say "I'm still alive," which can be taken factually, sarcastically, or optimistically; I leave up to the other person to figure out which way that want to hear it; most of the time, they take it as dark humor and laugh.
Louise Clarke 1 year ago
The only time I didn't say I was fine was when I was buying ice cream and a plushie, because it was obvious I wasn't.
Caliban Taylor 1 year ago
If we started talking about our problems rather than hiding them maybe we’d all feel a little less stress because we can help each other carry the burden. 🔩 the social contract!
#9
* * * Being_Cori * * * 1 year ago
I wish employee could say this to customers and not get fired
CoCo 1 year ago
I have told customers that and didn't get fired. I was also the boss 😉 I've even spun around on a few that asked for a manager 🤣
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Lotekguy 1 year ago
The customer is always right. That could mean correct or right out of touch with reality, or right out of their minds.
P R 1 year ago
The "customer is NOT always right". Don't know where that phrase originated, nor why people keep repeating it.
Load More Replies... Andrew Keir 1 year ago
Some customers really ought to be told the truth, but they never are. Could there be a causal link here?
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Reenzy Bennington 1 year ago
Seriously. I'll sit at my desk for hours, nothing happens. I go to pee, the phone starts ringing, people come in from the street, and I have three new e-mails to reply to.
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Andrew Keir 1 year ago
If only there were some answer to "Now let me tell you...." that stopped them. But there isn't
Lotekguy 1 year ago
"That’s beyond my pay grade. Let me find a manager for you. "
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Natty Tempest 1 year ago (edited)
I got in trouble with my boss for making a sign that said "time-wasting queries will result in a fee or barring". I had it up for two days and oddly had MORE customers come to me... Apparently I looked smart 😐
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John Truglio 1 year ago
Please!!! We're not ever living in a place without water and oxygen. Let's shoot the trash to Mars!
#17
Michael Smith 1 year ago
Everyone should work in retail at least once, so they get a feel for what retail workers experience.
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#19
John Smith (he/him/xy/️) 1 year ago
If EVERYONE HATES shop jingles, why do manglers keep putting them on? I bet it drives people out of stores faster instead of getting them to buy more...
Rayne OfSalt 1 year ago
I did a christmas stint in a retail store. Corporate began playing xmas songs non-stop from Nov 1st. But they were cheap, and only bought licenses for 7 songs. 1 Michael Buble song, 5 that were utterly miserable songs recorded in the 1920s, and that she-who-will-not-be-named song. I heard that song 2 and a half times an hour, every hour, for 10 hours straight, 6 days a week, for 3 months. I should have sued them for psychological torture.
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Alex Ruddies 1 year ago
The more I read this, the more I realize that the blond woman is just a gender swapped me.
Thomas Helms 1 year ago
Listening to "Last Christmas" on repeat while working retail was just adding depressing on depressing.
David Martin 1 year ago (edited)
Listen to 'Fairytale of New York' by The Pogues. Best xmas carol ever...
Tiddlez 1 year ago
Heard a surprising lack of Mariah Carey last Christmas but there was a lot of that annoying Justin Bieber song that sounds like he's trying WAY too hard to be like Child Michael Jackson
David Martin 1 year ago
Listen to 'Fairytale of New York' by The Pogues. Best xmas carol ever...
Load More Replies... The Original Bruno 1 year ago
Paul McCartney made some great music, but it's awfully hard to forgive "Simply having a wonderful Christmas time." Also, I hate to p**s on Live Aid, but come on, "where no rivers flow" is home to the world's longest river. And yes, they know it's Christmas, they just celebrate it in when we call it January.
David Martin 1 year ago
Listen to 'Fairytale of New York' by The Pogues. Best xmas carol ever...
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robin miller 1 year ago
"Well I wish it could be Christmas everyday-ha-ha-hay !!!"
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#22
Andrew Keir 1 year ago
Cunning - now he can say she answered "yes" when he offered extra hours
Sans Serif 1 year ago
No need to worry about Tabby, she's quite slippery - almost like Teflon...
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#23
#24
SolitaryIntrovert 1 year ago
I remember a time over 30 years ago when I was working at a station with Lotto, when we had lines 6-7 hours long.
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#27
HTakeover 1 year ago
Had that happen to me at an office supply store. Couple came in, decided to buy a large flat pallet desk & office chair. They pulled up in sedan. I offered to have our shipper drop it off no charge but they insisted. I managed to wrangle it all in but the passenger had to wriggle under it and basically lay down in the back seat with the front seat back laid over them. So I joked that hopefully they're close by. Nope, 2 hours away. o0
Khavrinen 1 year ago
Back in the '90s I was working at a video arcade where people could buy the game cabinets during the holiday season. I had a guy buy one who was driving a VW Golf Cabriolet, and that's just what we did: put the top down and loaded it into the back seat. ( I asked him several times, "Are you *sure* this is what you want?" ) Don't know how he got it out again when he got home.
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HTakeover 1 year ago
Ha, right. I've known plenty of rig workers and the gossip is RIPE.
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#29
Natty Tempest 1 year ago
So much sass for someone who would fit in my back-pack! (an actual threat I gave to a co-worker... After hours, we tested this and found that yes. He would fit in my back-pack... No, I'm not operating 'Yoda Uber'!)
David Martin 1 year ago
You're the epitome of people who can't - teach...
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#30
Joshua Devey 1 year ago
I think the machine is saying that when the machines take over, the privilege of not going to work due to holidays will cease. The robot overlords will force everyone to keep working. At least, that's my interpretation.
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#33
Anxious Aardvark 1 year ago
Always loved it when HR would provide management research articles that showed that money doesn't motivate employees. Pointed out that paying employees less than local competitors provides employees to leave.
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#35
Natty Tempest 1 year ago
He stacked that shelf and she's got buns in her oven... ... I'll let myself out.
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#43
Anxious Aardvark 1 year ago
At one job, our manager had a 10'x10' office with a locking door. He lost his temper one day and told five of us to have our shift change briefing in our office. With the door closed. Which was a 3'x5' coat closet. Sanity was not strong in that one.
#50
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What do you think ?
Dagnirath 1 year ago
I really like this comic and tried to add it to the ones I follow regularly, but the website is almost unnavigable on mobile.
Stephen Beals 1 year ago
Are you talking about my website or on GoComics? Honestly, GoComics is the better site.
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Cold Eagle 1 year ago
I always enjoy these. They help sooth the pain left by over a decade in retail in my early career.
Apatheist Account2 1 year ago
These seem to be predominantly festive, not everyday...and a couple of months late.
Dagnirath 1 year ago
I really like this comic and tried to add it to the ones I follow regularly, but the website is almost unnavigable on mobile.
Stephen Beals 1 year ago
Are you talking about my website or on GoComics? Honestly, GoComics is the better site.
Load More Replies... Cold Eagle 1 year ago
I always enjoy these. They help sooth the pain left by over a decade in retail in my early career.
Apatheist Account2 1 year ago
These seem to be predominantly festive, not everyday...and a couple of months late.
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