The good neighbor
Most of the time, I entertain myself looking at the shelves that are conveniently placed in front of the cash register and end up buying something sweet, or gloriously unnecessary to brighten my mood.
It was different this time. As I was fighting boredom standing in line at ‘my’ Budni (the most popular drugstore chain in Hamburg), I noticed the perfect pair of baggy pants for lounging around on the weekends on a display, and was wildly determined to take them home with me.
The thought of wearing these comfortable, yet stylish pants improved my mood even without chocolate. I decided to give up my spot in line to look for the right size pants. To my utter disappointment, they did not have them in my size!
Bummer!
I had lost my pole position in line and my good mood along with it.
At that moment, the team leader, Enrico Bauer, walked by and stopped for a brief chat, friendly as always, despite the Saturday madness. I told him about my disappointment and he promised to check with the supplier at the next delivery date to see if they had my size. He said it could take a while, though, and we parted ways.
When I got to the cash register, I noticed a post-it note with a smiley face and the words “Have a great weekend!”, and I decided to do just that.
Weeks later
When I had long given up hope for my baggy pants, I received a phone call from the Budni service center. The friendly lady told me that Mr. Bauer was holding the pair of pants for me at my local store!
I was thrilled!
It’s great to bare witness when advertising slogans are not just that, but truly a standard to live by: “Budni – Building good neighborly relations“. And neighbors are people that take care of one another.