From the customer side, I give my gratitude to the salespeople who don't examine my shoes, my handbag, my jewelry, etc., to decide if they're going to be kind to me. I was once kicked out of an antique store in Sausalito, CA because I wasn't dressed like I had money. I recently paid for my brand new piano in cash, and one of the main reasons I can do that is because I don't spend very much on clothes, cars, shoes, watches, etc. I budget tight for most things so I can buy the piano, or the painting, or preferred seats at a concert. Being treated unkindly at the antique store has made it very hard for me to go into a piano store, because other people's cruelty really hurts my heart, and I feel afraid. I had to be very brave to shop for my piano, and I bought at the store I did because the salesperson was polite and kind to me, and let me play any piano in the store for as long as I wanted, even though all I could play was little tunes from a level 1 method book. I made sure to tell the store manager how grateful I was for the service, and he said it's their policy. They treat everyone the same way, and they give you the amount of attention you want, not more, not less. (The only thing I didn't love was their brand bashing Kawai, because my next piano will be an SK, count on it.)
So I'm really grateful for good piano stores. With all my heart. ❤️