I spent 5 years in retail, and you're taking it way too personally. Dealing with assholes is part of the job, and there's a teachable series of steps that don't involve treating every customer with suspicion.<p>- It's not you. The first thing I was taught was that my customers have just spent an hour dragging two screaming toddlers around the store, they're approaching my checkout like an unexploded bomb. Part of my job is to defuse that, greet them with a smile. If they complain or snarl, listen reasonably and respond professionally. 99% of people who come across as jerks are just having a bad day, and often snap out of it with the right treatment. On the other side, if someone doesn't, don't feel bad, they don't even see you, it's all stuff in their head not anything you did.<p>- Quarantine. If someone is being abusive or swearing, have someone to escalate it to, and move it to a corner or other area away from the customer flow. Let them rant, try to listen to what they're saying, and offer to do something about the issues with concrete steps. Give them a coupon, but <i>make certain</i> you get down their name and address.<p>- Fire your worst customers. Once you have those names and addresses stored, when a new complaint comes up, check back. If someone's filed three complaints, give them a call or a letter explaining that you're really sorry they're having such a consistently bad experience at your store, maybe they should consider these alternative places to shop?<p>The trouble with the rules you posit is that they're recipes for escalation, and involve treating every customer with suspicion. There's the occasional true psycho that you end up calling security or the police on, but in almost all cases you can bring customers back to reasonableness. The only cost is to your own pride, but that's where the shield of professionalism comes in. You're treating them extremely well because that's your job, not because you like them.