Cafe owner charges rude customers double: 'If they don't use their manners I point to the sign'
Watch: UK cafe owner charges rude customers more than double the price
One cafe owner full of character has decided to charge his customers more than twice as much if they don't order politely.
Chaii Stop in Preston has even introduced a new tier system rule to help anyone who walks through the door remember their manners, with the cost depending on how nice they are.
Usman Hussain, 29, opened the already very popular shop selling chai, doughnuts, breakfast, street food, desserts and more in March this year.
He recently displayed a sign pride and centre explaining the cafe's new rule, and breaking down the costs for each 'level' of politeness, or indeed rudeness.
The sign lists that if someone just walks in and says "Desi Chai" they'll have to part with as much as £5, but if they ask "Desi Chai, Please" the price becomes £3.
And if they say "Hello, Desi Chai Please", deemed the most polite option, the hot beverage will only cost £1.90.
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While Hussain admits the shop has so far never experienced any particularly bad-mannered customers on the whole (we wonder why), he hopes the rule will encourage more people to open up and echo the cafe's very proud culture of "good vibes only", with him already noticing a difference.
"I think it's a nice reminder to use your manners, because unfortunately sometimes we do need reminded," the soon-to-be dad-of-two explains
"We've never struggled with rude customers but since having the sign people are definitely coming in more open and having a laugh with us."
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The atmosphere and environment of the cafe is everything to Hussain.
"To me, the most important thing in my business is to walk through the door and be treated like you're a welcome guest in our home.
"It's nice to have that respect reciprocated."
Hussain explains he was inspired years ago from a post he saw on Facebook of an American cafe that had used the same rule.
He kept the picture in his camera gallery for two years before he absentmindedly stumbled across it again recently, and felt like it was the perfect thing to test out in Chaii Stop.
"I decided to bring the idea into our shop because it fit perfectly into our concept," he says.
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And as soon as the sign went up, all the staff at the shop experienced customers being much more friendly when they came in. It has also prompted lots of conversation and laughs – while still reminding people not to leave their manners at the door.
So far, Hussain has been fairly kind with the new rule, confessing they haven't yet actually had to charge someone the top price of £5 for their drink, because it's rarely necessary.
But, as a soft warning, he says, "If a customer doesn't use their manners I point to the sign, and they immediately ask again more politely.
"A lot of people can be quite rude in the mornings while they're waking up but when they see the sign it makes them think."
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Hussain also acknowledges, "At the end of the day you never know what someone is going through to make them act rude, but it helps them to drop their guard."
But as a perfect fit for Chaii stop, he adds, "It gets them all talking – like an icebreaker – and that's what we're all about.
"Any negativity gets left at the door."
And, clearly a fan of signs, if you need any more reminding of the cafe's culture, the large illuminated words that are displayed read, "Good Vibes Only".
Additional reporting SWNS.
