Selfridge: The Life and Times of Harry Gordon Selfridge : Golgotha Press : 9781629179117 : 1629179116 : 31 Mar 2016 : Just for a moment try to put every shopping trip you've ever made out of your head. Imagine a different world. Imagine that all the goods for sale are locked away in cabinets and to handle them, or even to examine them closely, you need to ask a shop assistant to open it up for you. Imagine that within seconds of entering a store a floorwalker approaches you and asks if you're planning to buy something - then, when you say "I'm just looking," rudely tells you to leave. Imagine any attempt to return faulty or unsuitable goods being met with ridicule, obstruction or a flat refusal to help you. Until the late 19th century people didn't have to imagine that; it was reality. For anyone alive today a visit to the average store back then would convince you that they didn't really want to sell you anything. The idea of customer service was an alien one. Stores sold things. If