Read the following passage and answer the questions given below:
Mr. Robinson looked a trifle disconcerted but asked me how long I would be in London. I told him that I was visiting friends in the country and Scotland and would be back after four weeks or so, for a few days before taking a flight home. He pursed his lips and said, “I’m terribly sorry but much as I would like to help, I can’t do it.” I said, “Is the time too short?” To which he answered, “No it’s not that.”
“Then what’s the problem?” was my next query. “Well you see ………” At which point. I turned on all my persuasive skills and invoked the name of my father. Mr. Robinson looked at me with half a smile on his face and said, “That’s it precisely. Because you are the son of an old and valued customer of ours, I will not accept your order.”
He must have seen the look of bewilderment on my face, and quickly went on to explain. “Now – a – days we do not do the tailoring ourselves. We send the order to Hong Kong but the finished product goes under our label. Now you know why I have decided not to sell you the suit.”
As I prepared to leave, Mr. Robinson shook me warmly by the hand and escorted me to the door. I stepped out on the street with mixed feelings. Disappointment at not getting my suit, but gratitude for the man’s candour.
1. Choose the correct alternative and write the complete sentence. The writer left the shop with
i. mixed feelings ii. disappointment iii. Gratitude.
The writer left the shop with mixed feelings.
2. In what words does Mr. Robinson describe the writer’s father?
Mr. Robinson describes the writer’s father as an old and valuable customer.
3. Why was the writer not disappointed but grateful to the man?
The writer was not disappointed but grateful to the man for his candour – his honesty about the change in their policy of tailoring suits.
4. a. Now – a – days we do not do the tailoring ourselves. (Add a question tag)
Now – a - days we do not do the tailoring ourselves, do we?
b. I decided to visit Sarville Row.
I took a decision to visit Saville Row.
5. a. Give another word for the phrase ‘quality of being truly honest”
candour.
b. Match the following nouns in column A with their meanings in Column B and rewrite them;
Column A | Column B |
i. gratitude ii. bewilderment | a. confusion b. question c. thankfulness |
i. gratitude thankfulness
ii. bewilderment confusion
6. The story conveys a message in a very subtle manner. Can you guess the message?
The subtle message is very clear and evident. The main goal of running a business is definitely the ‘monetary outcome’. However one must not try to achieve this at the cost of customer dissatisfaction. One of the essentials of business is ethics. Honesty and Integrity should be the foundation of client or customer service.