There’s nothing better when you’re out shopping than a helpful assistant who makes you aware of the latest offers, sends you back to shelves to collect any freebies you’ve overlooked and answers your queries informatively and with enthusiasm.

Now, there’s a lovely lady who works on the till at my local Boots store who always has a smile, a few friendly words and plenty of chat for my young sons. Not only does she hand over the vouchers you receive for spending over a certain amount of money - she explains them in full - what you can redeem them against and when they need to be used by. I appreciate this attention as it makes me feel important, as a customer.

The question is, is there such a thing as overdoing it? Can you be too attentive and try too hard too please the customer? No, I’m not being cynical, it’s just that as I stood waiting to be served in Boots today, listening to the lady in question explain in great detail to the customer at the till how she could get a replacement Advantage Card, I was impressed by her helpfulness (going above and beyond), but also quite aware of the huge queue of Christmas shoppers forming behind me. The lovely Boots Lady seemed blissfully unaware of this, and when it was my turn, had all the time in the world to chat to me too. I wonder if she’s up for Employee of the Year. If she’s not, it’s my opinion that she should be and hey, who can have cause for complaint about queuing when they’re treated like the most important customer in the world when they finally reach the till!