Russia's retail workers smile more than America's, in shocking reversal

When McDonalds opened its first store in Russia back in 1990, one of the biggest challenges was getting employees to smile.We were always a little bit afraid of Americas smile, a former worker from that McDonalds told Alix Spiegel in the podcast Invisibilia.Three decades later, things have changed radically.Russia's retail workersnow smile more than Americas, according to the 2016 Smiling Report, compiled by Better Business World Wide from more than 1 million mystery shopper evaluationsacross a spectrum of industries.Russia ranked 10 on the Smiling Report with 90% ofretail workerssmiling. This is a major improvement from 2005, when only 45% smiled.Americaonce famous for its smiling customer serviceranked 19 at 87%.What changed'For one thing, Russians liked the mood at that first McDonalds.Everywhere else you go it was just gloomy and dark and dirty and there were troubles, stress, and you come to McDonalds and it'severybody's always happy and you see smiles, Chekalin told Invisibilia.Over time the smiling culture caught on.For one thing, Russians have realized that polite employees boost sales and attract clients, Oxana Aukchenkova of the mystery shopper organization NEXTEP told Russia Beyond The Headlines.The region that smiles least these days is Asia, with clerks smiling at customers only65% of the time.SEE ALSO:24 tips for understanding RussiansJoin the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: How to get a ton of food at Chipotle for under $5
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