“Bonjour” “Good day” “Góðan dag”
French, English or Icelandic, no matter the language, it is expected that when a shopper enters a store in Europe they will greet the shopkeeper. And of course, the shopkeeper will respond in kind.
The reason for this is a matter of perspective. In the United States, customers view stores as a public place. But in Europe, stores are viewed as private property. Just as you would never enter someone else’s private home without greeting them, you would likewise never enter a “private” store without a greeting.
“The formal opening by Field, Leiter & Co., of Potter Palmer’s new marble palace on the corner of Washington and State streets, last evening, was the grandest affair of the kind whichever transpired, even in Chicago, the city of grand affairs,” reported the Chicago Tribune about the opening of the Field, Leiter & Company’s new store on Chicago’s State Street on October 12th, 1868.
The Observant Customer 