'90s directory woman’s 'Google-like' skills at mall have people feeling nostalgic: 'Miss those days'

The 90s era was surely a vibrant and energy-packed one. Even malls were excessively crowded for their shopping, and eateries outlets. The craze to be at a mall back in the day was so much greater that people were hired as directory personnel and concierges to help customers find their way to the stores. @whentiwasthen, a page dedicated to sharing invaluable experiences from the good old days, shared precious footage from the Woodfield Mall. In a still from a day in 1991, a woman is seen helping a massive crowd of people with directions in one of Schaumburg’s populated malls in Illinois.

The woman was standing by a reception and one after the other, people hurried over to ask her the locations of stores they wanted to visit in the mall. What’s baffling though, is that the woman knew each area like the back of her hand. With pure professionalism and much enthusiasm, she directed each customer to their various spots by making directions super easy for them. In one of the instances, a woman approached the directory and asked her about a restaurant. However, she wasn’t sure of the name. “There’s a restaurant here,” she said before muttering a few words that only the woman at the directory understood. 

She immediately figured out the place she was talking about. “Down here, left-hand side. Just go straight down here, on the left-hand side,” she said, as she pointed out the directions for the woman. Another man asked immediately after, “Excuse me, where’s Ruby Tuesdays?” “On the top, to the right, next to Penny's” she added, hinting towards the directions with her hand gestures. The woman quickly responded, “On the upper level by JC Penny’s.” The woman knew where every store, restaurant, outlet and every other space was.

Moreover, the skilled woman used no references to assist her but confidently shared the precise locations with customers. Each person approached her looking for some random space all over the mall but she quickly and flexibly accommodated all of their needs. In a matter of a minute, the woman had helped over 5 customers one after the other. 

The woman has left several people mind-boggled with her refreshing knowledge and efficiency. @brutbear wrote, “I miss the 90s. Something about it was so comforting.” @finaa1313 added, “She was actually ‘Google.’” @talkstohawks mentioned, “They replaced this sweet lady with the ‘You are here’ maps.” @m3gannottheestallion added, “She was amazing at her job.” @lostheaten wrote, “Unfortunately that late-stage cost-cut all these personal jobs. Replaced a smile with a screen.”  @kyleechristine__ said, “Everything was so lively back then. It’s so sad now.”

You can follow (@whenitwasthen) on TikTok for more nostalgic and wholesome content.