Today I was called "bloody snotty" at work

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by limey

I work in a clothing and accessories shop, with most goods selling for around the $50 mark. In walks mother and 2 year old child, mother starts to try on slippers, child moves around fiddling with things. I see her taking childrens' goods off a display and politely say to her "Please don't do that." Mother takes an interest, gets the child away from the display, returns to her slippers. A little later child marches behind the sales counter, right beside me, and proceeds to stuff paper into a storage pigeonhole containing $40 leather gloves. I say "Don't do that, it's not for rubbish you know" keeping my voice pleasant. The child is not bothered and certainly not scared by me; the mother goes apeshit. "Go easy on her she's only two! In fact you I won't buy any slippers here if you're going to be so bloody snotty about it!" shoves slippers back at me and marches out.
So ... should I have addressed the parent ("Please stop you child from doing that") or the child? Was I snotty?

A very restrained response I would say on your part Limey. I would have told the mother to police up her spawn or I'm putting the child in the trash compactor. Of course like others have said, that is why I don't work in retail either.