Kay Miller was a friend of Sylvia's Separates owner Sylvia Matthews. When Elsie Howard went to the shop by appointment for a job interview in April 1976, the snobbish and rude Sylvia kept Elsie waiting like a drudge while she finished chatting to Kay who was visiting her. Elsie was sat just outside the curtained office and could hear every word of the long and trivial conversation. She managed to contain her temper both before and during the interview (after Kay had left) and was successful in gaining the job but the “demonstration” of Sylvia’s manners had shown her exactly what to expect from her new boss.