Is Customer Service a Thing of the Past?

[David D. Davidson]

It’s been over 5 years since I lived there but I they also had a popcorn machine running on Saturdays. Guess which days I would wait to get the things I needed?

I have a friend in Australia - apparently they have a hardware store called bunnings that offers weekly(ish?) sausage sizzles, they called it a Bunnings Snag!

I really think more stores should do the same. I would be much less opposed to my fiance dragging me out to run weekend errands if there were fresh grilled sausages everywhere we went. A man can dream.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I have a friend in Australia - apparently they have a hardware store called bunnings that offers weekly(ish?) sausage sizzles, they called it a Bunnings Snag!

I really think more stores should do the same. I would be much less opposed to my fiance dragging me out to run weekend errands if there were fresh grilled sausages everywhere we went. A man can dream.

Back in the 70's, when you walked into TG&Y, there was a large popcorn machine that filled the store with the mouth watering smells. And, almost all of the department stores had a cafe counter, where you smelled coffee and sandwiches.
Now, all we get is a Starbucks in Targets, which does nothing for me.

 

[sablebrush52]

It’s been over 5 years since I lived there but I they also had a popcorn machine running on Saturdays. Guess which days I would wait to get the things I needed?

Ashland Hardware has a popcorn machine going full speed during business hours. Love it!

 

[AroEnglish]

Ashland Hardware has a popcorn machine going full speed during business hours. Love it!

Man, these guys know how to run shops!

By the way, does Ashland still do the Shakespeare thing every year?

 

[warren]

The Ace Hardware I worked at for a few years kept fresh bowl of Amish Country popcorn available at all times. We sold a "shitload" of poppers, popcorn, popcorn salt and other toppings every day. A real profit maker! And, it was, in fact, the best pop corn I've ever tasted.

 

[pantsBoots]

Back in the 70's, when you walked into TG&Y, there was a large popcorn machine that filled the store with the mouth watering smells. And, almost all of the department stores had a cafe counter, where you smelled coffee and sandwiches.
Now, all we get is a Starbucks in Targets, which does nothing for me.

Ace Hardwares in middle Tennessee have popcorn machines. In unrelated news, they are my kids' favorite hardware stores!

 

[sablebrush52]

Man, these guys know how to run shops!

By the way, does Ashland still do the Shakespeare thing every year?

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is still happening. This might be its 90th year. Of course, they present more than Shakespeare, modern stage plays, experimental stuff, but Shakespeare is the backbone.

 

[kbussell]

So I just received a small order from WV Smokeshop with a couple ounces of LL7, some Sutliff Mocha Strips..and a 1 1/2 oz. package of Sir Walter Raleigh Regular...upon opening the pouch of SWR, the vinegar pouch smell was OVERWHELMIMNG!!
and trying to smoke it was pointless...it was sour and acrid, not the light burley taste typical of this blend.

The retailer, said it was because it got warm somewhere in transit, and the excessive heat made this happen.....now the other blends were fine. It came in a small cardboard box....and they WOULD NOT replace it, because it was not their fault.
I pitched it and will never buy from them again.
For the life of me, I cannot fathom being in business and refusing to try to satisfy a customer....the retailer said he didn't care, because he has loyal customers that have bought from him over twenty years.

Terry

That is terrible service... You won't receive that kind of treatment with Country Squire or tobaccopipes.com. I hope you have a better experience soon!

 

[Sigmund]

That is really stupid. You know they dont pay much for a tin. They could refund you and keep a customer. Now they have lost all future orders. Thats not just poor customer service. That is being an idiot.

You have heard about that heat wave between the East Coast and the EU....My calender says its Febuarury.

 

[Homer]

In january I asked the owner of williams estate briars would he give me discount of one pipe (previously I have ordered couple of pipes from him without any complaints).
First the reply was: no, full price.
10 min later he sent me another email: am I not alloved to make some money?
10 min later another mail: look pipes that you can afford. Don`t waste my time. Etc.

That was the first time that shopkeeper has sent me several insulting e-mails. Good luck for him. I won`t waste my money there anymore.

 

[Sigmund]

Wow, charming.
Im in business and some guys or repeat customers ask for a discount. Sometimes I give one. After all I occasionally run sales. It doesnt pay to be rude. You can always politely decline. There is a reason some businesses last while others fail.

 

[Cloozoe]

Numerous marketing studies have been conducted on this topic and all came to the same approximate conclusion: it costs about 20 times as much to gain a new customer as it does to keep an existing one. The guy in West Virginia opted to not keep an existing customer for a few bucks (if that; hard to imagine the distributor wouldn't make him whole). His call, but he'd never manage one of my stores. Penny-wise, pound-foolish.

 

[Non-Mentholated Black Man]

So I just received a small order from WV Smokeshop with a couple ounces of LL7, some Sutliff Mocha Strips..and a 1 1/2 oz. package of Sir Walter Raleigh Regular...upon opening the pouch of SWR, the vinegar pouch smell was OVERWHELMIMNG!!
and trying to smoke it was pointless...it was sour and acrid, not the light burley taste typical of this blend.

The retailer, said it was because it got warm somewhere in transit, and the excessive heat made this happen.....now the other blends were fine. It came in a small cardboard box....and they WOULD NOT replace it, because it was not their fault.
I pitched it and will never buy from them again.
For the life of me, I cannot fathom being in business and refusing to try to satisfy a customer....the retailer said he didn't care, because he has loyal customers that have bought from him over twenty years.

Terry

So I just received a small order from WV Smokeshop with a couple ounces of LL7, some Sutliff Mocha Strips..and a 1 1/2 oz. package of Sir Walter Raleigh Regular...upon opening the pouch of SWR, the vinegar pouch smell was OVERWHELMIMNG!!
and trying to smoke it was pointless...it was sour and acrid, not the light burley taste typical of this blend.

The retailer, said it was because it got warm somewhere in transit, and the excessive heat made this happen.....now the other blends were fine. It came in a small cardboard box....and they WOULD NOT replace it, because it was not their fault.
I pitched it and will never buy from them again.
For the life of me, I cannot fathom being in business and refusing to try to satisfy a customer....the retailer said he didn't care, because he has loyal customers that have bought from him over twenty years.

Terry

I just had the worst smoking experience of my life, with a pouch of Sir Walter Raleigh (Made in Denmark)
that I purchased/received from a different online retailer.
There was no errant smell or any other sign of something being amiss but upon attempting to light/smoke the shit, I encountered the most acrid vinegar taste that one could imagine.

I have no issue with the retailer, as the fault obviously lies with STG.

 

[BingBong]

Had a great CS experience with Smoke-King in the UK; I'd tacked 10g of St James Plug onto my order, never having heard of it before, but received St James Flake instead. A quick call revealed that it does really exist and I'm not just old and confused; someone had simply picked the wrong bag from a mixed drawer and the Plug was in the mail to me immediately, at no further cost. 10/10

 

[lupy1234]

Treasured Smokes made a mistake online but when I received the order, they threw in a coffee mug and corn cob pipe, along with an apology. So, in my eye, they made up for it.