Hello all!
So, it's that time of the year where I send out a missive into the void in the vain attempt to vent frustrations.
Many years ago, I started this business thinking that I would help provide items to people who wanted to use their retro gear. I would do it in the mindset that I always have for myself: Do the best job possible and cut a lot of slack for things to go wrong.
Then people got involved. As the saying goes, "I used to be a people person, but people ruined it for me."
We used to not have a return policy and then people started returning things two months after they received them because "it was too expensive." EVEN then, if something was allegedly not working, we would offer to take it back and check it out. Even if it was three months after the sale. If the item truly wasn't working, then we would repair or replace it and return it to them, no charge. If it was working and simply user error, we would only ask for them to pay for the return shipping.
Now, when people do not avail themselves of that offer, they open PayPal cases (this is also why we have deceased our presence on eBay: too many "missing packages" and eBay just taking our money, not to mention the fact that the selling fees are an OUTRAGEOUS 15% or more!).
So, what does all of this mean to you? Well, we were going to close for the summer, but I was going to keep the site open and just handle the orders every other week. As a result of recent customer behavior, however, we're done. We were feeling like Danny Glover as it was (getting too old for this s***), but now we are definitely set. We will be back in the fall (probably) and we will definitely be at PRGE in October since we paid for a table already.
Also, we always tell you what is up with your build to order items on a regular basis. We always answer your emails in a quick and--usually--cheery manner. So, it's not like we're asking you to cut us some slack. All I am expecting is that if you place an order, you do so knowing what the rules are and what you are ordering.
Now, I know that this will make exactly zero difference in the retro world. The dog will bark and the caravan will move on without us. But maybe, just maybe, the next time someone starts a "What's wrong with 'X retro company'" thread somewhere one or two of you will smack the OP back to reality and remind them that perhaps they not poke the bear of those people still insane enough to do this on a regular basis.
Sorry to hear that, but I understand – All of my transactions with you have been superb. I hope you’ll be back!
I know how you feel. Aside from having worked retail for a decade, I do the eBay thing on the side for fun. Thankfully pretty much everyone on eBay has been pleasant to work with. There are even times when it’s fulfilling, like a time when I sold a bunch of similar calculators to a math teacher who needed them for class and I was able to give him a “thank you, teachers!” discount.
And then I get the kind of scummy customer who buys an expensive fancy HP printer, only to then do a return because they clearly regretted buying such an expensive printer and therefore lied about it not working just to justify the return. At least be honest about it!!
If it makes you feel any better, I’ve had nothing but a great experience with you guys at The Brewing Academy. The moment that sealed the deal for me about shopping with you guys was the time when—-long story short—-circumstances forced me to rush to Woodland from Roseville to pick up an item I ordered (an item that in turn was bought due to another unfortunate circumstance)… but understanding the inconvenience, you guys threw me a big bone which I admittedly was not expecting. I didn’t even hold any of the circumstances against you in the first place, so getting thrown that bone showed me how much you really care about providing great customer service.
People with big hearts tend to be the ones behind great customer service, which makes it all the more painful to see other people abuse that service for personal gain.