Glasses broke...

[robert]

I'm pissed. Rant starting.

I had a hair cut today, and got my glasses ruined in the process. I had put the glasses in plain view on the the table in front of me, which was the only place I thought of putting them on. Usually, the person cutting my hair takes the glasses and puts them somewhere safe. I went to a new hair cutting place - big mistake. I should have gone where I usually go.

So the girl takes off the cape when she is finished, and swoops my glasses down on the stone floor in the process. They crack. She picks them up and hands them to me without saying anything. I noticed the stone floor so I took a look at the glasses and of course they are cracked. The girl just said oh - perhaps they can fix them at store across the street.

I didn't say too much - I didn't really know what to say.

I went to the optometrist and they said it will be $87.00, so I phoned the hair stylist and asked if they would be able cover that.

The owner comes on the line and says they have no responsibility. She compares it to people having their wallet stolen from their coat, or glasses melted because they were put on a hot iron. She says it happens all the time. All the time? WTF?

I said what should I have done then? I needed my glasses so I can see the hair cut, but I needed to take them off when she was cutting my hair. The owner said over and and over, that it's my responsibility to take care of my personal belongings, not theirs.

I finally said that I find it very disappointing to hear such an attitude from a business owner, at which point she said something like, nothing we can do, and hung up on me.

Not a big expense, but it makes me angry to be treated that way. What happened to customer care? If there such a problem with personal belongings at this place, how about the employees say something to the customer about it? Or a big sign that says "don't leave your glasses on the counter, they might get wrecked and we take no responsibility".

I have had a few hair cuts in my life, but never experienced this before. The girl didn't even say sorry when the glasses went down, didn't even look at them to see if something happened to them.

If it had been my business, I would have been more understanding, and at least do something, like the next hair cut is free, or to be honest, I would try preventing such things from happening by telling my employees - make sure the customers belongings are safe. They could have a shelf for purses, glasses, etc that is safe.

I guess I just learned a lesson!
Rant over.

[hillbilly-joe]

small claims court
or you need to hire  "hillbilly joe" to do the dirty work


that really sucks

you could stand outside with a poster telling what happen and shew away customes

I personally would make the girl pay for them

[zagatron1]

Yeah, that WAS lame! The responsibility was theirs, no question. Guess the "girl" was turning a "blind eye" to the obvious, hoping the problem would just "go away". That's no better than someone doing an oil change on your ride and not putting oil back in the engine, then claim it was your responsibility. Unfortunately, that's the world we live in these days.

[Memory Lane Jr]

Very bad service no doubt, they should have insurance to cover problems like that, I certainly have in my small business.  

[GaryP]

I worked in the motorcycle industry for many years and found out how beneficial it is to just fix the problem for a customer. If the shop had just said, please get an estimate for the repair, we will look after it, or give you future credit for the same amount (which would actually cost them less) you would have been very happy and probably passed the word around. In a service  business I have found that dealing with mistakes (which will always happen) quickly and well, will gain you the most loyal customers. Unfortunately some small business owners take a very short sighted view and that will come back to haunt them eventually (we hope). I get my wife to cut my hair that way I can set my glasses right by my beer.

[reb]

robert,

i weld and grind and wreck a pair of lenses about twice a year. i have one set (older) that i use for welding. it used to really burn me to find i had a big scratch on my work glasses, in addition to the little ones, and they had become so distracting i really had to replace them....and then i found out about...

http://www.zennioptical.com/

they don't do bifocals well. i buy the cheap plastic frames.they are surprising ly good if you don't give s about 'being stylish'. otherwise, they have stylish looking ones, too. they cost me $17 + $4.99 shipping, i think. they used to last year..may have changed since i last ordered.

[DetroitBlues]

You're better off making a scene at the store then over the phone.  Bring the repair bill to the store owner and demand payment.  You'll find that when there are a lot of customers in a store, they'll do anything to prevent you from making a scene.  But let me ask you this... What would of happened if the stylist would of apologized profusely for it?

As for me, the rule of thumb is to handle my own glasses and keep them in my hand or wear my contacts that day....

[robert]

Well, my thought is that the store owner should take some responsibilities for what happens in the store. The hair stylist is just an employee. I think they should as a business make their customer feel comfortable and happy with the service, which to me includes making sure they don't wreck the customers belongings. Accidents can happen, but in order to provide basic customer care and good reputation, a store owner should show some kind of appreciation of incidents, and offer some kind of help too. They could make up a little by providing a few hair cuts gratis for me, and introduce procedures to avoid incidents with customers' belongings.

Compare it to a waitress spilling coffee over you. I have had that happen to me, and they provided the meal for free. In that case, nothing was DAMAGED, just throw the clothes in the wash and problem solved. Can't do that with my glasses though.

Anyway, I have moved on. The store owner just pissed me off with her attitude, and it sure will backfire in the end. I would have gone back if they had shown some good will. Now, I'm going to tell people to stay away from that dump of a business. In my view, a business almost always has more to lose by treating customers like dirt, compared to the small cost of making up for an incident like this.

[DetroitBlues]

Can't blame you Robert... Love my barber shop... Ladies are really nice, they bring you free beer, and I get to watch sports the whole time while listening to classic rock.... Oh, and I get a Veterans discount!

[reb]

robert, as with so many things, there is more than one way to skin the barber. being a cheap scot, i have a pair of $12 hair clippers...

http://www.clippersrus.com/

and every two weeks i do 'kojak'....front to back, side to side, rarely miss anything.

i had a picture, but i think it's too large to post, and i don't have a photo editor worth a poop to resize it.

dad used to tell me i was 'poking' the barber...and i said 'barber needs poked for $10 a haircut'.  my trimmer has been long ago amortized. pop quit laughing when his barber retired, and the lady barber who bought the business messed up his hair...then i had to cut his hair, too.

yeah, they should replace your glasses, but i doubt they're going to. in the last 5 years, nearly every 'service' or product down here has gone to poop....sell it, get the money and run. the businesses who still do service, i still do business with.

get a trimmer, set yourself free!

veritas vos liberabit!

[DetroitBlues]

I let a recently graduated from barber school cousin cut my hair a few months ago..... Never again...

[DetroitBlues]

Just looking an older video of yours Robert, I'm surprised you pay for a haircut.  Your hair is clipped evenly and short.... Almost like military recruit short.... That can be easily done yourself I would think... I've done it but I look funny like that....

[reb]

now, robert, if you're scared of cutting your own hair, i'd be glad to cut your hair if you get down here. my dad was the definition of 'picky', and he liked the haircut i gave him...i offer a haircut to women who complain about their hair every time i hear one complaining, but i get no takers. it's kind of insulting they refuse me....

the only catch with real short hair is right after it's cut, your head is cold, and removing a wool watch cap is like tearing apart velcro.

[robert]

I have been trimming my own hair for the last 2 years with an electric trimmer. Been doing fine that way. Just this time, I decided to "go fancy" before our upcoming gigs to get it done professionally. Ain't going back there!

If you go to a restaurant, and they spill a glass all over your clothes, what happens? Or what would you expect to happen? Last time it happened to me, they apologized and I didn't have to pay for the dinner.

When a store wrecks my glasses, it is my own fault?

In comparison - the clothes will dry, or if it's coffee or juice - they can be washed, so no cost really. Just inconvenience. Glasses that are broken need replacement - significant costs associated with this. Both my clothes and glasses are my Personal Property that the store may claim "they have no responsibility for". What's the difference? I guess the clothes are on me... whereas the glasses can be taken off. Perhaps if they spilled coffee on my "man-purse", backpack, etc that I removed from my body - would it be the same? Any difference here?

[DetroitBlues]

They do owe you something Robert.  As I said, complain in person and make a scene.  They'd rather cave in quietly then allow you to keep on....