When A Bride-To-Be Threatens To Pull the Couple’s Business, How Should The Owner React?

SHIRLEY JONES WAS born and raised in Abingdon, a small New England town. She loved the town and couldn’t remember a time when she’d regretted her decision to leave the world of corporate finance and buy Pruet Jewelers from her retiring great uncle. As she sat at her desk one bright, sunny January day, she remembered the three admonitions her uncle left with her the day she took the keys:

1. Always let your passion drive your business.
2. Protect your name and fine reputation at all cost.
3. If you look hard enough, you’ll always find a way to make even the most difficult, most obnoxious customer happy.

Then, she looked again at the letter that had just come in the day’s mail:

Dear owner,

I am writing to request you remove my fiancé, Devin Hines, from your mailing list. I have requested he no longer purchase jewelry from your store, and instead do business with Moeller Jewelers in Westgate.

I am satisfied with the quality of your jewelry and with the selections he has made. I am extremely dissatisfied, however, with your customer service. Recently, one of my channel diamond earrings fell out of my ear and was lost. Rather than have me go without it, Devin insisted on replacing it so I would once again have a matching pair. I insisted he have it replaced “at cost,” considering how much business he does with Pruet’s. Otherwise, it wasn’t worth it to me to replace it. Unfortunately, he was given a mere $50 discount on a $500 earring (he paid $1,000 for the original pair). I find it disconcerting to know that your establishment benefited from our misfortune.

I have inquired about the practices of other local jewelers who all indicated they would have treated Devin with more respect and provided him a much better deal to encourage his future patronage. Because he wasn’t treated with this level of consideration, I insist he no longer shop at your store. He realizes how strongly I feel on this matter and has agreed to honor my wishes.

Hopefully, our circumstances will encourage you to reconsider your policy.

Sincerely,
Jenna M. Sheely

After getting past her initial anger at the arrogant and manipulative tone of the letter, Shirley pulled up Devin Hines’s file and found that he had indeed purchased a number of items over the past six years, including a strand of pearls, diamond stud earrings, the diamond hoops in question and an engagement ring. All told, he’d spent over $15,000 with the store. She also noted that, per store policy, Devin had been given an insurance valuation document with every item on which he spent $500 or more. She clearly remembered taking care of Devin when he came in for the earring replacement as well. While he asked if there might be some sort of a “break” on the price, he did not object to the 10 percent discount. She believed that he appreciated the $50 “break” and recalled that he even commented on her willingness to sell him just half of a pair.

As angry as she was with Jenna’s letter, Shirley hated the thought of losing even one customer. She picked up the phone to call Devin, but put it back down as she realized that she had no clue what she would tell him. Her first instinct was to apologize for putting him in so difficult a spot and to offer to refund part of the earring price. Good sense told her, though, that doing so would bring the value of everything else Devin had purchased into question, and would also demonstrate that Jenna’s brand of extortion was a viable strategy.

Expanded Real Deal Responses

Ilah C.
Sudbury, MA

Sorry not sorry. It sucks to lose a good customer, but she already lost him to his nutterbutter fiancée. That is a fight that cannot be won with any amount of good customer service. Leave it alone and be glad that she is not your problem moving forward.

Davy D.
Williston, ND

I would reach out to the customer as soon as possible, apologize for the situation and ask the customer if there was anything I could do to fix it. If they said no, then at least the effort was there and maybe they won’t complain to everyone and blow you up on social media. If they say yes, then I’d probably do what they wanted this one time and then I would suggest homeowner’s or renter’s insurance for future issues of that nature. Sure, the store would lose money on fixing that for cost or a little above. Chalk it up to advertising budget to keep bad word-of-mouth from spreading. I think any reasonable person would allow you the chance to take care of the problem. Some of our best customers have had major customer service issues, and how you handle that can make or break your business. Take the ego out of it. Try not to fire the customer; let them quit, if that makes sense.

Mary-Beth T.
Alliston, ON

I find this statement incredibly sexist: “Short of questioning Devin’s good sense in even considering a lifetime with a woman so demanding, what should Shirley do?”

Although I don’t believe that many jewelers would offer the earring at cost, for the client to request a substantial discount is not a “brand of extortion.” Although purchased by the fiancée, if they have a joint household income, she has every right to question the money spent in the store.

I think for the owner to invite the engaged couple into the store together, she could demonstrate that she values both equally as clients. I would offer a gift card for the cost value of the single earring for future shopping.

I’m very disappointed to see how the woman is vilified in this story. An assertive female client shouldn’t be immediately marked as a problem.

Ursula P.
Naples, FL

Dear Ms. Sheely:

Thank you for writing. I regret the loss of your earring and appreciate your frank description of the stress you felt about the replacement circumstances.

Jewelry is meant to bring joy, especially if it is a thoughtful gift from a loved one. We always want to do whatever we can to add to and sustain this joy.

So, in order to find a solution, may I invite you to visit me at the store?

Perhaps, over a cup of coffee and honestly-shared information, we can find a mutually agreeable solution?

Please, call my mobile number if we may have this opportunity.

Respectfully,

Shirley

Ralph H.
Connersville, IN

You are a one-price store or you aren’t. The earrings were likely not defective, and the customer would likely have had insurance (you provided an appraisal). No matter how low you go, you would never make a dollar’s profit again with her, they’ll never respect you, and you can bet she’ll tell all of her buddies (your customers?) how she “got one over on you.” Don’t tell her your cost (then she’ll “know” your mark-up is too high). You might have given a “nice” gift certificate on a future purchase? Keep being nice and honest, and remember the customers who really trust you.

Ernie C.
Lawrence, KS

Our store’s policy is to charge approximately half the margin on the original sale. This seems to work for both sides: lower price for customer, and enough margin to help with the fixed cost of being open.

If she wants to change store policy for this situation, she may be able to keep the customer and still retain a good relationship. This problem comes up occasionally, in my case. We treat some situations as political. If we incur a cost to retain good relations, we think of it as an advertising expense. Try to put yourself in their shoes.

If Shirley wants to keep her policy, that’s her approach to business.

These are difficult situations. We believe helping with a lost situation is usually successful. We also ask if it is insured and if that could be a solution.

Gabi M.
Tewksbury, MA

Dear Jenna,

I’m so sorry that you lost your earring. Being in the jewelry industry for so long, my heart goes out to all the lonely earrings out there that have been lost over the years! Our jewelry is priced competitively and fairly, along with the value of each piece being honest and accurate. We do not price our pieces high enough to give any large discounts. I appreciate the bond Devin and I have created over the years, and I would hate for both of us to lose that. I would like to help you further if it interests you — I could turn the earrings into locking posts and backs, at no cost to you. That should protect you from another future situation that would otherwise cause them to fall out again. I hope to hear from you soon so we can resolve this.

Thank you,

Shirley

Walter B.
West Orange, NJ

Shirley needs to deal with Jenna as Jenna has shown herself to be the decision-maker. Shirley should let Jenna know that she has thought about the situation and appreciated the letter. Shirley can offer a gift certificate to Jenna to get her in the door and win her over. She has nothing to lose.

When couples get engaged and/or move, the decision-making dynamics change. Jenna is letting Shirley know that she is now in charge of the jewelry buying decisions.

David H.
Rose Bay, New South Wales

For the client to be motivated enough to write a letter, she must have been pretty worked up. When an earring is lost, there’s often a sense in the client’s mind that the jeweler is at least partly responsible; after all, they made the earrings.

The client is waiting for a response, so I would call the client, thank her for reaching out to me and ask what would they like us to do?

Any partial refund I would consider would be in the form of a credit note.

Marcus M.
Midland, TX

Jenna sounds like an entitled brat! We have had to replace several half earrings for people and have never had someone demand it at our cost. People who are civil and have common sense can accept that it is their fault for a loss like this and own up for their mishap. Shirley does not need to bow to Jenna’s request and should steer clear of dealing with her. Maybe Shirley can send Devin a $200 gift card to her store or to a nice local restaurant. She should include a note saying she appreciates all of his business, and since she couldn’t do much about the price of the replacement earring, please accept this gift. If he is loyal and trusts Shirley, then he’ll stay on as her customer. I can’t see this being a deal-breaker unless Devin has no backbone and won’t stand up to his fiancée.

Bruce A.
Sherwood Park, AB

Dear Ms. Sheely,

I wanted to thank you for taking the time to write your thoughts on our handling of Devin’s diamond hoop purchase. I have always felt a passion for each and every one of my clients, and it easy to tell that you are driven by passion as well. The world could use more of us, don’t you agree?

I was happy to look after Devin personally when he told me about your lost earring. I pride myself in sourcing and pricing our fine jewelry so that Pruet’s can offer the best jewelry value to all of our clients. The 10 percent discount was offered because of the unfortunate circumstances.

I am very sorry to lose your business. I value each and every one of my customers. Moeler Jewelers in Westgate are excellent competitors and I know they will welcome your support.

Please find enclosed a copy of a $200 donation that I have made in your name to Soldiers’ Agents. I hope we can meet someday.

Shirley Jones

President

Noreen M.
Rochester Hills, MI

It was certainly not the store’s fault that she lost the earring. The woman was totally out of line and should have filed an insurance claim. Probably not the first time she has used this tactic. Chalk it up to an irrational person and move on. It’s not in your best interest to contact him either.