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OUpearlgirl

OUpearlgirl

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Ok, so I work for a Bridal Boutique... A friend of mine ordered her dress from us back in January. When we order the company gives us an estimated ship date, confirmation numbers, etc.

A dress that is the same style as this friend, let''s call her Anna, came in last week. At first I thought it was hers, so we looked up her order page. It was not her size and belonged to another bride. But, her estimated ship date was May 15. So, when the dress hadn''t arrived by Friday, my boss got nervous.

She called our brand rep who then started looking into it. It turns out that they ordered the dress, but the manufacturer never made it! Her wedding is August 15. The brand rep assured us that they can have the dress to us no later than July 15. That gives her a month for alterations, bridal pictures, etc.

My boss has offered her our sample and will pay for the alterations to have it sized down to her. I know she will offer her shoes, a veil, etc. All for free.

Well, Anna is making a big stink of this on facebook. Saying our store never ordered her dress and talking about how she wants to beat up my boss.. She told me that the store has not given her any options and has not handled the situation well at all..

My question is this, if you were this bride, what could we do to make this right? I realize that this is a terrible situation and she must be feeling really stressed, but I think she is a little out of line.
 
Oupear-If I''m looking at this from the perspective of a bride (mind you my "bride" stint was only for three months), there isn''t much that the store would be able to do for me not to be upset. Everything that your boss is offering is what a good boutique would do (maybe even more so with the offer of free shoes and veil). But as for calming this bride down, I''m afraid it may not happen until she sees the final product and that life did not end. For a bride, not having your dress ready within 60 days of the wedding can feel like the end of the world.

So for your boss, I would continue to carry on a professional demeanor. I''m sure that Anna will get the dress she loves in the end.
 
Honestly, the only thing you could do for me would be to keep bugging the manufacturer to make sure I got my dress asap. Not that there is anything wrong with a sample dress, but if I ordered a new dress and was told a couple of months before my wedding that they forgot to make it I would be really upset, and free shoes, veil, etc would not make me feel better. At that point I already had my shoes and veil. As for what she posts on FB I think that''s irrelevant. The fact that you and she are friends should have nothing to do with the store''s obligation to get her dress as ordered (understanding that it wasn''t their mistake).
 
I''m sorry to hear this.

There is not much you can do other than to keep apologizing. Has your manager already offered her these other things?
 
I think you just need to ignore her status updates for a while. She''s stressed, understandably mad, and she''s letting it out. This *will* be okay, life *will* go on, but if you say anything to her as a friend, you risk representing the store when you say it. So I''d just let your manager take care of it, and trust that she''ll calm down when she sees the world isn''t actually crumbling around her. (I''m not trying to dismiss how she feels, because I''d be livid. But I do think things will calm down in a week or two.)
 
Yes, she has offered these things as well as free alterations when the dress arrives. She''s offered to give her a full refund for the dress if she decides she''d rather find another one. I realize that this shouldn''t have happened, but I don''t really think it''s the stores fault. It''s the manufacturer''s fault.

The reason that it''s bad that it is all over facebook is that people are leaving comments like "I will never shop there" etc. It''s bad publicity and she isn''t even saying true things on there.

I''m sad that this happened to ANY bride, much less someone I am friends with.

The owner is working with our rep, who is very nice, and he is doing everything he can to speed the process up. I personally think the designer should at least give her a partial refund. My boss is working on that, but who knows what will happen.
 
Date: 6/3/2009 3:03:37 PM
Author: OUpeargirl

The reason that it''s bad that it is all over facebook is that people are leaving comments like ''I will never shop there'' etc. It''s bad publicity and she isn''t even saying true things on there.
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That''s true, but it potentially happens with every stuff up. You just know about it this time. All you can do is offer over-the-top amazing customer service, and make sure when she calms down that she''s TOTALLY clear on who screwed up (and the CS will help with that). You honestly can''t stop her from putting that on FB. Then it''ll just look like the store is trying to intimidate her to be quiet.
 
mistakes happen! yes it is frustrating, but as long as your manager is really apologetic it sounds like your store has handled everything well. new shoes, free alterations, and the gown is still ready a month before the wedding? that sounds like a good deal to me.
 
Date: 6/3/2009 3:03:37 PM
Author: OUpeargirl
Yes, she has offered these things as well as free alterations when the dress arrives. She's offered to give her a full refund for the dress if she decides she'd rather find another one. I realize that this shouldn't have happened, but I don't really think it's the stores fault. It's the manufacturer's fault.

The reason that it's bad that it is all over facebook is that people are leaving comments like 'I will never shop there' etc. It's bad publicity and she isn't even saying true things on there.

I'm sad that this happened to ANY bride, much less someone I am friends with.

The owner is working with our rep, who is very nice, and he is doing everything he can to speed the process up. I personally think the designer should at least give her a partial refund. My boss is working on that, but who knows what will happen.
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Please don't take this the wrong way, I'm not trying to point fingers:

I get that you don't think it's your store's fault, and I understand you all placed the order. However, why didn't anyone call back on the 15th of May to see why the dress hadn't come in?
Having managed a salon before, we got tracking sheets from the manufacturer before the dresses shipped, and if we hadn't gotten that sheet at least a week before the "quoted date" we called to see what the hold up was, so that we could inform the bride ahead of time, that it was running late.

To her as a bride, it looks like her dress wasn't a priority. To be honest, I would probably be thanking my lucky stars that the other girl's dress came in, or there is a possibility that your store still wouldn't know it wasn't being made.

It sucks that she is talking badly all over facebook, but you can't keep her from sharing her feelings. She probably just very hurt and angry, but as a bride, you can't really blame her.

ETA: I would be calling that manufacturer every week, and calling your friend with weekly updates as to how the dress is coming along and the expected date. Just keep apologizing.

ETA2: Change "I" in the previous statement to "Your manager".
 
Oh, so sorry to hear this.......that''s why I tend not to blend business w/friends.
Your boss has been generous, but let''s face it, he/she should be.
I''d stay away from the situation including facebook because at this point is between your boss and Anna.
If I were the bride, would def take your boss offer AS LONG AS we aren''t talking size 14 to a 2, ..... maybe willing look for something similar/slightly higher in value $ince samples have been tried on
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If sample is in immaculate condition/prof cleaned and closer to my size, why not? Just my opinion, Good Luck.
 
Date: 6/3/2009 3:17:21 PM
Author: meresal
Date: 6/3/2009 3:03:37 PM

Author: OUpeargirl

Yes, she has offered these things as well as free alterations when the dress arrives. She''s offered to give her a full refund for the dress if she decides she''d rather find another one. I realize that this shouldn''t have happened, but I don''t really think it''s the stores fault. It''s the manufacturer''s fault.


The reason that it''s bad that it is all over facebook is that people are leaving comments like ''I will never shop there'' etc. It''s bad publicity and she isn''t even saying true things on there.


I''m sad that this happened to ANY bride, much less someone I am friends with.


The owner is working with our rep, who is very nice, and he is doing everything he can to speed the process up. I personally think the designer should at least give her a partial refund. My boss is working on that, but who knows what will happen.
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Please don''t take this the wrong way, I''m not trying to point fingers:


I get that you don''t think it''s your store''s fault, and I understand you all placed the order. However, why didn''t anyone call back on the 15th of May to see why the dress hadn''t come in?

Having managed a salon before, we got tracking sheets from the manufacturer before the dresses shipped, and if we hadn''t gotten that sheet at least a week before the ''quoted date'' we called to see what the hold up was, so that we could inform the bride ahead of time, that it was running late.


To her as a bride, it looks like her dress wasn''t a priority. To be honest, I would probably be thanking my lucky stars that the other girl''s dress came in, or there is a possibility that your store still wouldn''t know it wasn''t being made.


It sucks that she is talking badly all over facebook, but you can''t keep her from sharing her feelings. She probably just very hurt and angry, but as a bride, you can''t really blame her.


ETA: I would be calling that manufacturer every week, and calling your friend with weekly updates as to how the dress is coming along and the expected date. Just keep apologizing.
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I''m not taking any offense!

The ship dates are estimates and that is the day it is expected to be shipped to us. Usually they arrive one week past the ship date. The dress would have been noticed missing regardless of the other dress. When we got it I exclaimed "Oh this must be Anna''s dress!" because we knew it should have been arriving last week. The latest we expected to receive the dress was Friday, when it did not come then, my boss called to see what the hold up was. I don''t know how she handles everything and if she gets tracking sheets, etc. This is a reputable, big name designer BTW. We''re a new store (open less than a year) and we''re learning things along the way. I never expected a manufacturer to just FORGET a dress.

I don''t blame her at alllll for being hurt, stressed, and upset. I''m just wishing there were more I could do to make it better.
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I don''t know how to make her happy, but I know how to stop the FB badmouthing- Accuse her of "slander" and threaten to file a law suit
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But... I kid, I kid.

She is going to be stressed, no matter what. And actually, while she has a right to be agitated, tell her to badmouth the manufacturer and not the store. You''re doing everything within your power to remedy the situation. Honestly, if I was a the store owner, I''d probably give her half of her money back, even knowing that it isn''t MY fault. It is the best way to remove the bad taste from her mouth and guarantee future business. A sincere apology and money- even if it means the store owner has to swallow her pride and take the blame for who was actually in the wrong.

...I, for one, NEVER want to work in the bridal industry. Engaged women are some craaaaazy b*tch*.
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I know from VERY personal experience
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Date: 6/3/2009 3:41:30 PM
Author: PilsnPinkysMom
I don''t know how to make her happy, but I know how to stop the FB badmouthing- Accuse her of ''slander'' and threaten to file a law suit
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But... I kid, I kid.


She is going to be stressed, no matter what. And actually, while she has a right to be agitated, tell her to badmouth the manufacturer and not the store. You''re doing everything within your power to remedy the situation. Honestly, if I was a the store owner, I''d probably give her half of her money back, even knowing that it isn''t MY fault. It is the best way to remove the bad taste from her mouth and guarantee future business. A sincere apology and money- even if it means the store owner has to swallow her pride and take the blame for who was actually in the wrong.


...I, for one, NEVER want to work in the bridal industry. Engaged women are some craaaaazy b*tch*.
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I know from VERY personal experience
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Haha even though the situations aren''t the same... this totally reminded me of what happened to you! I hope we handle ourselves much better than that store!
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Honestly, everything has been so pleasant working there, I expected more flare ups and drama! In less than a year this is far and away the worst problem we have had!
 
Sorry to go off-topic, but do you work at the bridal salon kinda by City Bites? I was thinking it''s also on Tehcumseh, but I could be confused, as I''m not in that area of Norman much. When my mom was here a few weeks ago, we stopped in and looked at a few dresses, even though I''m not expecting to be engaged for a several more weeks! Just wanted to see if this was the same place...
 
Hehe yes! Who knows, I could have worked with you! :) Once you get engaged I hope you make an appointment!
 
I definitely will! My mom and aunts and possibly bridesmaids will be back in mid-July for a big shopping trip to give me a break from class, so I will be sure to make an appointment!
 
Ou... I would get on the phone with the brand rep, the manufacturer, and then someone higher up and tell them POINT BLANK that their screw up is directly impacting your business reputation, that you have tried VERY hard to build in what is a BAD economy. And that this is UNACCEPTABLE. And then I would tell them that since their OTHER shipping dates are estimates they can push out a couple orders as SURELY they can make the dress faster than JULY 15. TELL THEM that THEY MUST have it to you by June 19th AT THE LATEST, and that is IN HAND, even if they have to fed ex it to you overnight.

Unless this is a custom order then ANY bridal house has a few of the same dress in production at any given time. Tell them to give you someone else's dress and give THAT person's dress to them in July.

This is their mistake. And it is impacting YOUR reputation, YOUR business, and YOUR viability. Not okay.

I would be livid. I would understand and appreciate what you were trying to do. But I would BE LIVID as a bride and July 15 would be unacceptable to me. If the manufacturer can't do anything more (after several levels of escalation) then you know you've done what you can. AND YOU TELL THAT BRAND REP THAT SHE IS PERSONALLY GOING TO APOLOGIZE TO THAT BRIDE, with a phone call or a note or SOMETHING-- FLOWERS, something. To make it clear where exactly the blame lies. It's about accountability. And if you guys did nothing wrong, then you make sure those who did are held accountable to that bride.
 
Date: 6/3/2009 7:03:09 PM
Author: Gypsy
Ou... I would get on the phone with the brand rep, the manufacturer, and then someone higher up and tell them POINT BLANK that their screw up is directly impacting your business reputation, that you have tried VERY hard to build in what is a BAD economy. And that this is UNACCEPTABLE. And then I would tell them that since their OTHER shipping dates are estimates they can push out a couple orders as SURELY they can make the dress faster than JULY 15. TELL THEM that THEY MUST have it to you by June 19th AT THE LATEST, and that is IN HAND, even if they have to fed ex it to you overnight.


Unless this is a custom order then ANY bridal house has a few of the same dress in production at any given time. Tell them to give you someone else''s dress and give THAT person''s dress to them in July.


This is their mistake. And it is impacting YOUR reputation, YOUR business, and YOUR viability. Not okay.


I would be livid. I would understand and appreciate what you were trying to do. But I would BE LIVID as a bride and July 15 would be unacceptable to me. If the manufacturer can''t do anything more (after several levels of escalation) then you know you''ve done what you can. AND YOU TELL THAT BRAND REP THAT SHE IS PERSONALLY GOING TO APOLOGIZE TO THAT BRIDE, with a phone call or a note or SOMETHING-- FLOWERS, something. To make it clear where exactly the blame lies. It''s about accountability. And if you guys did nothing wrong, then you make sure those who did are held accountable to that bride.
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Gypsy- that is exactly how I feel about this whole ordeal. It ticks me off to no end. We''ve been busting our buts and something beyond our control is damaging our reputation. I like your suggestions and when I go into work tomorrow I''ll bring them up to my boss!
 
Date: 6/3/2009 6:47:54 PM
Author: summertime
I definitely will! My mom and aunts and possibly bridesmaids will be back in mid-July for a big shopping trip to give me a break from class, so I will be sure to make an appointment!
Click to expand...


Woo hoo!! Hopefully it is on a day that I will be in the shop!
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Date: 6/3/2009 3:03:37 PM
Author: OUpeargirl
Yes, she has offered these things as well as free alterations when the dress arrives. She''s offered to give her a full refund for the dress if she decides she''d rather find another one. I realize that this shouldn''t have happened, but I don''t really think it''s the stores fault. It''s the manufacturer''s fault.

The reason that it''s bad that it is all over facebook is that people are leaving comments like ''I will never shop there'' etc. It''s bad publicity and she isn''t even saying true things on there.

I''m sad that this happened to ANY bride, much less someone I am friends with.

The owner is working with our rep, who is very nice, and he is doing everything he can to speed the process up. I personally think the designer should at least give her a partial refund. My boss is working on that, but who knows what will happen.
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It sounds like the store is trying to be very accomodating- I would be thankful that your company didn''t just say ''tough''.

Some people just always need to complain about things and get sympathy from others
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Date: 6/3/2009 3:41:30 PM
Author: PilsnPinkysMom
I don''t know how to make her happy, but I know how to stop the FB badmouthing- Accuse her of ''slander'' and threaten to file a law suit
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Or you could just stand on your pedistool and speak poor grammEr to her. That ALWAYS works ;) *giggles*

PS Did things finally get resolved for you Pils? *hugs*
 
News: As resolved as they''ll ever be, you know? It is what it is.


OU: Updates??? How is your friend doing?
 
Date: 6/4/2009 11:34:21 AM
Author: PilsnPinkysMom
News: As resolved as they''ll ever be, you know? It is what it is.



OU: Updates??? How is your friend doing?
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I''m going in to work this afternoon.. So I guess I''ll get updates then. Friend said she is deciding what she wants to do by Friday. In this case I think the best thing for her to do is just wait for the dress to come in, she would still have a month. We do in house alterations and our seamstress would put her dress as a priority (maybe even complete alterations in a day or two), so I think the dress can come in and be perfect weeks before her wedding. I''m still so steamed at the manufacturer for forgetting her dress, but what can ya do?
 
Thinking about the types of things we do when we get slammed for a mistake --

I hope your boss has looked at things she can do to help prevent incidents like this from happening again. It might have been primarily the manufacturer''s fault, but as Meresal pointed out, there might be procedures your shop can add to identify problems earlier on. Just saying "it wasn''t our fault" will not turn your friend''s facebook comments around, no matter how many freebies are thrown her way. Put yourself in her place -- would you recommend this shop to a friend, knowing there''s a possibility that this could happen again?

If she has done that, I think it might be useful to let the bride know (preferably in writing, as part of the apology) that you have identified ways to ensure that this will not be repeated. Asside from addressing the referral question, your friend will get to feel like she had a role in ensuring that other brides will not have to go through the same thing.

I work in a totally unrelated industry, but when we make mistakes like this they get noticed right away -- certainly by our customers, and often by the press.
 
We already have added a new system of double checking to make sure this won''t happen again. I guess my boss just never thought that if they charged her CC, gave her a ship date, confirmation number, etc... That something like this can happen! Now that we know, it won''t happen again.

She has calmed down a lot. We are covering all of her alterations, giving her a percentage off of the dress, and also a $100 credit to the store for anything else she might want (shoes, veils, headpieces, and the like).

We also argued with the company and they moved up the date by two weeks. It will arive at the first of July. Hopefully this will help smooth things over. Mother, bride, and fiance (all of them called) have calmed down considerably and realize that 5-6 weeks for alterations and everything else will still give them enough time.
 
I really hate it when stores point fingers and say, "It''s the manufactures fault" I really do. It IS the manufactures fault, but as a customer, I don''t want to hear that. It doesn''t make me any more forgiving to the store. I believe since the customer is working with the store, then ultimately, the store is responsible for ensuring that the order comes in, OR that it comes in as soon as possible. July 1st for me is NOT as soon as possible. It does not take a month to make a wedding dress. A manufacture with a steller reputation makes this dress their #1 priority. And a store with excellent customer service does everything, and throws everything at the manufacturer to ensure that this dress is their #1 priority.

And I think she has a right to slam the boutique on FB if she wants. This is her wedding day, it means the world to her. And the store dropped the ball, regardless of who''s fault it is. If a PS er had written this experience, as her own, we would ALL be LIVID for her.
 
Date: 6/5/2009 6:31:31 AM
Author: allycat0303
I really hate it when stores point fingers and say, ''It''s the manufactures fault'' I really do. It IS the manufactures fault, but as a customer, I don''t want to hear that. It doesn''t make me any more forgiving to the store. I believe since the customer is working with the store, then ultimately, the store is responsible for ensuring that the order comes in, OR that it comes in as soon as possible. July 1st for me is NOT as soon as possible. It does not take a month to make a wedding dress. A manufacture with a steller reputation makes this dress their #1 priority. And a store with excellent customer service does everything, and throws everything at the manufacturer to ensure that this dress is their #1 priority.


And I think she has a right to slam the boutique on FB if she wants. This is her wedding day, it means the world to her. And the store dropped the ball, regardless of who''s fault it is. If a PS er had written this experience, as her own, we would ALL be LIVID for her.
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Oh, I know. I am livid for my friend. I''d be upset for ANY bride at our store. We get fairly close with our clients and honestly do care about them.
If I ran the store, there would have been measures taken to ensure that this didn''t happen in the first place. I''m just a measly sales associate though. My boss has been on the phone with the manufacturer multiple times every day since this discovery. She has gotten them to move up the date 3 weeks from their original quote. She''s hoping to continue to do so, but the bride is OK with July 1.

Her mother even complimented us on our customer service and said she appreciates everything we have done in a terrible situation. My friend has considerably calmed down and apologized for writing it all over facebook. I feel awful about what happened but I''m glad we could make my friend happy.
 
Date: 6/5/2009 11:15:35 AM
Author: OUpeargirl
I''m glad we could make my friend happy.
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Me too! It sounds like you guys have done a great job with trying to make the situation as acceptable as possible for your friend. I got my dress only 7 weeks before my wedding and I was never worried about it not being ready in time. I''m sure things will turn out well as long as the manufacturer holds up their end of the bargain.
 
UPDATE!

I forgot to update all of you ladies! Well, my boss ended up realllllly pushing for the dress to be in earlier, and we got it 2 weeks ago! It fits very well and now "Anna" is calling us "miracle workers" and cannot stop singing the stores praises.

I''m just SO glad everything worked out. I''m SO glad she got her dress with plenty of time for all she hoped to get done!
 
Glad to hear it all worked out!! Has your manager changed any of the policies regarding checking in on dresses at the manufacturer?
 
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