DSF

Andrew;33898 wrote:It's upto us as the supplier to then take it up with our courier. Basic customer service.

100% agree!

The boxes I received looked ok, were double boxed and there was no rattling - its only when you open them up and find that they are cracked, broken or chipped. Its down to the packaging, a poly bag isn't going to protect the mug if the thin boxes are bashed in transit, from outer mongolia or wherever they are made these days.

I too agree that any breakages should be paid for by the supplier - but in the few years i've been sending mugs out, i've only ever had one broken mug. Its how you wrap/box them that counts and unfortunately the ones in question, the packaging just isn't up to the job.

Just my two peneth, lesson learned - cheap isn't always best.

Andrew;33896 wrote:Plenty of people provide direct praise but are frightened to do the opposite.

The reason for this is that negative comments on a public forum leave you open to accusations of libel. No one's going to take you to court for praising a company, but see how quickly it happens if you do the opposite. Doesn't matter if you're right or wrong, most people here are small businesses or individuals who have neither the time nor the money to stand a court case. That's why people are frightened to post negative experiences. I sure can't blame them for that.

Ian M;33887 wrote:The supplier in question has emailed me saying he has refunded me through Paypal but, I didn't pay through Paypal. I'm now wondering where my refund has gone & still annoyed that it cost me £15 to send the faulty mugs back.....Grrrrrrrrr....not a happy bunny.

This is the grey area in the Sale of Goods Act. If you buy as a consumer, you shouldn't be out of pocket because of receiving faulty items - which would include postage. If you buy as a business, it depends on the sales contract. If you buy as a consumer, you'd be able to use the DSR. As a business, probably not.

A reputable company will always do the right thing. Although I've rarely received broken mugs (at least, not from the three suppliers I currently buy from), I have had a situation with broken plates - the 12" dinner plate versions. These arrived broken because of being badly packed - just a small piece of bubble wrap between each one, so they hit each other during transit and broke.

The supplier sent out replacements immediately. Unfortunately, these were just as badly packed and all were broken. The supplier sent out a second set of replacements immediately. This time they were properly packed (each one wrapped individually in several layers of bubble).

That supplier ended up well out of pocket on that order (well, it was their fault), but they didn't hesitate to send out replacements - and they certainly didn't ask for the broken ones back at my expense (all I did was to send a photo to prove they were broken and to show the inadequate packaging).

Some suppliers do put their customers first. Any that make you out of pocket through no fault of your own is a supplier to avoid. After all, if they think more of that £15 postage than they do about their customers, then they don't exactly come across as a supplier that'll be around in the long term. What's £15 to any business?

Of all the mugs I've sent out, only one arrived broken (because I'd run out of polystyrene boxes and thought I could get away with bubble wrap and a box). I saw no advantage in getting it sent back, so long as the customer sent me a photo to prove it was broken. I just printed up a fresh one and sent it out FOC. That's what you do if you want to build a solid reputation amongst your customers for doing the right thing.

JSR;33905 wrote:The reason for this is that negative comments on a public forum leave you open to accusations of libel. No one's going to take you to court for praising a company, but see how quickly it happens if you do the opposite. Doesn't matter if you're right or wrong, most people here are small businesses or individuals who have neither the time nor the money to stand a court case. That's why people are frightened to post negative experiences. I sure can't blame them for that.

Also on top of that you find some others who will jump to that suppliers defence to the point where you feel you wished you had just kept quiet about it.

There have just been 2 occassions where individual mugs of mine have arrived damaged thanks to the Post Office. I did the same as Jonathan & asked the customer to send me a photo which they did & I replaced the mugs FOC. The thanks I recieved from both customers made it all worthwhile as they thought they had recieved good customer service. In fact both customers keep coming back to me for more items so, it was worth being out of pocket to keep their custom.

Thing is we have to treat customers as the most important person in the world because without them we wouldn't be in business would we.

Mugs is really an easily solved one. If they come broken and they arent replaced I wouldnt use that supplier again. Its the things like placemats and coasters and all these items that come badly packed and then chip or the baize is about 5 degrees off the back. Items that you tend to put to one side to get some back on and you dont. Travel mugs arent a cheap item but you find marks on them. If they were pence then you just put it down to larkums but they arent.


Another bug bear is T shirt suppliers who put t shirts in a box not in bags. (If you have a split qty) - god I am a moaner ;0)

I wouldn't personally worry about libel on a forum when it's just personal opinion. Also, I don't think you should take it to personal if people have a different view of a supplier as balanced opinion is what is needed. I know what I think of most of the suppliers out there now having been at it for quite a few years and I will happily discuss it..... both good and bad. If people don't agree it's just personal experience and opinion so no big problem. I know why both of you (JSR and Ian) have reservations on this as I remember the threads but I certainly wouldn't want anyone to stop posting their real thoughts. Doesn't mean everyone has to agree but we are not here to solely do that. I know I do things in the subli game where 95% of you would slag me off and wouldn't understand but I'll still back my corner.

gstk;33915 wrote:Another bug bear is T shirt suppliers who put t shirts in a box not in bags. (If you have a split qty) - god I am a moaner ;0)

And the small T-shirts for teddies. They look like they've been sewn together by a mad blind man wearing sunglasses sitting in a coal cellar with the light out sometimes.

Andrew;33916 wrote:I wouldn't personally worry about libel on a forum when it's just personal opinion. Also, I don't think you should take it to personal if people have a different view of a supplier as balanced opinion is what is needed. I know what I think of most of the suppliers out there now having been at it for quite a few years and I will happily discuss it..... both good and bad. If people don't agree it's just personal experience and opinion so no big problem. I know why both of you (JSR and Ian) have reservations on this as I remember the threads but I certainly wouldn't want anyone to stop posting their real thoughts. Doesn't mean everyone has to agree but we are not here to solely do that. I know I do things in the subli game where 95% of you would slag me off and wouldn't understand but I'll still back my corner.

It's the one making the comment/expressing their opinion that has to back their corner, though, which is fine until legal action is instigated.

Also, it's a slippery slope. How do you know what is a genuine opinion/grievance and what is a shill set up to bring a rival company into disrepute?

Suppliers who are subject to these negativities could also bring pressure to bear on Justin, as the owner of this forum, for allowing such comments.

I'd love to rant on about the history of "iffy" products I've bought over the years from certain suppliers, but it won't serve anything except to cause trouble and friction. It's safer for me to use the "one strike rule" and then tell friends/colleagues privately about the issues.