I'm an avid retro game collector.
I called in to inquire about an $1800 game and asked for photos. Was told that there were photos on their Facebook page. There was a single photo of the box, but no photos of it's contents.
I asked if they could take a few photos of the game, manual, etc. This is standard practice for this type of collectible game. The employee told me that I could just come in to look at it. I explained that it would require me to leave work early and make a two hour round trip to do so. If he could take a minute to take a couple of photos, it would be greatly appreciated. He refused. I explained that the only reason I was asking was due to the cost of the game, and that this was a big purchase. I told him that this was disappointing customer service for such a high ticket item. He hung up on me.
Completely unacceptable. Throughout the whole conversation he just didn't seem interested in helping me whatsoever.
Edit: it won't allow me to reply to the owner, so I'm replying here.
Look, I understand that you want to defend your business, but you should also be concerned with the customer experience and how you can improve. You could have reached out to me in order to bury the hatchet, yet here we are.
I didn't demand discounts, I asked if the price was negotiable, since from what I can see it is above market value. He told me that he couldn't discount it since you're out of town, so I asked for photos to see if I could justify that cost. For what is potentially the most expensive item in your store, these should have been posted initially along with the other photo of it, but I digress.
If your employees are unable to post or send a photo for a business that is selling what are essentially collectibles, perhaps you should consider giving them a way to do that. Most retro stores do, and in the days of smart phones, this should be easy.
The bottom line is that you're showing no concern regarding how I was treated, and apparently believe your employee did nothing wrong.
The fact that you condone him for hanging up on a customer who was ready to spend that kind of money on a game is sad. Moreover, the fact that you're twisting things around stating that I demanded anything or argued with your employee is ridiculous and shows that you're more interested in defending your employee than getting to the bottom of things.
I've been to countless retro stores both domestically and internationally. I've never been treated so poorly, nor have I experienced an employee who had less desire to help me.
TL;DR - Store owner is more concerned with defending poor customer service than he is with improving.
Do better.
Edit #2 - It's been over a year since my initial review, and I see that you completely removed your horrible initial response and have backpedaled, which is a smart idea on your part.
You suggested that I should not have left a negative review based on my experience with an employee. I disagree. If my interaction with your company is with an employee, then that IS my customer experience. Furthermore, you suggested that I discuss this with the owner. Part of my issue is that the owner was not available that week because they were on vacation. I didn't write my review to accommodate your needs.
Telling me that the employee was fired for "more serious" reasons should clue you in to the fact that perhaps the issues that I encountered with the employee may have been a good predictor of the more serious actions that they were responsible for. I pointed out a red flag and you chose to ignore it long enough to become a bigger problem.
Lastly, if you don't want to provide a way for your employees to send customers photos of a high end item, then that is your prerogative. However, your competition is doing this on a regular basis and it's resulting in increased sales. Have it your way.
I spend 5 figures a year on video games. If this was handled correctly you would have probably gotten a good chunk of my business. Now you'll never see another...
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