Silver Sparrow Beads — Local services in Colorado Springs

I visited this store to find a very specific type of beads needed for a necklace I am making. Upon browsing, I overheard a conversation between another lady who entered the shop shortly after me, and a woman, who later said she was the owner. The other customer wanted to try and fix a necklace and kindly mentioned she was of course willing to purchase something/whatever she needed to repair it. The owner continued to say that repair is not usually allowed unless you buy something - to which the other customer kept saying, “of course, I’m happy to buy whatever I need”. The owner defended herself by saying the table, with at least six empty chairs, was reserved for people making new jewelry with materials which they bought at the shop. The customer mentioned she spoke to someone on the phone earlier who said it would be okay, and continued to politely say, “of course I’ll purchase something”. The owner sort of scoffed and said something like, “oh, you must have talked to so-and-so, they aren’t the owner, they just work here, I’m the owner”. It was such a disappointing interaction to overhear that I left shortly after. They had very nice selection but I did not feel good supporting the business. I work in a customer centric industry and am well aware that some people can be a pain. This customer was being genuinely polite and kind, even when met with attitude and pushback. I don’t usually get rubbed the wrong way by stuff like this but just won’t return after seeing someone be treated this way for seemingly no reason. I understand people have bad days, but this left a really...

Unfortunately my experience left very frustrated and it was really a simple communication error. I had purchased a couple strands of beads and took them home and realized they were not what I was looking for. I live 20 minutes away so I usually call a head of time so I don’t waste a long trip. I called to see if I could return the beads because I didn’t see anything on the return policy nor was I told anything about it by the saleswoman . It was not anywhere on the receipt either so I called first. I was very specific and told her what I wanted and that I had the tags and the beads were still on the strings and everything. She told me typically the don’t like to do that once the beads leave the store. I would have been fine with that but she said,” but since they are still on the string and if you have the receipt then bring them in so we can see what you could do for you.” I get in and she says we’ll we can’t give you a refund but can exchange. If she had just said that on the phone I wouldn’t have drove all that way. She just shrugged and said sorry but I didn’t know what you wanted me to do. I told her exactly what I wanted on the phone. She just needed to give me a direct and accurate answer. Incredibly frustrating. My first time buying here and I don’t believe I’ll return. Small businesses can have whatever return policy they choose but please let your customers know and give accurate information to those calling. You don’t know how far they may...

Laura (or Lauren, I forget) is absolutely wonderful and honestly the only reason why I'm giving this store 3 stars instead of 1 star. She was kind, professional, and informative.

I'm a business owner. I have been for over a year now. I have my correct licensing to be able to recieve discounts from stores that offer them to people like me. Unfortunately, I didn't have my information on my person; however, Laura said that she believed me and that she had no problem giving me the discount. I was super thankful and was honestly okay with paying full price if it came down to it.

Here's where my issue starts: Whoever was working along side her July 26th, was incredibly rude. She made a huge deal about me not having my paperwork. She belittled me and insinuated that I was a liar to her coworker. During my checkout process, I felt embarrassed because she was ranting about me in front of other guests.

I feel like that entire discourse should not have been discussed in front of me. She was saying things like "people lie" and "she's not even local". This was right after I was telling Laura my husband and I plan on moving to the area and we were checking out the local shops to meet people. That part of our interaction disappointed and discouraged me the most.

Unfortunately, after that, I won't be back. The ONLY reason why I'm not giving this store 1 star is because the first woman I was interacting with was super kind and the beads...