Banter by Piercing Pagoda — Local services in Glendale

0 STARS!!!! I have made many purchases at this exact stand in the mall near Dillards and have never had an issue—until today. Upon my arrival a female employee was assisting another customer before the manager assisted us. As soon as the customer walked away the two female employees started immediately gossiping about the customers ears. Only once they were done realized they had customers behind them and came to assist us. We spoke with the on-shift manager, Elysia, about a bracelet I had purchased the day before that had already broken. I was informed that Banter has a no-return policy for damaged items, even with a warranty, and that my only option was to exchange it for a new bracelet or another item of equal value. I agreed to the exchange, and when Elysia rang me up, I was told that there had been a price increase overnight. She explained that she adjusted the price back to what I originally paid, but the warranty price had gone up, so I had no choice but to pay the difference.

My husband and I left with the new bracelet but quickly realized that we didn’t want to keep an item that would likely continue to break, leading to repeated exchanges. We decided to return to the stand and request a return of the new, undamaged bracelet—finding a loophole in their policy. Elysia, visibly annoyed, took the bracelet and began processing the return. As we stood there silently, she made a passive-aggressive comment, saying she wished we had returned it before she removed the tag, insinuating that we had planned this from the start.

When it came time for my husband to complete the refund transaction, he attempted to tap his card, and it declined. Elysia turned around and rudely told him, “I said to INSERT the card.” My husband, who is hard of hearing due to being a veteran, politely responded, “Sorry, I’m hard of hearing.” Instead of showing basic customer service or professionalism, she sarcastically replied, “Would you rather I sign for you?”

At that point, it was clear that the level of customer service at Banter only applies when you’re making a purchase—not when you need assistance with an issue. A manager should never make unnecessary, condescending remarks, especially when dealing with a veteran with a hearing impairment/service related disability. While I have been a loyal customer in the past, this experience has completely changed my view of this establishment. I hope Banter addresses this issue and ensures their staff, especially managers, are properly trained in customer service and respectful...

Long-short story. I bought a medal at the Banter at the Arrowhead mall -by Dillar’s, first floor-. I told the lady that was a gift for a friend and she offered a gift box. While she was packing the medal I went to chase the baby I take care of and in less than a minute came back and they hand me a bag with the gift box inside. I tied the bag into the tricycle/stroller of the baby, with a double knot and walked chasing the bay all the way to the other side of the mall. Once she was playing I untied the bag from the tricycle to see the medal and when opening the box, there was another cloth bag with nothing inside. I put the little girl on the tricycle and came back as soon as I could to ask the lady where was the medal, only to hear “I place it in there myself, I’m the manager, we can ask for the surveillance videos from the mall, I’ll call you tomorrow”. There was no way that the medal disappear like that. I left the place crying, because I paid $131 for the medal (thanks God I open the box before giving it to my friend, that should be so embarrassing) and even that I have two jobs, I don’t have the necessity or urge to steal or lie. Obviously the lady didn’t call me back today, so I went back to the mall and she wasn’t there, but the lady that was there called her. Her response was “she said that we can’t do anything, the merchandise left the place, you can’t see the videos from the mall if there’s no police report”. And yes, I began crying again, not because I lost the money, but because I trusted, so PLEASE, if you are a hard worker as me, ALWAYS open your box/bag to be sure that you have what you paid for. I hope that whoever took the medal like it or need really badly the money. Worst experience ever. I wouldn’t come back, I would never recommend the place and yes, I’ll fill out a...

Great staff and amazing service. I took two of my nieces - one to get her ears pierced, the other to get her cartilage pierced, and I decided to get a second set of piercings in my ears at the same time. Amanda was incredibly patient and helpful with suggestions as we each picked out our earrings for the piercings, as well as sets for after our piercings healed. (Couldn't pass up 50% off with the purchase of a piercing.) She also took the time to answer all of our many questions about the different types of metals, healing periods, and concerns I've had with past piercings. When it came time for the piercings, Amanda thoroughly cleaned the chair we would sit in as well as the piercing gun (which is even more assuring nowadays). She was then very careful to position the holes just right, and was gentle and calming when performing the actual piercing. Neither of my nieces flinched at all, and even though I dreaded the pain, however small, Amanda was so careful that I felt safe and calm, and I barely felt more than a small pinch.

To be honest, I was initially very skeptical of getting any piercings done here and thought I should instead take my nieces to a piercing shop, but after this experience, I'm glad we came here. I don't think we would have received the same level of care and service anywhere else. Amanda was a blessing, and I would absolutely go back...